Pope Francis has participated remotely in the Vatican’s spiritual retreat after getting good news from his doctors.

With Pope Francis entering his fourth week in hospital, those working in the Apostolic Palace are grappling with the continuing uncertainty over the pope’s health. The same is true for everyone in the Vatican.

There were signs of Pope Francis' improvement over the weekend, when a Vatican source shared that Francis was responding well to treatment for the first time since entering the hospital. The source said Francis was showing "a good response to therapy" and a "gradual, slight improvement" since experiencing acute respiratory failure.