World Day of the Sick

Dear Rev. Fathers, Brothers, Sisters and Lay faithful,

Greetings of peace and love in the name of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother !

Every year on February 11 World Day of the Sick is celebrated. St John Paul II was stricken with Alzheimer and Parkinson disease in 1991 and chose to establish this Day of the Sick only a year after his diagnosis. He did it in order to encourage people to pray for those who suffer from illness and for their caregivers. It is considered that his own illness was the impetus for the designation of this day. World Day of the Sick was first observed on February 11, 1993. Obviously, this year, 2022 marks the 30th World Day of the Sick. As we know, the World Day of the Sick coincides with the commemoration of Our Lady of Lourdes. On this day, people around the world, in a very special way, take time to pray for the sick and for those who work very hard to alleviate the sufferings of the sick on this day.

At this juncture, it is very fitting to reflect upon the message of Pope Francis for this year’s World Day of the Sick to be celebrated on 11 February. The message for this year’s World Day of the Sick, released on 25 January 2022, is entitled “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful (Lk 6:36): Standing beside those who suffer on a path of charity.” Our Holy Father writes, “Jesus’ invitation to be merciful like the Father has particular significance for all of us, especially for healthcare workers. I gratefully think of all the physicians, nurses, laboratory technicians, the support staff and the caretakers of the sick, as well as the numerous volunteers who donate their precious time to assist those who suffer and those who run the homes for the sick with genuine missionary zeal. These are the people who have made their service a mission. Their hands, which touch the suffering flesh of Christ, can be a sign of the merciful hands of the Father.”

Our Holy Father Francis recalls the progress that medical science has made and the breakthroughs which have made it possible to prepare therapies that are of great benefit to the sick. He exhorts that none of this, however, must make us forget the uniqueness of the sick and suffering and their human dignity. He also gives a clarion call for the patient to always be treated as a person with his own dignity, the image of God. Patients are always more important than their diseases, and for this reason, no therapeutic approach can be prescinded from listening to the patient, his or her history, anxieties and fears. Thus we can even practise the essential element of synodality, i.e., listening… listening to the sick with the heart in their darkest hours and suffering which will enable them to feel as people of worth and cared for. Even when healing is not possible, utmost human care should always be given. It is always possible to console, it is always possible to make people sense a closeness that is more interested in the person than in his or her pathology. One needs to reaffirm the importance of Catholic healthcare institutions and their commitment to caring for and treating people. At a time in which the culture of waste is widespread and life is not always acknowledged as worthy of being welcomed and lived, the structures, such as hospitals, homes for the sick and aged, palliative centres should become the houses of mercy and homes of love as Pope Francis reiterates in his message.

It is worth recalling the indispensable service of the health care ministry by each priest and religious, especially in spiritual assistance to the sick and the commitment that each of us should have in making ourselves close to those who suffer. We cannot fail to offer the sick God’s closeness, His blessing and His word and administer the sacraments, especially anointing of the sick to the ill which is the opportunity for a journey of growth, physical and spiritual healing and maturation in faith. In this regard, I would like to remind everyone that closeness to the sick and your pastoral care is not only the task of certain specifically designated ministers; Rather visiting the sick is an invitation that Christ addresses to every baptized. How many sick and elderly people are living at home and waiting for a visit! The ministry of consolation is a task for every baptized person, being mindful of the word of Jesus: “I was sick and you visited me” (Mt. 25:36).

God cares for the sick with the strength of a father and the tenderness of a mother. As the World Day for the Sick falls on the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes (11 February), let us entrust all the sick to the maternal mantle of our Blessed Mother and invoke her special motherly blessing upon them in a very special way. When our service for the sick is carried out with boundless love and mercy, it transcends the bounds of our profession and becomes a mission. Our hands, which touch the suffering flesh of Christ, can be a sign of the merciful hands of the Father!

Wishing you all good health and mission at good health !

Yours devotedly in Our Lord,

+ Most.Rev. S. Antonysamy
Bishop of Palayamkottai