Pope says faith in God’s love helps face sickness

(February 06, 2012) The right attitude to face disease is faith in God’s love and His redeeming power. Pope Benedict XVI made the reflection on Sunday during his weekly midday ‘Angelus’ prayer in St. Peter’s Square in Rome. Some 10,000 people had turned up to pray with him him despite unusually heavy snow in Rome on Friday that saw St. Peter’s Square and its monuments blanketed in white. Commenting on Sunday’s Gospel the Pope focussed his thoughts on the Catholic Church’s annual World Day of the Sick which will be marked on Saturday, 11 February, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. The Pope noted that that the four Gospels agree that in addition to preaching, Jesus’ main activity consisted in healing. Sickness, the Pope explained, is a sign of evil in the world and in man, whilst healing shows that the Kingdom of God is near. Sickness is a typical human condition which shows us our lack of self-sufficiency and our need for others. In this sense and paradoxically, he explained, sickness can be a healthy moment to experience the attention of others and pay attention to others. Despite medical advances, when healing does not occur and suffering continues, we can feel overwhelmed, isolated and become depressed and feel dehumanised. But the Word of God teaches us that the underlying attitude with which to face sickness and even death is faith in God’s love. That is the true answer that radically defeats Evil, the Holy Father said. In this regard Pope Benedict recalled Blessed Chiara Badano, an Italian teenager who died in 1990. Even though struck down by a fatal disease, all those who met her received light and trust from her. More than mere words, what sick people need is human warmth and sincere closeness, the Pope said.