Vatican City, 30 December 2014 (VIS) –
The Pope's message for the 23rd World Day of the Sick 2015 begins
with a phrase from the Book of Job: “I was eyes to the blind, and
feet to the lame”, explained from the perspective of “sapientia
cordis”, the wisdom of the heart that “is not theoretical,
abstract knowledge, the product of reasoning”, Pope Francis
remarked, but rather “a way of seeing things infused by the Holy
Spirit in the minds and hearts of those who are sensitive to the
sufferings of their brothers and sisters and who can see in them the
image of God”.
World Day of the Sick, instituted by
St. John Paul II in 1992, is held on 11 February, feast day of the
Virgin of Lourdes. The full text of the Message is published below:
“Dear Brothers and Sisters,
On this, the twenty-third World Day of
the Sick, begun by Saint John Paul II, I turn to all of you who are
burdened by illness and are united in various ways to the flesh of
the suffering Christ, as well as to you, professionals and volunteers
in the field of health care.
This year’s theme invites us to
reflect on a phrase from the Book of Job: 'I was eyes to the blind,
and feet to the lame'. I would like to consider this phrase from the
perspective of 'sapientia cordis' – the wisdom of the heart.
1. This 'wisdom' is not theoretical,
abstract knowledge, the product of reasoning. Rather, it is, as Saint
James describes it in his Letter, 'pure, then peaceable, gentle, open
to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, without uncertainty or
insincerity'. It is a way of seeing things infused by the Holy Spirit
in the minds and the hearts of those who are sensitive to the
sufferings of their brothers and sisters and who can see in them the
image of God. So let us take up the prayer of the Psalmist: 'Teach us
to number our days that we may gain a heart of wisdom'. This
'sapientia cordis', which is a gift of God, is a compendium of the
fruits of the World Day of the Sick.
2. Wisdom of the heart means serving
our brothers and sisters. Job’s words: 'I was eyes to the blind,
and feet to the lame', point to the service which this just man, who
enjoyed a certain authority and a position of importance amongst the
elders of his city, offered to those in need. His moral grandeur
found expression in the help he gave to the poor who sought his help
and in his care for orphans and widows.
Today too, how many Christians show,
not by their words but by lives rooted in a genuine faith, that they
are 'eyes to the blind' and 'feet to the lame'! They are close to the
sick in need of constant care and help in washing, dressing and
eating. This service, especially when it is protracted, can become
tiring and burdensome. It is relatively easy to help someone for a
few days but it is difficult to look after a person for months or
even years, in some cases when he or she is no longer capable of
expressing gratitude. And yet, what a great path of sanctification
this is! In those difficult moments we can rely in a special way on
the closeness of the Lord, and we become a special means of support
for the Church’s mission.
3. Wisdom of the heart means being with
our brothers and sisters. Time spent with the sick is holy time. It
is a way of praising God who conforms us to the image of his Son, who
'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom
for many'. Jesus himself said: 'I am among you as one who serves'.
With lively faith let us ask the Holy
Spirit to grant us the grace to appreciate the value of our often
unspoken willingness to spend time with these sisters and brothers
who, thanks to our closeness and affection, feel more loved and
comforted. How great a lie, on the other hand, lurks behind certain
phrases which so insist on the importance of 'quality of life' that
they make people think that lives affected by grave illness are not
worth living!
4. Wisdom of the heart means going
forth from ourselves towards our brothers and sisters. Occasionally
our world forgets the special value of time spent at the bedside of
the sick, since we are in such a rush; caught up as we are in a
frenzy of doing, of producing, we forget about giving ourselves
freely, taking care of others, being responsible for others. Behind
this attitude there is often a lukewarm faith which has forgotten the
Lord’s words: 'You did it unto me’.
For this reason, I would like once
again to stress 'the absolute priority of “going forth from
ourselves toward our brothers and sisters” as one of the two great
commandments which ground every moral norm and as the clearest sign
for discerning spiritual growth in response to God’s completely
free gift'. The missionary nature of the Church is the wellspring of
an 'effective charity and a compassion which understands, assists and
promotes'.
5. Wisdom of the heart means showing
solidarity with our brothers and sisters while not judging them.
Charity takes time. Time to care for the sick and time to visit them.
Time to be at their side like Job’s friends: 'And they sat with him
on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to
him, for they saw that his suffering was very great'. Yet Job’s
friends harboured a judgement against him: they thought that Job’s
misfortune was a punishment from God for his sins. True charity is a
sharing which does not judge, which does not demand the conversion of
others; it is free of that false humility which, deep down, seeks
praise and is self-satisfied about whatever good it does.
Job’s experience of suffering finds
its genuine response only in the cross of Jesus, the supreme act of
God’s solidarity with us, completely free and abounding in mercy.
This response of love to the drama of human pain, especially innocent
suffering, remains for ever impressed on the body of the risen
Christ; his glorious wounds are a scandal for faith but also the
proof of faith.
Even when illness, loneliness and
inability make it hard for us to reach out to others, the experience
of suffering can become a privileged means of transmitting grace and
a source for gaining and growing in “sapientia cordis”. We come
to understand how Job, at the end of his experience, could say to
God: 'I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye
sees you'. People immersed in the mystery of suffering and pain, when
they accept these in faith, can themselves become living witnesses of
a faith capable of embracing suffering, even without being able to
understand its full meaning.
6. I entrust this World Day of the Sick
to the maternal protection of Mary, who conceived and gave birth to
Wisdom incarnate: Jesus Christ, our Lord.
O Mary, Seat of Wisdom, intercede as
our Mother for all the sick and for those who care for them! Grant
that, through our service of our suffering neighbours, and through
the experience of suffering itself, we may receive and cultivate true
wisdom of heart!
With this prayer for all of you, I
impart my Apostolic Blessing”.
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