Pope Francis has been hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital since Feb. 14, where medical professionals have been giving him treatment for bilateral pneumonia.

Pneumonia is nothing to mess around with, especially considering the Pope’s age at 88 and the situation that Pope Francis had part of one of his lungs removed when he was younger due to a severe respiratory infection, meaning he only has one functioning lung.

With the Pope being hospitalized for more than a month at this point, some has speculated that he might break tradition, as Pope Benedict XVI did in 2013, and step down early. It’s tradition for the Pope to remain in office until his death, and Benedict XVI, who passed away in 2022, was the first to step down before he passed since Gregory XII in 1415

So, is Pope Francis thinking about stepping down amid his ongoing health issues?

For those who want him to stay, good news came on Saturday, March 15, when Pope Francis approved a new, three-year process to consider reforms for the global Catholic Church, according to the Vatican, indicating that Francis plans to stay in his position.

“Pope Francis officially initiates a new phase in the Church’s synodal journey by approving an accompaniment process that will culminate in an Ecclesial Assembly in 2028,” the Vatican News said on Saturday.

Francis has extended the work of the Synod of Bishops, and this new phase will set up consultations with Catholics across the world for the next three years, as well as a new Ecclesial Assembly summit to take place at the Vatican in 2028.

The news comes after what was largely a positive week for Pope Francis’ health, which saw medical releases stating that although his prognosis remains “complex,” he is no longer in “imminent danger” of death, according to the Vatican.

According to the Vatican’s Holy See Press Office, due to the Pope’s stable condition, health bulletins won’t be sent out as often, and the Holy See’s daily morning update about how Pope Francis slept the night prior won’t be issued. They also said that while the Pope is recovering and out of “imminent danger,” more time is needed to make sure his improvements are continuing.

Part of the Pope’s hospital stay comes during the season of Lent, a 40-day “season of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday.” Lent started on Wednesday, March 5, this year and will conclude on Easter Sunday, April 20.