Pope Francis: defeating the darkness of drug dependency
July 25, 2013: From the Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida to the “shrine of human suffering”
that is the St Francis of Assisi hospital, located in the run-down Tijuca district
of northern Rio de Janeiro. That was how Pope Francis himself described his visit
on Wednesday afternoon to the hospital, run by young Franciscan friars and sisters
who care for the poorest and most marginalized slum dwellers. During the visit, the
Pope blessed a new wing of the hospital dedicated to the rehabilitation of drug users,
saying he embraced every single person struggling with drug addiction.
Philippa
Hitchen of Vatican Radio reports:
It's not easy to talk about years of drug
abuse, desperation and life on the streets, especially if you're talking to the Pope
in person. But that's exactly what two former addicts did, receiving in return an
emotional embrace from the Holy Father.
In his address to patients and staff,
the Pope said a reduction in drug addiction will not be achieved by a liberalization
of drug use, as is currently being proposed in various parts of Latin America. Rather,
he said, it is necessary to confront the problems underlying the drug use, promoting
greater justice, educating young people in the values that build up life, accompanying
them in their difficulties and giving them hope for the future.
Pope Francis
condemned the selfishness of what he called ‘dealers of death’, urging society as
a whole to act with courage to stamp out the scourge of drug trafficking.
Speaking
directly to those who have fallen into ‘the darkness of dependency’, the Pope said
the Church offers outstretched hands to help you on the long and difficult journey,
but he stressed ‘no one is able to stand up in your place’. ‘Look ahead,’ he urged
and ‘do not let yourself be robbed of hope!’
Speaking to the hospital staff,
the Pope said we all have to learn to embrace those in need, just as his namesake
St Francis reached out to embrace the leper. He thanked all the medical professionals
for their love and concern, reaching out to people in difficulty because in them we
see the face of the suffering Christ.
Please find below the full text of Pope
Francis' address to staff and patients at the St Francis of Assisi hospital in Rio
de Janeiro
Dear Archbishop Tempesta, brother Bishops, Distinguished Authorities, Members
of the Venerable Third Order of Saint Francis of Penance, Doctors, Nurses, and
Health Care Workers, Dear Young People and Family Members,
God has willed
that my journey, after the Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, should take me to a particular
shrine of human suffering – the Saint Francis of Assisi Hospital. The conversion of
your patron saint is well known: the young Francis abandoned the riches and comfort
of the world in order to become a poor man among the poor. He understood that true
joy and riches do not come from the idols of this world – material things and the
possession of them – but are to be found only in following Christ and serving others.
Less well known, perhaps, is the moment when this understanding took concrete form
in his own life. It was when Francis embraced a leper. This brother, suffering and
an outcast, was the “mediator of light ... for Saint Francis of Assisi” (Lumen Fidei,
57), because in every suffering brother and sister that we embrace, we embrace the
suffering Body of Christ. Today, in this place where people struggle with drug addiction,
I wish to embrace each and every one of you, who are the flesh of Christ, and to ask
God to renew your journey, and also mine, with purpose and steadfast hope.
To
embrace – we all have to learn to embrace the one in need, as Saint Francis did. There
are so many situations in Brazil, and throughout the world, that require attention,
care and love, like the fight against chemical dependency. Often, instead, it is selfishness
that prevails in our society. How many “dealers of death” there are that follow the
logic of power and money at any cost! The scourge of drug-trafficking, that favours
violence and sows the seeds of suffering and death, requires of society as a whole
an act of courage. A reduction in the spread and influence of drug addiction will
not be achieved by a liberalization of drug use, as is currently being proposed in
various parts of Latin America. Rather, it is necessary to confront the problems underlying
the use of these drugs, by promoting greater justice, educating young people in the
values that build up life in society, accompanying those in difficulty and giving
them hope for the future. We all need to look upon one another with the loving eyes
of Christ, and to learn to embrace those in need, in order to show our closeness,
affection and love.
To embrace someone is not enough, however. We must hold
the hand of the one in need, of the one who has fallen into the darkness of dependency
perhaps without even knowing how, and we must say to him or her: You can get up, you
can stand up. It is difficult, but it is possible if you want to. Dear friends, I
wish to say to each of you, but especially to all those others who have not had the
courage to embark on our journey: You have to want to stand up; this is the indispensible
condition! You will find an outstretched hand ready to help you, but no one is able
to stand up in your place. But you are never alone! The Church and so many people
are close to you. Look ahead with confidence. Yours is a long and difficult journey,
but look ahead, there is “a sure future, set against a different horizon with regard
to the illusory enticements of the idols of this world, yet granting new momentum
and strength to our daily lives” (Lumen Fidei, 57). To all of you, I repeat: Do not
let yourselves be robbed of hope! And not only that, but I say to us all: let us not
rob others of hope, let us become bearers of hope!
In the Gospel, we read the
parable of the Good Samaritan, that speaks of a man assaulted by robbers and left
half dead at the side of the road. People pass by him and look at him. But they do
not stop, they just continue on their journey, indifferent to him: it is none of their
business! Only a Samaritan, a stranger, sees him, stops, lifts him up, takes him by
the hand, and cares for him (cf. Lk 10:29-35). Dear friends, I believe that here,
in this hospital, the parable of the Good Samaritan is made tangible. Here there is
no indifference, but concern. There is no apathy, but love. The Saint Francis Association
and the Network for the Treatment of Drug Addiction show how to reach out to those
in difficulty because in them we see the face of Christ, because in these persons,
the flesh of Christ suffers. Thanks are due to all the medical professionals and their
associates who work here. Your service is precious; undertake it always with love.
It is a service given to Christ present in our brothers and sisters. As Jesus says
to us: “As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me”
(Mt 25:40).
And I wish to repeat to all of you who struggle against drug addiction,
and to those family members who share in your difficulties: the Church is not distant
from your troubles, but accompanies you with affection. The Lord is near you and he
takes you by the hand. Look to him in your most difficult moments and he will give
you consolation and hope. And trust in the maternal love of his Mother Mary. This
morning, in the Shrine of Aparecida, I entrusted each of you to her heart. Where there
is a cross to carry, she, our Mother, is always there with us. I leave you in her
hands, while with great affection I bless all of you.