As Pope Francis remains hospitalized after being diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs, the possibility that he will resign is being publicly batted about.

In comments on Italian radio, Vatican Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi said resignation from a post usually held for life could happen, according to The Times.

“I think he could [resign] because he is a person who, from this point of view, is quite decisive in his choices,” he said.

“That said, it is beyond doubt that if he found himself in a situation where his ability to have direct contacts — which he loves — and to communicate immediately, incisively, and decisively were compromised, then I believe he could decide to resign,” he said

The Times noted that in the past, Francis has said he believed a pope was appointed for life, but “things would change if a serious physical impediment were to arise.”

Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to resign was controversial, but I think that given the reality of aging and dying in the 21st century it might turn out to be prescient.

— Fr. Peter Totleben, O.P. (@FrTotleben92742) February 18, 2025

Pope Benedict, who preceded Francis, resigned. Francis, who is 88, has praised Benedict for “opening the door” for popes to resign, saying: “It was such a very good thing for the church. He told popes to stop in time.”

Papal biographer Austen Ivereigh said, Francis has shown a determination not to let his health stop him from working, but he said there could be a limit.

“For Francis there is no 20 percent papacy, and if he thinks he cannot fully exercise the papal mission, then, yes, he could resign,” he said.

Asked in 2023 when a pope should resign, Francis replied it was when they experienced “a tiredness that doesn’t let you see things clearly. A lack of clarity, of knowing how to evaluate situations.” https://t.co/rstvhFzApo

— Tom Kington (@tomkington) February 20, 2025

“Hopefully, he can pull through, and as long as there is no prognosis of a long-term, debilitating or degenerative condition, I think he will push on,” he said.

Cardinal Jean-Marc Aveline, the archbishop of Marseille, France, was asked about a possible resignation.

“Everything is possible,” Aveline said, according to the Associated Press.

Initially hospitalized with severe bronchitis, the pope was diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs, according to NBC.

Coming after years of declining health, a report from Politico said that the pope was in intense pain “and has privately expressed certainty he won’t make it this time.” The report was attributed to sources Politico did not name.

The report noted that even if Francis survives this scare, the concept of who follows him is moving to the fore.

“He may not die now but of course he eventually will,” Politico quoted what it said was one Vatican official as remarking. “We all die — and he’s an 88-year-old man with lung problems.”

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