Vatican City, Nov 19, 2009 / 02:02 pm (CNA).- Father Luigi Squarcia, a pastor in the Italian town of Acquapendente who has suffered from Lou Gehrig's disease for the last four years, met with Pope Benedict XVI on Wednesday and offered his “sufferings for the good of the Church.”

After the meeting with the Holy Father in Paul VI Hall, Father Squarcia said, “I came to offer the Pope my sufferings for the good of the Church.  I am here, for the first time, after years of working with the parishioners and the children at our school.”

Now, he told L’Osservatore Romano, “I can no longer move my arms or legs and I know I will lose my speech and later maybe the ability to breathe.”  He noted that more people than ever are coming to him for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Lou Gehrig's disease is a serious neuromuscular disorder that causes muscle weakness, disability and eventually death.

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