February 14, 2008

This Far By Faith

Sick and Tired

By Bishop J. Terry Steib, S.V.D.

I don't know anyone who likes being sick. It takes a toll on our families; sometimes it hurts us financially; and usually it puts all of our plans on hold. Often, I have heard people say: "I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired." But sickness is a part of our daily lives. Even when we are blessed and enjoying good health, every so often that "bug" that not even doctors can identify raises its head and we find ourselves spending a few days battling with sinuses, and achy joints, and all the symptoms of a flu-like cold. But we know that such illnesses will be short-lived, and in a short period of time we will be back on track with our day-to-day activities.

However, people who are ill with chronic or even life-threatening diseases cannot say "It's okay, because I'll be over this in a few short days." People with congestive heart disease or diagnoses of cancer, kidney disease, or diabetes know that their illnesses will be with them for a long time. And when we have these kinds of diseases and the pain that comes with them, we need to know how to deal with them in a Christian and Catholic way.

This past Monday, the Church celebrated the 150th anniversary of the first apparition of the Blessed Mother at Lourdes. Lourdes has become a center of hope for millions of people who are ill. It is a place of countless miracles for people whose lives were turned around when they were cured of all kinds of debilitating illnesses. The miracle of Lourdes for me is that people still go to Lourdes filled with the hope that the Lord, in his kindness and through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, will heal them. And what is more amazing is that, even when miracles do not occur, the persons who are ill still remain full of hope and are willing to unite their suffering with the suffering of Jesus so that our world will continue to be redeemed. In a recent address for World Day of the Sick, Pope Benedict said: "Mysteriously united to Christ, (the person) who suffers with love and meek self abandonment to the will of God becomes a living offering for the salvation of the world."

When we are in pain from an illness of any kind, it is important for us, as we deepen our awareness of our Catholic faith, to offer that pain to the Lord. Physical pain or psychological pain continues Jesus' redemption of our world. Sometimes in the depths of depression, or when we are wracked by the difficulties of living in a bi-polar world, we need to be able to hope for a better day even while we offer the pain of darkness to the Lord who suffered the darkness of seeming abandonment in his final hours on the road to Calvary. Our Holy Father reflects on pain in that same address I mentioned above and says about it: "…pain received with faith becomes the door by which to enter the mystery of the redemptive suffering of Jesus and to reach with him the peace and the happiness of his Resurrection."

As we make our way through Lent, it is good to remember that Jesus told us that if we were to follow him we would need to carry his Cross. There are few who carry Jesus' Cross more nobly than those whose illness and pain is hidden in the miasma of mental illness, but who place their confidence in God's grace to help them through it.

We will not always know when we will be ill, and so we need to prepare for that time while we are healthy. People often say that they are too busy to pray each day and that they will pray more frequently when they are sick. But persons who have been sick know that prayer is difficult in those moments because they are fighting with all their resources to stave off the disease. That is why when we are sick, we should not hesitate to bring the Church to our bedside in prayer. St. James says to us, "Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint (him) with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven." (James 5, 14-15)

There are few ministries in our Church that are as deeply needed or as strongly felt as our ministry to the sick. I am aware that throughout our diocese our priests, religious men and women, deacons and many of our parishioners are making a great difference in the lives of our sisters and brothers who are sick and ailing. It might be an emergency call in the middle of the night, or an afternoon visit just to sit and talk with a lonely and elderly member of the parish, but in each and every situation the love of Christ is being manifested by those who are ministering. When the Eucharist is brought to the sick, we are expanding the circle of love that we celebrate in communion together on Sunday mornings and we are saying again that the death and resurrection of Jesus is the path to wholeness regardless of how debilitated or racked with pain our bodies may be.

Sickness comes to all of us at one time or another. But, living with our illness and bearing its cross in our lives can lead to redemption not only for our world, but also for each of us. So, even in those moments when we lightly or poignantly say that we are sick and tired of being that way, remember the huge arms of love with which God embraces us, and trust that when we place ourselves within God's all-embracing arms, God will indeed heal us.