Pope Francis fuels speculation on future

Pope Francis arrives in a wheelchair for an audience with children in the San Damaso courtyard at the Vatican (Alessandra Tarantino/AP)

Pope Francis added fuel to rumours about the future of his pontificate by announcing that he is to visit the central Italian city of L’Aquila in August for a feast initiated by Pope Celestine V, one of the few pontiffs who resigned before Pope Benedict XVI stepped down in 2013.

Italian and Catholic media have been rife with unsourced speculation that the 85-year-old might be planning to follow in Benedict’s footsteps, given the increased mobility problems that have forced him to use a wheelchair for the last month.