COOPERATORES VERITATIS
POPE TO THOSE
AFFLICTED BY SICKNESS: YOU ARE THE LIVING IMAGE OF CHRIST
Vatican City, 8
January 2013 (VIS) - "Go and do likewise" is
the theme chosen by the Holy Father for his message on the 21st World Day of
the Sick to be celebrated 11 February, the liturgical feast of the Blessed
Virgin Mary of Lourdes, which will take place this year at the Marian Shrine of
Altotting, Germany. In the message the Pope writes that "this Day
represents for the sick, for health care workers, for the faithful and for all
people of goodwill 'a privileged time of prayer, of sharing, of offering one’s
sufferings for the good of the Church, and a call for all to recognize in the
features of their suffering brothers and sisters the Holy Face of Christ, who,
by suffering, dying and rising has brought about the salvation of mankind'.”
"On this
occasion," the pontiff continues, "I feel especially close to you,
dear friends, who in health care centres or at home, are undergoing a time of
trial due to illness and suffering. May all of you be sustained by the
comforting words of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council: 'You are not
alone, separated, abandoned or useless. You have been called by Christ and are
his living and transparent image'.”
"So as to
keep you company on the spiritual pilgrimage that leads us from Lourdes, a
place which symbolizes hope and grace, to the Shrine of Altotting, I would like
to propose for your reflection the exemplary figure of the Good Samaritan. The
Gospel parable recounted by Saint Luke is part of a series of scenes and events
taken from daily life by which Jesus helps us to understand the deep love of
God for every human being, especially those afflicted by sickness or pain. With
the concluding words of the parable of the Good Samaritan, “Go and do
likewise”, the Lord also indicates the attitude that each of his disciples
should have towards others, especially those in need. We need to draw from the
infinite love of God, through an intense relationship with him in prayer, the
strength to live day by day with concrete concern, like that of the Good Samaritan,
for those suffering in body and spirit who ask for our help, whether or not we
know them and however poor they may be".
"This is
true, not only for pastoral or health care workers, but for everyone, even for
the sick themselves, who can experience this condition from a perspective of
faith: 'It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed,
but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding
meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love', Benedict
XVI counsels, citing his encyclical "Spe Salvi".
"Various
Fathers of the Church saw Jesus himself in the Good Samaritan; and in the man
who fell among thieves they saw Adam, our very humanity wounded and disoriented
on account of its sins. Jesus is the Son of God, the one who makes present the
Father’s love, a love which is faithful, eternal and without boundaries. But
Jesus is also the one who sheds the garment of his divinity, who leaves his
divine condition to assume the likeness of men, drawing near to human
suffering, even to the point of descending into hell, as we recite in the
Creed, in order to bring hope and light. He does not jealously guard his
equality with God but, filled with compassion, he looks into the abyss of human
suffering so as to pour out the oil of consolation and the wine of hope".
"The Year of
Faith which we are celebrating is a fitting occasion for intensifying the
service of charity in our ecclesial communities, so that each one of us can be
a good Samaritan for others, for those close to us. Here I would like to recall
the innumerable figures in the history of the Church who helped the sick to
appreciate the human and spiritual value of their suffering, so that they might
serve as an example and an encouragement. Saint Therese of the Child Jesus and
the Holy Face, 'an expert in the scientia amoris', was able to experience 'in
deep union with the Passion of Jesus' the illness that brought her 'to death
through great suffering'."
Also, "the
Venerable Luigi Novarese, who still lives in the memory of many, throughout his
ministry realized the special importance of praying for and with the sick and
suffering, and he would often accompany them to Marian shrines, especially to
the Grotto of Lourdes. Raoul Follereau, moved by love of neighbour, dedicated
his life to caring for people afflicted by Hansen’s disease, even at the
world’s farthest reaches, promoting, among other initiatives, World Leprosy
Day. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta would always begin her day with an encounter with
Jesus in the Eucharist and then she would go out into the streets, rosary in
hand, to find and serve the Lord in the sick, especially in those 'unwanted,
unloved, uncared for'."
"Saint Anna
Schaffer of Mindelstetten, too, was able to unite in an exemplary way her
sufferings to those of Christ: 'her sick-bed became her cloister cell and her
suffering a missionary service. Strengthened by daily communion, she became an
untiring intercessor in prayer and a mirror of God’s love for the many who
sought her counsel'. In the Gospel the Blessed Virgin Mary stands out as one
who follows her suffering Son to the supreme sacrifice on Golgotha. She does
not lose hope in God’s victory over evil, pain and death, and she knows how to
accept in one embrace of faith and love, the Son of God who was born in the
stable of Bethlehem and died on the Cross. Her steadfast trust in the power of
God was illuminated by Christ’s resurrection, which offers hope to the
suffering and renews the certainty of the Lord’s closeness and consolation".
The Pope offers
"a word of warm gratitude and encouragement to Catholic health care
institutions and to civil society, to Dioceses and Christian communities, to
religious congregations engaged in the pastoral care of the sick, to health
care workers’ associations and to volunteers. May all realize ever more fully
that 'the Church today lives a fundamental aspect of her mission in lovingly
and generously accepting every human being, especially those who are weak and
sick'."
Benedict XVI then
concludes, entrusting the 21st World Day of the Sick "to the intercession
of Our Lady of Graces, venerated at Altotting, that she may always accompany
those who suffer in their search for comfort and firm hope. May she assist all
who are involved in the apostolate of mercy, so that they may become good
Samaritans to their brothers and sisters afflicted by illness and
suffering".
Source: V.I.S. -Vatican Information
Service. www.vis.va
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