Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Concerns About Pope's Health
Aired October 01, 2003 - 06:36 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: He showed about two hours ago. Pope John Paul II sat astride his special Jeep and waved to a loving crowd. For a while, we suspected that he might not show at his weekly blessing ceremony, but he did, even though his closest advisors have raised new concerns about his health.
Our Rome bureau chief, Alessio Vinci, joins us on the telephone with the latest.
Good morning -- Alessio. How did the pope look to you, this morning?
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning, Carol.
Well, the pope looked relatively well, I'd say, and alert. He did, as you mentioned, take the tour of the square on his "pope mobile". When he does that, usually it is an indication that the pope is doing all right, because even putting him on that kind of a special car requires a little bit of a logistical effort there.
And he did indeed take the tour of the square and greeting the thousands of pilgrims, some estimates were at 12,000 people, in St. Peter's Square this morning. And he did confirm that he will have a one-day pilgrimage to Pompeii next week.
And he also addressed the pilgrims in many, many languages. The pope speaks -- it is believed he speaks as many as 17 languages. And among them he also spoke some English, because there were some pilgrims from the United States, from Ireland, from Australia. So, he did speak some English as well.
And we have a portion to have you -- so you can listen to it and see how the pope really is really having some trouble sometimes in addressing the crowd.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN PAUL II, ROMAN CATHOLIC POPE: Dear, brothers and sisters, I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) concludes today with (UNINTELLIGIBLE) go on a...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VINCI: So, you can see even here, when he just mentions a few words, he does really have a problem with breathing and enunciating his words clearly. But by the thousands and sometimes when we travel with him by the hundreds of thousands when we go around the world with him, they are really listening to what he says. The pope did miss his general audience last week, because of what the Vatican described as intestinal problems. And his appearance today comes a day after a German magazine quoted a top cardinal as saying that the pope was in a bad way. It emerged afterwards that these were remarks of the pope that the cardinal made two weeks ago on September the 22nd, 10 days ago. These were informal remarks that the cardinal had made to German brewers, and did not refer to a sudden worsening beyond his obvious frailty -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes. Well, you know, there is also this rumor flying around that he has stomach cancer. Do you know anything about that?
VINCI: Well, first of all, the pope is in bad health. I mean, he has had a series of illnesses. I mean, he's been shot, and as a result of that, part of his intestine was removed. A tumor was also removed from his intestine several years ago. The pope also fell.
So, this is a man who really has several health problems. He's also 83 years old, so definitely his health is worsening. As you can see, as you just heard in his remarks, he does have some problems in talking.
But, you know, I can tell you one thing for sure. Every time we speak to Vatican officials in asking about his health, there are very few people who really know his exact medical condition -- his doctor and his private secretary. Everything else is just speculation.
It is obvious that the pope is frail. It is obvious that the pope is sick. He has Parkinson's disease. It's very clear from the outside just -- you know, the pope doesnt hide it. But at the same time, it is very, very difficult to establish his exact medical condition, because very few people inside the Vatican know.
COSTELLO: Yes, they just came out and admitting that he had Parkinson's disease not too long ago, and he had it for many years.
Alessio Vinci, live from Rome, thanks for the update on the pope's health this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired October 1, 2003 - 06:36 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: He showed about two hours ago. Pope John Paul II sat astride his special Jeep and waved to a loving crowd. For a while, we suspected that he might not show at his weekly blessing ceremony, but he did, even though his closest advisors have raised new concerns about his health.
Our Rome bureau chief, Alessio Vinci, joins us on the telephone with the latest.
Good morning -- Alessio. How did the pope look to you, this morning?
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: Good morning, Carol.
Well, the pope looked relatively well, I'd say, and alert. He did, as you mentioned, take the tour of the square on his "pope mobile". When he does that, usually it is an indication that the pope is doing all right, because even putting him on that kind of a special car requires a little bit of a logistical effort there.
And he did indeed take the tour of the square and greeting the thousands of pilgrims, some estimates were at 12,000 people, in St. Peter's Square this morning. And he did confirm that he will have a one-day pilgrimage to Pompeii next week.
And he also addressed the pilgrims in many, many languages. The pope speaks -- it is believed he speaks as many as 17 languages. And among them he also spoke some English, because there were some pilgrims from the United States, from Ireland, from Australia. So, he did speak some English as well.
And we have a portion to have you -- so you can listen to it and see how the pope really is really having some trouble sometimes in addressing the crowd.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN PAUL II, ROMAN CATHOLIC POPE: Dear, brothers and sisters, I (UNINTELLIGIBLE) concludes today with (UNINTELLIGIBLE) go on a...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VINCI: So, you can see even here, when he just mentions a few words, he does really have a problem with breathing and enunciating his words clearly. But by the thousands and sometimes when we travel with him by the hundreds of thousands when we go around the world with him, they are really listening to what he says. The pope did miss his general audience last week, because of what the Vatican described as intestinal problems. And his appearance today comes a day after a German magazine quoted a top cardinal as saying that the pope was in a bad way. It emerged afterwards that these were remarks of the pope that the cardinal made two weeks ago on September the 22nd, 10 days ago. These were informal remarks that the cardinal had made to German brewers, and did not refer to a sudden worsening beyond his obvious frailty -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Yes. Well, you know, there is also this rumor flying around that he has stomach cancer. Do you know anything about that?
VINCI: Well, first of all, the pope is in bad health. I mean, he has had a series of illnesses. I mean, he's been shot, and as a result of that, part of his intestine was removed. A tumor was also removed from his intestine several years ago. The pope also fell.
So, this is a man who really has several health problems. He's also 83 years old, so definitely his health is worsening. As you can see, as you just heard in his remarks, he does have some problems in talking.
But, you know, I can tell you one thing for sure. Every time we speak to Vatican officials in asking about his health, there are very few people who really know his exact medical condition -- his doctor and his private secretary. Everything else is just speculation.
It is obvious that the pope is frail. It is obvious that the pope is sick. He has Parkinson's disease. It's very clear from the outside just -- you know, the pope doesnt hide it. But at the same time, it is very, very difficult to establish his exact medical condition, because very few people inside the Vatican know.
COSTELLO: Yes, they just came out and admitting that he had Parkinson's disease not too long ago, and he had it for many years.
Alessio Vinci, live from Rome, thanks for the update on the pope's health this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
