Pope’s World Day of Sick message: Nearness, charity for those who suffer
By Devin Watkins
“Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful” (Lk 6:36): Standing beside those who suffer on a path of charity.”
Those words formed the theme of Pope Francis’ message for the World Day of the Sick—scheduled for 11 February—which was released on Tuesday.
The Pope noted that this year’s occurrence marks 30 years since Pope St. John Paul II instituted the World Day to encourage all members of the Church to “be increasingly attentive to the sick and to those who care for them.”
He also expressed his gratitude for the great advances in healthcare and pastoral care of the sick in the intervening three decades, while recalling that many people still live in areas that are poorly served by healthcare systems and pastoral outreach.
He noted that the annual celebration of the World Day of the Sick is taking place in St. Peter’s Basilica, rather than in Arequipa, Peru, as originally planned, due to the ongoing health crisis.
Pope Francis’ message comes a few short months after his own brief hospital stay at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital following a scheduled surgery on his colon.
‘Merciful like the Father’
In his message, Pope Francis reflected on various aspects of “mercy,” starting with the mercy of the Father.
He said God’s mercy is part of His very nature and combines “strength and tenderness.”
‘Jesus, the mercy of the Father’
The Pope said that Jesus offers the best witness to the Father’s merciful love for the sick.
In His earthly life, Jesus healed all manner of disease and illness, and made it an important part of His missionary mandate to the apostles, who were sent to “proclaim the Gospel and to heal the sick.”
Pope Francis drew on a consideration by French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas to explore why ministering to the sick is such an important part of the Christian mission.
“Pain isolates in an absolute way,” said Mr. Levinas, “and absolute isolation gives rise to the need to appeal to the other, to call out to the other.”
The Pope said acute experiences of our human frailty urge us to seek out those near to us, and it is the Church’s job to respond with concrete signs of God’s charity.
‘To touch the suffering flesh of Christ’
Pope Francis went on to consider the many healthcare workers who daily minister to “the suffering flesh of Christ.”
He thanked all healthcare professionals and volunteers for dedicating their lives to helping those who suffer.
At the same time, the Pope praised the technological and therapeutic advances made in the field of medicine.
Yet no advancement, he added, can allow us to “forget the uniqueness of each patient, his or her dignity and frailties.” Patients, he said, “are always more important than their diseases.”
‘Centres of care as “houses of mercy”’
The Pope said the World Day of the Sick allows the Church to take stock of her long-running dedication to providing healthcare to the poor and marginalized by opening hospitals and clinics in poverty-stricken areas.
He reaffirmed the work of Catholic healthcare institutions, calling them “a precious treasure to be protected and preserved” since they offer “the gift of charity”.
‘Pastoral mercy: presence and proximity’
Pope Francis then expressed his appreciation for those who carry out pastoral care among the sick.
Those who act on Christ’s invitation include professionals like hospital chaplains, as well as ordinary Catholics who take the time to visit their ailing neighbors.
United to Christ in our suffering
The Pope wrapped up his message for the 30th World Day of the Sick by entrusting all the sick and their families to the intercession of Mary, Health of the infirm.
“United with Christ, who bears the pain of the world, may they find meaning, consolation and trust,” he concluded. “I pray for healthcare workers everywhere, that, rich in mercy, they may offer patients, together with suitable care, their fraternal closeness.”
The name of Jesus is a name of gladness, a name of hope and a name of love. A name of gladness, because if the remembrance of past transgressions afflicts us, this name comforts us, reminding us that the Son of God became man for this purpose, to make himself our Savior.
This feast marks no progress in the development of the Church year. It merely embellishes the occasion just observed when the Child received the Name Jesus as had been foretold by the angel. The feast is meant to impress on us Christians the dignity of the Holy Name. It is a relatively new feast, stemming out of devotional piety. Nevertheless, it is not difficult to find in it some liturgical or ancient Christian dogma. What did a name signify originally? The name should express the nature of a thing. Thus Adam in paradise gave the animals names in accordance with their being. Among the Jews God's name expressed His essence, Yahweh, i.e., I (alone) am who am (and cause all else to be). The Jews had the highest respect for the name of God, a reverence that finds continuation in the Our Father: "Hallowed be Thy Name."
1. It is not difficult to meditate upon the Holy Name, or to use the Holy Name in prayer. More than any other name, perhaps alone among all proper names, it is appropriate to the One Who owned it. Usually the names of men are given at random; they mean nothing in themselves; a man who happens to be called John might just as well have been called Thomas or William; the mere name tells us nothing about him; it is a convenient means of distinguishing him from others, a label put upon him and little or no more With a few human beings it has been otherwise: Adam, Abraham, Josue, John the Baptist were given names that signified the men on whom they were bestowed. But with none is this so true as it is with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. With care the Angel impressed it on His Mother's mind: "Thou shalt call His name Jesus," he said, and there followed the description of His future greatness. With care it was repeated to Joseph: Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins.
3. But He is also to them the mirror of all the most glorious and winning virtues. He is, and His Name tells them that He is, unbounded Charity, infinite Mercy, extremest Kindness, deepest Humility, most devoted Piety, transparent Simplicity, uttermost Poverty, Chastity without a stain. It is the prerogative of love to transform those who love into the likeness of Him Whom they love; and as the mere name of one who is loved cannot sound in the ear or be thought of in the mind without adding to the love which is already there, so the thought of the Holy Name and the mention of the Holy Name have a kind of sacramental power in the hearts of His saints. They seem to convey the grace which enables men to think like Him, to speak like Him, to act like Him, to sacrifice themselves like Him, and to Him, and for Him, and along with Him, to make Him known to others, not by word only, but also by reproduction of Him in themselves, and to win all men to love Him.
2. Next it is fruitful for the proficient. "It is cherished in their hearts and fed upon by faith, it is taken into their mouths and preached or spoken about, it is made the spring of their actions, which then become a great accumulation of merits, it is appropriated in a new way by perseverance, and then it becomes a principle of abiding and enduring life, the remedy of the frailty and fickleness which belong to our poor nature."