Pope Francis is resting Thursday after a peaceful night during his third week of hospital treatment for double pneumonia.

The Vatican houses the central government of the Catholic Church and is also an independent city-state. The pope is both the head of the Catholic Church and head of state. In order to govern both, he has the Roman Curia, meaning “court.” In modern terms, the Curia is the papal bureaucracy. It is an extension of the pope’s authority.

Doctrine chief Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández discussed the viability of gender dysphoria, while still condemning gender affirming care, in a speech at a theological conference in Cologne in February,

The Vatican has detailed laws and rituals to ensure the transfer of power when a pope dies or resigns, but not when he is sick

Pope Francis is resting after sleeping through the night with a ventilation mask as he undergoes hospital treatment for double pneumonia

The author, who remained bedridden for more than 30 years following an incident, claimed to have received visions and revelations from Jesus and the Virgin Mary.

Pope Francis' approach to LGBTQ issues marked a major, if mixed, shift in tone for the Catholic Church -- from scorn to tolerance and acceptance.

Francis has weighed in publicly before on ethics for end-of-life medical situations, but it is unknown whether he has made known his own wishes should he face such a crossroads.

The church opposes “the ideology that usually accompanies so many sex-change decisions,” which Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández said is an ideology that claims “omnipotence” and refuses to recognize the reality of one’s body as a gift.