Vatican City, Feb 3, 2011 / 13:46 pm
Pope Benedict XVI called the sick and healthy to reflect on the wounds of Christ in a new message issued to mark the Feb. 11 celebration of the World Day of the Sick.
Top members of the Vatican's "health ministry" were at the Vatican press office Feb. 3 to release the Pope’s message.
In it, the Pope recalled the suffering of Christ he saw in the image of the Shroud of Turin during his 2010 visit to the city. The image, he said, "invites us to reflect on he who took upon himself the passion of man, of every time and place, even our sufferings, our difficulties, our sins."
The wounds present from his passion and death, "become the sign of our redemption, of forgiveness and reconciliation with the Father" gained by his resurrection, the Pope explained. The wounds were a test for the first disciple's faith and for Christians today, he pointed out.