The pope, in a previously unannounced move, came out to the square shortly before noon at the end of the celebration of a Mass for the Catholic Church’s Jubilee year.

Pope Francis made a surprise public appearance on Sunday, the first time the leader of the Catholic Church has been seen in public since leaving hospital two week ago.

LONDON -- Pope Francis on Sunday made his first public appearance since being discharged from hospital two weeks ago. Francis, 88, entered St. Peter's Square at the Vatican in a wheelchair to briefly greet crowds that were gathered to mark the Jubilee of the Sick and the World of Healthcare. The pope was wearing oxygen nasal cannulas.