Church work for sick portrayed too negatively

The Archbishop of Dublin has hit out at the overly negative portrayal of Church bodies in caring for the sick in the past.

In his homily for a Mass to conclude the Dublin diocesan pilgrimage of over 2,000 people to the Marian shrine at Lourdes, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin acknowledged that “Church organisations made mistakes and Church representatives failed to live up to their vocation”. However, he said he was “saddened” when the “work of believers and Church bodies in caring for the sick in the past are portrayed only in a negative light”.

Dedication

He said: “So many anonymous men and women religious also brought dedication and innovation in health care and society owes them a debt of gratitude.”

The archbishop stressed that believers have an “essential contribution” to bring to society today and to the future, “especially in bringing support to the sick and the troubled”.

“As Christians living in a diverse society we must find new ways of keeping that Christian spirit of gratuitous of dedication alive in a society where commercial and economic values can often dominate,” Dr Martin added.