Boston-area Catholics pray for Pope Francis during health crisis

Boston Archbishop Richard Henning is calling on local Catholics to pray for Pope Francis, who is in critical condition at an Italian hospital.

The leader of the Roman Catholic Church was hospitalized over a week ago for a complex respiratory infection. He remains at Rome's Gemelli Hospital, with pneumonia in both lungs, bronchitis and signs of "mild" kidney failure.

Fr. Frank Sevola, a religious superior at St. Anthony Shrine in Boston, said he's grateful for Pope Francis' leadership and is hopeful he will recover.

" I've been praying for him as have all the friars here, and I think people everywhere are praying for him and are and are hopeful that that he pulls through this," he said on Monday. "But also understanding that, you know, we have to surrender to God's will and to modern medicine."

The pope's health has stabilized somewhat since a respiratory crisis on Saturday, according to Vatican officials. They told The Associated Press on Monday that Francis showed slight improvement in lab tests and resumed some work activities. The AP reports that his prognosis is guarded.

The 88-year-old pope, whose given name is Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was elected to the role in 2013 and took the name Francis.

That was very meaningful for Sevola, who is in the Franciscan Order — founded on the legacy of St. Francis of Assisi. He said he and his fellow friars have a special affinity for Francis.

Pope Francis "cares for the poor and he cares about the same kinds of things that we Franciscans do," Sevola said. "There's no question about that."

Sevola says Francis has led the church in "a very pastoral and a very compassionate way." He sees a lot of similarities between how the friars at St. Anthony try to run their ministry and how Francis acts, naming the pope's "openness to all kinds of people, to every walk of life."