Angelus: Pope calls for healthcare systems that prioritise poorest

By Jean-Benoît Harel 

Pope Francis’ Angelus message for this 5th Sunday of Lent has been released by the Holy See Press Office.

In the text, the Pope focuses on the “finger of God”, with which Jesus writes in the sand in today's Gospel. Jesus writes “a new story” for the woman whom the scribes and Pharisees want to stone to death, the Holy Father stresses.

The “finger of God”

Pope Francis says that throughout his hospitalization, and the past 15 days of convalescence in the Vatican, he has perceived “this finger of God” and its “benevolent caress”.

“On this day of the Jubilee of the Sick and Healthcare Workers, I ask the Lord that this caress of his love might reach those who suffer and encourage those who care for them”, the Pope writes.

Concerned about the working conditions of doctors, nurses and healthcare staff, as well as the assaults to which they are sometimes subjected, the Pope says that their mission “is not easy and must be supported and respected”.

Additionally, he calls on world leaders to invest in treatment and medical research, “so that healthcare systems might be inclusive and attentive to the poorest and most fragile”.

Peace throughout the world

As usual, the Pope asked the faithful to pray for peace in the world, particularly “in tormented Ukraine, hit by attacks that have claimed many civilian victims, many of them children”.

This appeal comes two days after the Holy See's Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, spoke by telephone with the Russian Federation's Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov.

The Pope then turned his thoughts to Gaza, “where people are reduced to living in unimaginable conditions, without shelter, without food, without drinking water”, calling for the resumption of dialogue, the release of hostages and for “arms to be silenced”.

“Let us pray for peace throughout the Middle East, in Sudan and South Sudan, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and in Burma, hard hit by an earthquake”, he continued. The Pope also paid tribute to the two nuns killed in Haiti, denouncing the violence "raging” in the country.

Moreover, on this World Day of Sport for Peace and Development, the Pope expressed the hope that “sport will be a sign of hope for so many people in need of peace and social inclusion”. Finally, he thanked the inmates of the Rebibbia women's prison for the card he had received from them.