To the Sick During the Liturgy of the Word (6 November 1982)

On Saturday, 6 November 1982, the Holy Father visited the sick in Zaragoza, where he spoke of the supernatural value of their suffering. 

Dear sick people.

1. In the context of my visit to the Pilar of Zaragoza, for the national Marian Act, this meeting of the Pope with the sick takes place. It is for me one of the most important of my apostolic journey. Because in you I meet in a special way with Christ who suffers, with Christ who went about caring for the sick, who identifies himself in this way with you, who considers what is done to you to be done to himself. Go back and read some of the pages of the Gospel that refer to you in a moment of peace (cf. Mt 8-9; 15; 25, 32-40).

There are few of you present here, but you represent all the sick people of Spain. Both those who are hospitalized in public or private health institutions, as well as those who are in their homes, in bed, in a wheelchair, immobile or walking under the weight of infirmity. At this moment I would like to have thousands of hands that could shake each of yours, ask you how you are, share at least for a moment in your anxieties and sufferings, and leave you a word of encouragement and a brotherly embrace. All of you who see me through television or listen to me on the radio, intentionally feel me at your side .

2. You who live in trials, who are faced with the problem of limitation, of pain and of the inner solitude faced with it, do not cease to give meaning to this condition . The answer lies in the cross of Christ, in the redemptive union with him, in the apparent failure of the just Man who suffers and who with his sacrifice saves humanity, in the eternity value of this suffering. Look at him, at the Church and at the world, and elevate your pain, completing with it, today , the salvific mystery of his cross.

Your suffering has great supernatural value. And you are also a constant lesson for us , which invites us to relativize many values ​​and forms of life. To better live the values ​​of the Gospel and develop solidarity, goodness, help and love.

Therefore, do not consider your state useless, which has a great humanizing, evangelizing, expiatory and impetratory meaning for the Church and for the world today. Especially if you yourselves adopt an open, creative and positive attitude towards the action of grace that acts in your spirit.

3. But I can't stop just at you. Thinking about your condition I spontaneously think of your families, of the healthcare professionals and workers, of the religious men and women and priests in the healthcare world. To all those who, in the complex context of current society, dedicate themselves to the care of the sick.

It is a mission of extraordinary value, which must be lived as a true vocational choice, with a great ethical sense of solidarity and respect for the sick man, without neglecting the transcendent and religious dimension of the human being.

My word of encouragement goes to those who work in this field, which requires so much human and spiritual sensitivity, to be in tune with the needs and expectations of the sick person. My joy and applause goes to the almost thirteen thousand nuns and two thousand priests and religious who provide their work in the field of healthcare, especially in the most neglected sectors of the mentally ill, the chronically ill, the marginalized, the handicapped and of the elderly.

4. To give greater effectiveness to pastoral care among the sick, it is necessary that the entire Christian community feels called to collaborate in this task.

Here the members of ecclesial or religious bodies, associations and Catholic lay movements have their place; parishes have their place here, called to stimulate specific apostolate and volunteer groups to help the sick. Thus the Christian community will make Christian love present in our increasingly secularized society.

5. I recommend to the Blessed Virgin of Pilar the intentions and needs of every sick person - man or woman, child or adult - in Spain, as well as that of those who dedicate themselves to the care of the sick and healthcare. Upon everyone I invoke serenity, the hope of the beatitudes, improved health, and I bless everyone from my heart, in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Copyright © Dicastery for Communication - Libreria Editrice Vaticana