The Vatican says Pope John Paul is in "very serious" condition, but alert and has received some visitors.
Vatican spokesman Joaquin Navarro-Valls told reporters Friday the pope has received various Vatican officials in his apartment and asked for scriptures to be read to him.
The Vatican says the pope remains "lucid, fully conscious and very serene." He celebrated an early-morning Mass with his aides, and appointed a number of bishops and other church officials.
A top cardinal Camillo Ruini is to celebrate a public mass today in Rome at 1700 UTC for the pope.
The Vatican said Thursday the 84-year-old pontiff suffered what they called a "cardio-circulatory collapse" after developing a very high fever from a urinary tract infection.
John Paul has been hospitalized twice since February, and underwent a procedure to ease breathing difficulties. He also was being fed through a nasal tube.
