A video from 2024 is being passed off as Pope Francis after his supposed discharge from the hospital this February. The pontiff is still receiving treatment at a medical institution in Rome as of March 5.
On Feb. 28, a Facebook (FB) page posted two copies of a 35-second clip of Pope Francis entering a hall to address an audience. One of the posts carried the caption:
“BREAKING NEWS: Pope Francis has been discharged from hospital, glory to God Almighty. #followerseveryonehighlights #facebookreelsviral #public #nigeria #catholic #catholicchurch #popefrancishealth #vaticano.”
The video also bore the text:
“POPE FRANCIS DISCHARGED.”
Further misleading the netizens, the FB page posted in the comment section:
“Greetings my people. Please let us know how happy you are seeing Pope Francis on his feet again by sharing and commenting on this video.”
These videos are false. The clips were taken during one of Pope Francis’ general audiences in the Vatican City in 2024.
Catholic news organization Exaudi News‘ FB page first posted the video. Its caption read:
“Pope Francis welcomed by applause in the Paul VI Hall, with the Blessing and greetings, begins the general audience on the theme of the Holy Spirit who comes upon Jesus in the baptism of the Jordan and from Him spreads into his body which is the Church.”
These clips can be traced back to a livestream by the religious media network EWTN of the Pope’s general audience in the Paul VI Hall on Aug. 21, 2024.
According to the Vatican News, the pontiff is still receiving treatment for bilateral pneumonia at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital as of March 5. Vatican News is the official media portal of the Holy See – the Catholic Church and the Vatican City State’s governing body.
The video with the false context circulated more than two weeks after the Pope’s admission to the hospital.
VERA Files has debunked other mis-disinformation related to the pope – including one about his supposed passing that also circulated amid his hospitalization since last month.
The two identical videos uploaded by the Nigeria-based FB page Mr. Ultimate TV (created on Aug. 9, 2024 as Comr Ifeanyichukwu Nwoko) collectively garnered 103,000 reactions, 1,818 comments, 14,600 shares and 2,309,000 views. Several Filipino netizens have been sharing and commenting on the posts. Other FB pages, users and groups have also reposted copies of the video with false context.
