Pope Francis poses with children during a meeting with members of the Italian League for the Fight Against Tumors, at the Vatican June 26. The pope said that cancer prevention programs and campaigns need to reach everyone. (CNS photo/L'Osservatore Romano)

Caring for the ill is priceless gift for society, pope says

2014 0

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Cancer prevention programs and campaigns need to reach everyone, Pope Francis said.

“Spreading a culture of life — made up of attitudes and behaviors — is greatly needed, a true culture (that is) of the people, serious, accessible to everyone and not based on commercial interests,” he said in an address to members of the Italian League for the Fight Against Tumors June 26.

The pope praised the volunteer organization, which promotes education, prevention, research and support for those with cancer and their families.

He said their service represented a constant “decentralization toward the peripheries,” emphasizing that the “peripheries” include any person who is marginalized by society or other people, and those who may be forced to compromise or abandon their daily routine and relationships because of illness.

Taking care of those who are ill “is a priceless richness for society,” he said, and reminds both the church and civil society “to not be afraid of closeness, to not be afraid of tenderness, to not be afraid of ‘wasting time'” by offering support, comfort and solidarity to those who need it.

“Since good health is a primary and fundamental necessity for every person, it is desirable that oncological prevention be extended to everyone, thanks to collaboration between public and private services and initiatives by civil society and charities.”

Related Post

Pope Francis accepts a portrait of himself from a man attending the World Conference on Xenophobia, Racism, and Populist Nationalism in the Context of Global Migration, during an audience at the Vatican Sept. 20. The conference was held in Rome Sept. 18-20 in collaboration with the Vatican and the World Council of Churches. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Pope: Those exploiting foreigners for profit will pay on Judgment Day

Posted by - September 30, 2018 0
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — No one can remain indifferent to the way minority groups are increasingly the object of so…
Pope Francis poses for a group photo with U.S. bishops from Ohio and Michigan Region VI making their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican Dec. 10, 2019. The bishops were making their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican to report on the status of their dioceses to the pope and Vatican officials. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Evangelization, care for priests top topics at Region VI meeting with pope

Posted by - December 15, 2019 0
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The bishops of Ohio and Michigan spent two hours conversing with Pope Francis about their dioceses,…