To the sick
at the
Mystery and message of the
cross:
The redemptive value of suffering
1.Praised be Jesus Christ!
I thank Dr. Muzzi,
the Health-Care director, for the kind words of welcome which he addressed to
me. I also thank you for the welcoming address expressed to me in the name of
all by one of the patients.
Together with the Pro-Vicar, Archbishop Camillo Ruini, and Bishop Brandolini, his Delegate for Religious Assistance in
Hospitals, I especially greet all of you present here.
The Bishop of Rome's pastoral visit
to this hospital takes place precisely during this last part of the Lenten
season, when we are projected towards Easter, towards the great event of Christ's death and resurrection. It is
an event which gives a particular pastoral significance to our meeting.
The liturgy
of these days, in fact, re-proposes to the faith and attention of everyone the mystery of the cross which is the
full and definitive revelation of God's love to humanity and, therefore, the
essential content of the Christian message.
The cross of Christ is the supreme sign of
God's love through which each person can say with
May this
profession of faith be a cause of consolation and trust for everyone, but
especially for those whom God calls to unite themselves to the cross of his Son
through the many sufferings which afflict the body and spirit of a person. And you, dear patients, are among these!
2.Jesus' cross is not only a
"mystery" to contemplate and adore, but it is also a message
to accept
and to trust in, it is a message to announce so that it may become a source of
salvation for all.
The last word, in fact, which explains the
tremendous reality of suffering, as well as of every form of injustice and
violence, of oppression and death, is certainly that of the cross!
It has two sides: on the one hand it
declares the undeniable reality of suffering and death, denounces the
wickedness and misery which characterize personal existence and human events;
on the other hand it proclaims victory over evil and death, and therefore the
love of God who pardons, redeems, and restores to life.
Here, and nowhere else, should we
look for the answers to the great questions which people ask about the meaning
of life and death, of suffering and the ultimate destiny of the earthly
pilgrimage, here we should look for the springs of the hope which does not
disappoint: here also we should seek the ultimate reasons for a life lived as a
gift of love for God and one's brothers and sisters.
3.In order to be accepted in faith and proclaimed
to the world, "the message of the
cross"
(I Cor
It demands, that is, on the part of the person
who accepts it and submits to it, that he
or she
turn to him who has been pierced (cf. Jn
Dear brothers and sisters, patients in this
hospital, it is you first of all whom I want to
address,
and through you, all the sick who belong to the Church which is in
The "message of the cross" is
addressed especially to you who are called to make up
in your
flesh what is lacking in the suffering of Christ on behalf of his body, which
is the Church (cf.
Accept it in faith and with hope, testify to it
with love!
You know very well the suffering involved in
not seeing well, which is also accompanied by a sense of loneliness and
abandonment. Therefore you rightly want to regain your sight fully and, with
it, the joy of living and feeling useful to your family and society. And
therefore you entrust yourselves to the care and skill of those who can treat
you.
This moment is a period of trial for you, it makes you experience the terrible reality
of
suffering. But if you are able to accept it in faith, you can become collaborators in the work of salvation realized
by Christ the Lord in the mystery of his passion, death and resurrection. The
entire Church, and particularly the Church which is in Rome, challenged by the Diocesan Pastoral Synod to be renewed in
the faith and to be ever more conformed to Christ in order to proclaim to
everyone the Gospel of the cross, expects of those who suffer in body and soul
the contribution of their prayer and the sacrificial offering of their life in
order to fulfil such a demanding programme.
There are indeed types of darkness
to dispel in the realm of the spirit which are much more serious than those
related to the loss of physical sight. They are the darkness of unbelief and
indifference, and therefore the rejection of God and his loving plan. Whoever does evil
is in this darkness and does not enter into the light (cf. Jn
For you health-care workers too, called to care
for and promote the total health of the
person,
the "message of the cross" is a demanding one.
On the road that leads to
At the side of the sick, in whom
in a certain sense Jesus' passion is prolonged, you are called to accomplish
that same mission. In that perspective your profession as doctors, nurses,
technicians and volunteers is filled with meaning and rich in possibilities.
Your work demands not only professional and technical skill, but also human,
spiritual and moral sensitivity; it also requires generous devotion to overcome
the temptation to indifference, disinterest, and absenteeism, and thus to give
witness to a love that is always ready to make a "gift" of itself.
This is all the more so when your commitment draws its inspiration and support
from the faith.
In order to perform such urgent and delicate
tasks in the world of illness, welcome the initiatives of human, Christian and
ethical training which are offered you. Seek to create a harmonious activity,
overcoming the impulses to corporatism or individualism which jeopardize the
smooth running of the institute. In this regard I invite you also to overcome
those forms of tension which can spring up in a situation of uncertainty,
keeping in mind the condition of the sick person, who must be the primary
beneficiary of health-care service.
Be good witnesses of Christ in all that you say
and do. Thus it will be easier to transform the hospital from a house of
suffering into a "place of hope".
May the
Lord sustain all of you and may Mary, "Health of the Sick", intercede
for you.