Pope Leo XIV yesterday encouraged the Church in Latin America to accompany families that undergo the pain of substance abuse, violence, or poverty. Source: Vatican News.
The Pope met with participants in a meeting promoted by the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, which focused on the topic “Addiction in Latin America”.
In his address, Pope Leo greeted the many people from faith-based centres in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas who work for the accompaniment, prevention, recovery, and integration of young people affected by drugs.
Reflecting on the impact of substance abuse, he noted that “suffering and hope know no borders”.
He then pointed to four “bridges” that converged at the meeting, representing four paths of cooperation.
First, he said, the Church works closely with international organisations in order to combat the abuse of drugs.
Second, the Pope said science and faith form another bridge, since the Church does not want to compete with neuroscience, psychiatry, or public health.
“Rather, she seeks to shed the light of the Gospel upon it through an integral understanding of the human person,” he said.
Third, the Church serves as a bridge between all continents, as people with common goals come together to “share their suffering, hopes, and pastoral enthusiasm”.
Fourth, the Church and other ecclesial communities employ faith as a common language with which to practice concrete love for those who suffer from addiction.
Pope Leo went on to highlight the centrality of the family, calling it the “domestic Church” which runs through every aspect of efforts to combat substance abuse.
The family, he said, “is the place where life is nurtured, cared for and given direction. There is no better protection against drugs than a good family”.
As Pope Francis said, the Church seeks to “touch human misery, to touch the suffering flesh of others”.
“Today,” lamented Pope Leo, “we witness the suffering of many broken families, whether because of drug use, violence, the criminal recruitment of a child, poverty, or the lack of opportunities that pushes people to the margins.
“May the Church be the family of all those left by the roadside,” he said. “Let us build a Church that stops, draws near, is moved with compassion, anoints wounds, provides nourishment, and becomes a home.”
FULL STORY
Pope: Church must help broken families heal from drug abuse (By Devin Watkins, Vatican News)
