Pope Francis is urging Catholics worldwide to bring to the sick and needy “the ‎Lord’s own gaze, full of tenderness and compassion,” reminding the Church of her “maternal vocation” to them. The exhortation came in his message for next year’s World Day of the Sick of the Catholic Church that is traditionally observed on February 11, the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Released by the Vatican on Monday, the message for the 26th World Day of the Sick has as its theme: Mater Ecclesiae: “Behold, your son... Behold, your mother. And from that hour the disciple took her into his home” (Jn 19:26-27). Instituted by St. Pope John Paul II on May 13, 1992, the annual observance intends to draw attention to the sick and their caregivers.

In his message the Pope recalls that “on the Cross, Jesus showed his concern for the Church and all humanity, and Mary is called ‎to share in that same concern.” The entire community of disciples, he says, is included in Mary’s maternal vocation, and like her, the disciples are called to care for one another, ‎excluding no one, simply because they are persons, children of God.
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In the message, Pope Francis evokes the image of the Church as a “field hospital”, noting that in some parts of the world Church hospitals are the only institutions providing necessary care to the population.‎ The Holy Father also urges Catholic hospitals to steer clear of “the business mentality that is seeking worldwide to turn ‎health care into a profit-making enterprise, which ends up discarding the poor.”