The pontiff’s bout with double pneumonia, and warnings that he could be significantly diminished, have accelerated discussions of succession scenarios.

Pope Francis has entered the fifth week of hospital treatment for double pneumonia very much looking ahead as he continued work on a priority of his papacy.

Pope Francis approved a new three-year process to consider reforms for the global Catholic Church, the Vatican said on Saturday, in a sign the 88-year-old pontiff plans to continue on as pope despite his ongoing battle with double pneumonia.

With Pope Francis' health concerns mounting, discussions within the Vatican suggest he may consider stepping down—an event that would mark only the third papal resignation in over 600 years.

Pope Francis has entered his fourth week in the hospital with double pneumonia. Francis has increasingly handed off his day-to-day duties to cardinals as questions swirl about the near- and long-term future of his papacy.

Pope Francis is celebrating a major milestone of 12 years at the helm of the Catholic Church. It's a subdued celebration as the pontiff continues to undergo therapy in a Rome hospital. He was elected after five ballots in the 2013 conclave after Pope Benedict XVI's resignation.