Pope returns to Vatican after hospital stay

VATICAN CITY -- Waving to crowds from his brightly lit popemobile, Pope John Paul II returned to the Vatican Thursday after a 10-day hospital stay, declared cured of breathing spasms that fueled concerns about the frail pontiff's ability to remain in charge of the Roman Catholic Church.

The pope's return -- a hastily arranged procession with a touch of pageantry designed to show the world he has recovered -- was broadcast live on Italian television.

Hundreds of well-wishers, including doctors and nurses, applauded as the pope, in his usual white robes, was driven slowly out of the hospital grounds. John Paul looked weary as he sat in the back, accompanied by two aides, and raised his arms to bless the throngs along the 2 1/2-mile route to the Vatican.

Faithful lined the streets around the Vatican as the papal motorcade drove through floodlit St. Peter's Square, through the Arch of the Bells and into the Vatican. Shouts of "Viva il Papa!" -- "Long Live the Pope!" -- rang out from the crowd.

Papal spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls said the pope had recovered completely from the breathing crisis following influenza that led to his urgent hospitalization at Rome's Gemelli Polyclinic on Feb. 1, and that his general condition was continuing to improve.

Navarro-Valls said a battery of tests, including a CT scan -- a three-dimensional X-ray -- had ruled out any new illnesses.

He said it was too soon to say what the pope's schedule will be like, but it seemed likely he would appear at his apartment window overlooking St. Peter's Square to offer his Sunday blessing -- an appointment so important to the pontiff that he felt strong enough to do it while in the hospital.

"When he gets back to the Vatican, he will look over and decide with his doctors what his appointments will be," Navarro-Valls told reporters after releasing the medical bulletin at noon Thursday.

The Vatican maintains a small medical unit to assist the pope, as well as an unmarked ambulance that was used for the late-night rush to the hospital after John Paul suffered what a Vatican official called a "breathing crisis."

John Paul's return coincides with a traditional Lenten period of spiritual reflection for the pontiff, with no public ceremonies scheduled next week.

The pope, who turns 85 in May, has been in declining health for some years, with Parkinson's disease and knee and hip ailments limiting his speech and physical activity. Still, he had not missed a scheduled audience for 16 months until he came down with the flu on Jan. 30, two days before aides rushed him to the hospital.

Dr. Duncan Forsyth, a geriatrician specializing in Parkinson's disease at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, England, said the latest medical bulletin gave neither an indication of what part of the body doctors scanned in the hospital nor what to expect next.

"If it was a chest X-ray, doctors may have been checking for blood clots on the lungs, which can occur when elderly people are immobile for extended periods," Forsyth said. "CT scans of the chest are also used to look for tumors of enlarged lymph glands, which could interfere with breathing."

Police stepped up security at Gemelli in preparation for the pope's discharge, and officers took up positions on a main road running past the Vatican, as well as at the gates to the Holy See. Hundreds of Romans gathered behind barricades hoping for a glimpse of the pope.

"I'm really happy standing here at St. Peter's to see him back home. It's a great emotion," said Wiesiek Szweryn, a Polish-born resident of the Netherlands, carrying his 5-year-old daughter, Inga, on his shoulders.

Doctors at Gemelli refused to discuss the pope's condition, but the Vatican press office had issued its own medical bulletin every few days describing John Paul's continued improvement. His doctors had persuaded him to prolong his stay as a precaution.

Resuming his regular Sunday prayer appointment at his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square would be a big boost to those wanting reassurance the pontiff is determined to resume his routine at the helm of the church.

Last Sunday, he waved from a hospital window, but the words of his brief blessing were largely inaudible, prompting speculation his frail health might prompt him to consider the prospect of resigning.

Asked about the pope's ability 6o speak, Navarro-Valls said Thursday, "I heard him this morning," but didn't elaborate.

A remark earlier this week by the Vatican's No. 2 official about the possibility of a papal resignation set off a prickly debate among top cardinals and papal advisers.

No pope has resigned for centuries, and John Paul repeatedly has said he intends to carry out his mission until the end.

Cardinal Angelo Sodano, who as secretary of state is second only to John Paul in the Vatican's hierarchy, said the hypothesis of a papal resignation should be left "up to the pope's conscience."

Other leading cardinals have echoed that assessment.

John Paul deserves to remain at his post until he dies, Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Canada said Wednesday.

"The pope has affirmed several times that he will remain at his post until his last breath," said Ouellet, the archbishop of Quebec City. "I think after the great service he has given us for 27 years, he deserves to die as pope."

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Associated Press writers William J. Kole, Daniela Petroff, Marta Falconi, Alessandra Rizzo and Emma Ross contributed to this story.