For several years now, we have explored the concept of the Catholic Church as a Field Hospital. Pope Francis first illuminated this metaphor in 2013:
The thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his blood sugars! You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything else. Heal the wounds, heal the wounds.
– Pope Francis September 2013 (https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2013/09/30/big-heart-open-god-interview-pope-francis)
He has continued this theme over the years, as a faith whose mission is to heal and serve the world:
This is the mission of the Church: the Church heals, it cures. Sometimes, I speak of the Church as if it were a field hospital. It’s true: there are many, many wounded! So many people need their wounds healed! This is the mission of the Church: to heal the wounds of the heart, to open doors, to free people, to say that God is good, God forgives all, God is the Father, God is affectionate, God always waits for us.
– Pope Francis 2/5/2015 (http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/02/05/pope_at_santa_marta_servants_of_the_kingdom/1121647)
Today’s world needs us more than ever. From the attacks in London and the Philippines, to the war-torn Middle East, to the faces of the refugees and migrants desperately trying to find safety for their families, our Catholic Church is the beacon of love, hope, mercy, and healing for the world.
I can tell you that I have been asking those hard questions myself recently. “What is going on?” “How can I do good in this world where conflict and hatred seem to trump love and respect?” “What is my purpose?” I am so blessed to have a supportive family and faith community both in my home and in my church, St. John. I find strength and purpose here. I hope all of you do too. However, we know there are people both inside and outside our walls that do not have those same support mechanisms. They are searching for those answers for themselves. It is our role as Catholics to accompany them on that journey. I know I have asked you before, but if you have a friend that you know is on that journey and is afraid or apathetic to make the first step, please help them come to Alpha. Or, just go have a cup of coffee or a beer with them. Be there for them. As Saint Teresa said, “Help one person at a time and always start with the person nearest you.”