US Papal Visit / Flickr
CV NEWS FEED // Pope Francis is encouraging people to celebrate the 33rd World Day of the Sick, observing the memorial as an opportunity to become “pilgrims of hope” in times of trial.
In a Jan. 17 publication, the Holy Father urged those who are suffering to take refuge in their dependence on the Lord, and surrender to Him the illnesses they bear, according to the Vatican website.
“In these situations, we sense our need for a strength greater than our own,” Pope Francis wrote in his recent message. “We realize that we need God’s help, His grace, His Providence, and the strength that is the gift of His Spirit.”
According to Vatican News, the World Day of the Sick is observed each year on Feb. 11, the liturgical commemoration of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes. A celebration takes place every three years at a Marian shrine, but Pope Francis recently announced the delay of the triennial celebration due to the Jubilee Year. Instead the commemoration of the World Day of the Sick will take place in 2026, at the Marian Sanctuary of the Virgin of Chapi of Arequipa in Peru.
In his Jan. 17 message, the Holy Father reflected upon the consolation the Lord extends to those who suffer, sharing three particular forms of divine outreach: encounter, gift and sharing.
Pope Francis emphasized the transformative power of suffering, stating the burden of sickness can be an opportunity to encounter the Lord, who has shared in our own human afflictions.
“Suffering always brings with it a mysterious promise of salvation,” Pope Francis wrote. “For it makes us experience the closeness and reality of God’s consoling presence.”
The Holy Father also noted the unique ability of places of suffering to instill faith in those nearest to them.
“How often, at the bedside of the sick, do we learn to hope,” Pope Francis wrote. “How often, by our closeness to those who suffer, do we learn to have faith,” he continued. “How often, when we care for those in need, do we discover love!”
Pope Francis encouraged caretakers and those who are suffering to acknowledge their role in this Jubilee Year.
“Your journey together is a sign for everyone: ‘a hymn to human dignity, a song of hope,’” Pope Francis wrote. “Its strains are heard far beyond the rooms and beds of health facilities, and serve to elicit in charity, ‘the choral participation of society as a whole,’ in a harmony…capable of bringing light and warmth wherever they are most needed.”
