Joining Catholics around the world in prayer, about 100 people gathered Feb. 25 at Holy Family Church, 3938 Poplar Level Road, at a Mass of Healing for the Holy Father.
Archdiocese of Louisville officials, priests, deacons, religious and families were among those who attended the liturgy, which was announced by the archdiocese on the afternoon of Feb. 24.
Pope Francis, diagnosed with double pneumonia, has been hospitalized in Rome since Feb. 14, and remained in critical condition.
During the homily, Archbishop Fabre reminded the congregation of the Gospel reading from Luke 22, when Jesus prays, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will, but yours be done.”
“This is our prayer,” Archbishop Fabre told the congregation. “As we pray for the pope’s healing, we make those words of Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane our own — hear our prayers, our loving father, but thy will be done,” he said.
“We ask, and we beg, that Pope Francis will be healed and continue his ministry, but we place our faith in Jesus Christ,” he added.
“As we offer this celebration of the Eucharist, praying for the healing of Pope Francis, may we place our trust in the love and mercy of our God and remember that Jesus Christ is Emmanuel, God with us, in all things.“
— Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre
Times of illness can be isolating and frightening, the archbishop said. He asked the congregation to pray for those ministering to the pope — “for the doctors and the nurses, for the hospital staff, for the Vatican staff — who, in appropriate ways, are assisting the pope as he continues to give attention to the needs of the church.”
He also said God draws close to the sick, as “Jesus Christ himself knows what it means to suffer.”
“Christ draws very close to Pope Francis,” Archbishop Fabre said. And, God “draws very close to us and hears our prayers.”
“As we offer this celebration of the Eucharist, praying for the healing of Pope Francis, may we place our trust in the love and mercy of our God and remember that Jesus Christ is Emmanuel, God with us, in all things,” he said.
Among those gathered to offer their prayers was the Teegarden family. The family has been praying for the pope, said April Teegarden, who attended with her children.
“He’s our Holy Father, so we always want to pray for him. When we heard there was a Mass being said for him, we wanted to come and be a part of it,” she said.
Tommy Teegarden, a 10th-grade student who is homeschooled and has a flexible schedule, was able to attend, too, noting Pope Francis is “the vicar of Christ on earth. He’s got more responsibility than probably anyone else in the world.”
Valerie Feldkamp, a parishioner of St. Louis Bertrand Church, also participated in the liturgy. She said she is offering her prayers for Pope Francis because “he’s a global figure representing our Lord, Christ himself.”
“He guides us, not just Catholics, but the entire world,” she said. “I pray for God’s will for him and the world.”
