Pope Francis Shows Clear Bruises on Chin and Neck... Startled Cardinals

Woke Up the Previous Morning and Bumped Jaw on the Bedside Table

Pope Francis appeared with noticeable bruises under his right jaw and on the upper part of his neck.

Yonhap News Agency reported on the 8th, citing foreign media reports, that Pope Francis attended a consistory for the creation of new cardinals at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on that day, and visible bruises were seen on his jaw area.

The Pope's office stated that the bruises were caused when the Pope hit his jaw on a bedside table while getting up the previous morning.

On the 7th (local time), Pope Francis attending the Synod of Cardinals shows a bruise mark on his chin. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

Pope Francis, who ascended to the papacy in 2013, has raised health concerns in recent years due to frequent illnesses. In 2017, while visiting Colombia, he was injured when the Popemobile, an open-top vehicle specially designed for the Pope, suddenly stopped, causing him to hit his head against the car window. Since spring 2022, his right knee and back pain have worsened, and he has been relying on a wheelchair or cane to carry out his schedule.

On this day, the Pope bestowed red birettas and cardinal rings on 21 new cardinals, calling them "people from diverse backgrounds and cultures" and asking them to be "witnesses of fraternity, places of communion, and builders of unity." Since Pope Francis's ascension in 2013, this was the tenth consistory held for the creation of new cardinals.

Cardinals are the highest-ranking clergy in the Catholic Church after the Pope. Cardinals under the age of 80 have voting rights in the conclave, the assembly that elects the next Pope. To be elected as the new Pope, a candidate must receive at least two-thirds of the votes in the conclave.

Pope Francis, with a bruise on his chin, is attending the College of Cardinals meeting at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on the 7th (local time). Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

Through ten consistories, Pope Francis has personally appointed about 80% of the cardinals with voting rights in the conclave, establishing a succession structure to continue his reforms. The Pope has worked to create a more inclusive and universal church by increasing the proportion of cardinals from Africa, Asia, and Latin America rather than Europe.

Foreign media, citing Vatican statistics, reported that when Pope Francis was elected, fewer than 50 countries had cardinals with voting rights in the conclave, but now that number has expanded to at least 67 countries.