From the Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida to the “shrine of human suffering” that is the St Francis of Assisi hospital, located in the run-down Tijuca district of northern Rio de Janeiro. That was how Pope Francis himself described his visit on Wednesday afternoon to the hospital, run by young Franciscan friars and sisters who care for the poorest and most marginalized slum dwellers. During the visit, the Pope blessed a new wing of the hospital dedicated to the rehabilitation of drug users, saying he embraced every single person struggling with drug addiction.
It’s not easy to talk about years of drug abuse, desperation and life on the streets, especially if you’re talking to the Pope in person. But that’s exactly what two former addicts did, receiving in return an emotional embrace from the Holy Father.
In his address to patients and staff, the Pope said a reduction in drug addiction will not be achieved by a liberalization of drug use, as is currently being proposed in various parts of Latin America. Rather, he said, it is necessary to confront the problems underlying the drug use, promoting greater justice, educating young people in the values that build up life, accompanying them in their difficulties and giving them hope for the future.
Pope Francis condemned the selfishness of what he called ‘dealers of death’, urging society as a whole to act with courage to stamp out the scourge of drug trafficking.
Speaking directly to those who have fallen into ‘the darkness of dependency’, the Pope said the Church offers outstretched hands to help you on the long and difficult journey, but he stressed ‘no one is able to stand up in your place’. ‘Look ahead,’ he urged and ‘do not let yourself be robbed of hope!’
Speaking to the hospital staff, the Pope said we all have to learn to embrace those in need, just as his namesake St Francis reached out to embrace the leper. He thanked all the medical professionals for their love and concern, reaching out to people in difficulty because in them we see the face of the suffering Christ.
Listen to Philippa Hitchen’s report