Pope Francis, hospitalized in critical condition with double pneumonia, was well enough to meet with the Vatican secretary of state to approve new decrees for saints and call a formal meeting to set the dates for their canonization,

Pope Francis "rested well" throughout the night and remained in a slightly improved condition on Tuesday morning as he continued to battle double pneumonia in hospital, the Vatican said."The Pope rested well,

Time-honored rituals, drafted and refined over centuries, allow time for mourning and provide order at a dramatic moment of transition.