Pope Leo prays with the sick at Vatican Gardens' Lourdes Grotto

“It is a very beautiful day that reminds us of Mary’s closeness, our mother, who always accompanies us and teaches us so much: what suffering means, what love means, and what it means to entrust our life into the hands of the Lord.”

Pope Leo XIV expressed this, after his Wednesday General Audience, to a group of sick individuals who had been waiting for him at the Lourdes Grotto in the Vatican Gardens. The encounter was for the World Day of the Sick, which falls today, 11 February, the liturgical memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes.

The Pope thanked those before him for making the effort to be present, before the Blessed Mother, for the moment of prayer.

Before imparting his Apostolic Blessing, Pope Leo XIV prayed to the Lord to bless all who are sick, today and always, as well as all doctors, nurses, and others, who accompany them.