Do not pass by: Compassion that stops on the road

A Pastoral Reflection from Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M. on World Day of the Sick, February 11, 2026.

In his 2026 message for the annual World Day of the Sick, our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV invites us to contemplate the Good Samaritan and to rediscover what true compassion really is. He reminds us that the Samaritan “does not remain at a distance, does not look away, does not pass by, but draws near, bends down, and takes upon himself the pain of the wounded man.” 

Illness, the Pope teaches, is part of our human condition, but it must never be faced in indifference or abandonment. It is precisely there, in the place of suffering, that love is called to “bear another’s pain” and make visible the tenderness of God.

Established in 1992 by Pope St. John Paul II, who himself carried the cross of Parkinson’s disease, World Day of the Sick is a moment for the Church to recognize that “the sickness of a family member, a friend, or a neighbor is a call to Christians to demonstrate true compassion, that gentle and persevering sharing in another’s pain.” 

Pope Leo XIV echoes this same conviction when he urges us not to walk past those who suffer, but to stop, to see, and to draw near, as the Good Samaritan did.

All of us know someone who has been seriously ill; some of us have carried that burden ourselves. I write from abundant personal experience, not to seek sympathy, but simply to share what God has taught me through the lens of sickness. Such experiences reveal the fragility of our human bodies and the way sickness can shake our outlook on life. 

They also reveal something else: that the needs of the sick in our midst can only be met by other caring people — by hearts willing to listen, hands willing to serve, and lives willing to slow down and stay close.

Christians have always been encouraged by the compassion of the Lord Jesus toward the sick in the Gospels. He touched the leper, stood beside the grieving, restored sight to the blind, and strength to the lame. From its earliest days, the Church has continued his ministry, offering healing, strengthening faith, inspiring hope, and sharing love in his name. 

Pope Leo XIV reminds us that this is not an optional extra, but a work at the very heart of the Gospel: to love by bearing another’s pain.

The sick share in the human suffering of the Lord Jesus, made so visible on the Cross. If he embraced his suffering as the way to redeem our humanity, then he invites us to see our own sickness as a path to deeper union with him. 

As St. Paul writes, “the sufferings of the present are nothing compared to the glory to be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18). Even when our faith does not remove our physical ailments, it can transform them — helping us to recognize, in the crosses we bear, the presence of the Lord Jesus reaching out his hand, offering purpose, comfort, and peace.

Those who are sick are encouraged to pray for these gifts in their suffering: to ask the Lord for the grace to trust, to endure, to hope and to unite their pain with his. As Pope Leo XIV insists, every person who suffers is a neighbor entrusted to our care, and every act of compassion — no matter how small — becomes a sign that God has not forgotten them.

Good health makes us aware of the blessings we have received. It is also a call to responsibility. For those who are well, this is the time to become, in Pope Leo XIV’s words, “good Samaritans on the roads of our own cities and communities,” drawing near to the sick and the lonely. A visit, a card or small gift, a smile, a gentle hand, a shared tear, and a prayer — these simple gestures allow us to be, for those who suffer, the loving presence of the Lord Jesus.

Those who care for the sick — doctors and nurses, staff and volunteers, priests and pastoral caregivers, families and friends — have a privileged and demanding vocation. Whether believers or not, they become, in a mysterious way, the touch, the hands, the voice and the encouragement of Christ for those who are suffering. 

We thank God for them, and we pray that their daily service may be strengthened by patience, renewed by hope, and sustained by love. Through them, every day can become, in spirit, a “World Day of the Sick.”

Pope St. John Paul II asked that this special day of prayer be celebrated annually throughout the Church on February 11, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. Lourdes, where the Blessed Mother appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in 1858, has become a place of healing, consolation and conversion for countless pilgrims. By linking World Day of the Sick to this feast, the Church places all who suffer into Mary’s maternal hands.

In his 2026 message, Pope Leo XIV offers a simple and trusting prayer to Our Lady:
“Sweet Mother do not part from me. Turn not your eyes away from me. Walk with me at every moment and never leave me alone.”

May Mary, our Blessed Mother and Health of the Sick, bring our beloved sick sisters and brothers, and all who care for them, closer to the Heart of her Son. May we, inspired by Pope Leo XIV’s call, become true Samaritans — loving by bearing another’s pain.
 
Photo credit:The Good Samaritan (1826) - Guillaume Bodinier. Public domain image.