Pope John Paul II signalled his determination to continue to lead the Roman Catholic Church, in a message to thousands of pilgrims at a Vatican ceremony marking the World Day of the Sick.
"The pope is counting on your prayers and your sufferings," the pontiff said in a message delivered on his behalf by Italian Cardinal Camillo Ruini to several thousand pilgrims in St Peter's Basilica.
"Offer them for the Church and the world. Offer them also for me and my mission as the universal pastor of the Christian people," he said in a signal to cardinals and papal advisers embroiled in debate over whether John Paul II is too frail to continue as pope.
The 84-year-old pontiff, who was discharged on Thursday after a nine-day hospitalization for flu-related breathing problems, did not participate in the ceremony.
Earlier this week, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican's top official, said the question of papal resignation was a matter for "the pope's conscience".
The pope has repeatedly said he will continue as leader of the Catholic Church "until my last breath" and last Sunday said in a message he was too weak to read himself that he continued to "serve the Church" even in hospital.