Earlier in the day, the Holy See announced that due to illness, the pontiff would not address the flock on St. Peter's Square in person and will deliver his Sunday sermon via video link.
"Today, I cannot come to the window [of the Apostolic Palace] because I have this problem with pneumonia," the Pope said.
After the short announcement, the pontiff announced that the representative of the Vatican Secretariat of State, Paolo Luca Braida, who is the author of the pontiff's sermons, will speak for him.
The pontiff's pale face and weak voice gave away his illness. While Braida was reading the sermon, the Pope suffered a mild coughing fit.
"Apart from war, our world is facing another threat, climate change, which endangers life on Earth. This contradicts the plan of the Lord, who created everything for the sake of life. So next weekend, I'll be heading to Dubai to address COP 28," the pontiff wrote in his address.
On Saturday, the Holy See announced that all previously scheduled audiences with the 86-year pontiff had been canceled "due to flu-like symptoms." Later in the day, Pope Francis underwent a CT scan to rule out the risk of pulmonary complications. The scan gave negative results.