Pope Francis has continued his recovery from pneumonia as the Vatican set in motion a nightly marathon of prayers from "his house" and allies cheered him on from afar in hopes that he might recover and get back to leading the Catholic Church.
"The Pope rested well, the whole night," the Vatican said on Tuesday in a typically brief morning update.
On Monday evening, doctors said he remained in critical condition with double pneumonia but reported a "slight improvement" in some laboratory results.
In the most upbeat bulletin in days, they said he had resumed work from his hospital room, calling a parish in Gaza City that he has kept in touch with since the war there began.
Monday's statement said the pope had resumed work in the afternoon and in the evening made a call to Father Gabriel Romanelli of the Holy Family Parish Gaza, which the pope has done frequently during the Hamas-Israel war.
In late January, the Vatican's official news outlet reported the pope saying that he called the Gaza parish "every day".
Describing a call with the pope on Saturday, Romanelli quoted Francis as saying: "A few days (in hospital) and I'll be back", and quipped that he was "not an easy patient for doctors, because he is always talking, always very active".
Pope Francis has been hospitalised since 14 February and doctors have said his condition is touch-and-go, given his age, fragility and pre-existing lung disease.
But in Monday's update, they said he had not had any more respiratory crises since Saturday, and the flow and concentration of supplemental oxygen has been slightly reduced.
The slight kidney insufficiency first reported on Sunday was not causing alarm at the moment, doctors said, while saying his prognosis remained guarded.
On Sunday, the Vatican described the pope's condition as critical for a second day. On Saturday, it said the pope had needed a blood transfusion after experiencing a "prolonged asthma-like respiratory crisis".
Monday's update said the pope had not had a further respiratory crisis and that some of his laboratory tests "have improved".
Double pneumonia is a serious infection that can inflame and scar both lungs, making it difficult to breathe.
Pope Francis, who has been pope since 2013, has suffered bouts of ill health over the past two years. He is particularly prone to lung infections because he developed pleurisy as a young adult and had part of one lung removed.
Francis' right-wing critics have been spreading dire rumours about his condition, but his allies have cheered him on and expressed hope that he will pull through.
Many noted that from the night of his election, Francis had asked for the prayers of ordinary faithful, a request he repeats daily.
