ADDRESS OF JOHN PAUL II
12th WORLD DAY OF THE SICK
TO THE SICK PERSONS
ON THE MEMORIAL OF OUR LADY OF LOURDES
Wednesday, February 11, 2004
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
1. Once again St Peter's Basilica has opened
wide its doors to the sick: to you who are
present here, and in spirit to the sick across
the world. I greet you with deep affection, dear
friends. From this morning, my prayers have been
dedicated especially to you and I am now
delighted to meet you. With you, I greet your
relatives, friends and the volunteers who have
accompanied you. I greet the members of National
Italian Union for Transporting the Sick to
Lourdes and International Shrines (UNITALSI), as
well as the directors and operators of the Opera
Romana Pellegrinaggi that is celebrating its
70th anniversary this year. In particular, I
greet and thank Cardinal Camillo Ruini who has
presided at Holy Mass, the concelebrating
Bishops and priests, the men and women religious
and all the faithful present.
2. Twenty years ago on the Memorial of Our Lady
of Lourdes, I published the Apostolic Letter
Salvifici Doloris on the Christian meaning of
human suffering. At the time, I chose that date
thinking of the special message that the Virgin
addresses from Lourdes to the sick and to all
the suffering.
Today too, our gaze turns to the venerable image
of Mary which stands in the grotto of
Massabielle. At its base are the words: "I am
the Immaculate Conception". These words have a
special resonance this year, here in the Vatican
Basilica where 150 years ago Bl. Pope Pius X
solemnly proclaimed the Dogma of the Immaculate
Conception of Mary. And it is precisely the
Immaculate Conception, a truth that introduces
us into the heart of the mystery of Creation and
of the Redemption, that inspired my Message for
today's World Day of the Sick.
3. In looking at Mary our hearts are opened to
hope, for in her we see the great things God
accomplishes when we render ourselves humbly
available to doing his will. The Immaculate
Virgin is a marvellous sign of the victory of
life over death, of love over sin, of salvation
over every physical and spiritual ailment. She
is a sign of comfort and never-failing hope (cf.
Lumen Gentium, n. 68). What we admire already
fulfilled in her is a pledge of what God wants
to give to every human creature: fullness of
life, joy and peace.
May contemplation of this ineffable mystery
comfort you, dear sick people; may it illumine
your work, dear doctors, nurses and health-care
workers; and may it sustain your precious
activities, dear volunteers who are called to
recognize and serve Jesus in every needy person.
May Our Lady of Lourdes watch over everyone as
Mother. Thank you for the prayers and sacrifices
that you also generously offer for me! I assure
you of my constant remembrance, and
affectionately bless you all.
This page is the work of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and
Mary
