The Priest and Caring for the Sick
This lecture presents Pope Shenouda III’s vision of the priest’s deep responsibility toward the sick, viewing this duty not as an additional social task but as an essential spiritual part of priesthood. Caring for the sick is considered caring for Christ Himself who said: “I was sick and you visited Me.” The lecture shows that caring for the sick includes spiritual, physical, material, and compassionate dimensions.
1️⃣ The Sick at the Heart of Pastoral Work
Pope Shenouda III explains that Christ made the visitation of the sick a criterion of judgment, and that neglecting the sick resembles the behavior of the priest and the Levite in the parable of the Good Samaritan.
2️⃣ Visiting the Sick as a Deep Spiritual Service
The priest’s visit to the sick is not a formality but a message of comfort and faith. The sick person is spiritually receptive and seeks God’s mercy. The priest may leave a cross, an icon, or a verse to strengthen the patient.
3️⃣ Anointing the Sick with Oil
Pope Shenouda stresses that the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick should be done with reverence and seriousness, with appropriate Scripture readings and personal prayers for each patient.
4️⃣ Practical Care for the Patient
The priest is responsible for following the patient’s condition with doctors and family members. He must consider himself a father to all patients in the hospital, not only the one he originally came to visit.
5️⃣ Material Support for the Sick
Some illnesses cost enormous amounts such as kidney failure, cancer, and major surgeries. Families may lose all their resources. Pope Shenouda encourages priests to collect donations, create support funds, and establish simple church clinics.
6️⃣ Caring for Mothers and Children
He emphasizes guiding parents regarding children’s vaccinations and caring for nursing and pregnant mothers, as people’s health is a sacred trust in the priest’s hands.
7️⃣ Seeing Christ in Every Patient
Caring for the sick is caring for Christ Himself. The Church stores its heavenly treasures through serving the needy and the suffering, not through appearances or formalities.
8️⃣ A Call for Compassion and Mercy
Pope Shenouda confirms that true service is built on compassion, tears, sincere prayer, and complete care for the sick who need spiritual, psychological, and physical support.
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