NEWSLETTER INSERTS - ON BEING SALT AND LIGHT TO THE SICK

“Love is not passive; it goes out to meet the other. Being a neighbour is not determined by physical or social proximity, but by the decision to love. This is why Christians become neighbours to those who suffer, following the example of Christ, the true divine Samaritan who drew near to a wounded humanity”.

Pope Leo XIV, Message for World ay of the Sick, 11^th Feb. 2026

“Compassion implies a profound emotion that compels us to act. It is a feeling that springs from within and leads to a committed response to another’s suffering”.

Pope Leo XIV, Message for World ay of the Sick, 11th Feb. 2026

“To be one in the One” means truly recognizing that we are members of a single Body that brings the Lord’s compassion to the suffering of all people, each according to our own vocation. Moreover, the pain that moves us to compassion is not the pain of a stranger; it is the pain of a member of our own Body, to whom Christ our Head commands us attend, for the good of all. In this sense, our service is identified with Christ’s own suffering and, when offered in a Christian spirit, hastens the fulfilment of the Savior’s prayer for the unity of all”.

Pope Leo XIV, Message for World ay of the Sick, 11th Feb. 2026

“I genuinely hope that our Christian lifestyle will always reflect this fraternal, “Samaritan” spirit – one that is welcoming, courageous, committed and supportive, rooted in our union with God and our faith in Jesus Christ. Enkindled by this divine love, we will surely be able to give of ourselves for the good of all who suffer, especially our brothers and sisters who are sick, elderly or afflicted”.

Pope Leo XIV, Message for World ay of the Sick, 11th Feb. 2026

"Like salt in putrefying meat, Christians are to hinder social decay. Like light in the prevailing darkness, Christians are to illumine society and show it a better way".

John Stott

“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”

St Francis of Assisi

“We are called to be salt of the earth and light to the world. Our faith is something very private and personal to each of us but, in the words of Jesus in today’s Gospel, it can’t be hidden or remain secret. It has to be social. We must engage with our culture and take the risk in doing so. As a Church, we cannot retreat or stay silent in response to confusion, danger, hatred and the undermining of life itself”.

Fr Billy Swan