Pope's illness prompts cure-all questions

Published February 25, 2005 - Glendale News-Press IN THEORY Pope's illness prompts cure-all questions Vatican officials are touting the Pope's recent suffering as an example of a willingness to suffer in the face of health problems and a modern society that believes medicine must cure all. Monsignor Elio Sgreccia, the Vatican's chief bioethicist, reportedly said recently that medicine has become unmanageable because it can't fulfill the desires of consumers for perfect health. Do you think we've gotten carried away with a so-called "religion of health" -- too carried away with an idea that modern medicine must cure all? A: The "religion of health" is no different from any other religion. Its goal is to cheat death. And yes, there are those who are obsessed with it, to the point that they have unrealistic expectations of healthcare. But then again, there are those who fanatically follow traditional religion with expectations of avoiding an awful end. As people, we innately avoid suffering. After all, it is painful and ugly. One of the marks of an affluent society is the power money has to alleviate pain. That society conditions its members to believe in an illusion that with enough resources, the impossible becomes possible, namely that suffering can and should be avoided at all costs. Unfortunately, our priorities become skewed at that point. Our affluence fosters this illusion. As long as there's a profit to be made, things will not get better. Health will be marketed to the highest bidder. That's where I believe a healthy attitude toward religion and faith is our only hope. All major traditions speak of suffering as part of life; it is not to be avoided, rather it should be accepted as part of spiritual growth and enlightenment. With the failing health of his holiness Pope John Paul II, we remember him in our prayers, asking that God grant him the courage and strength to endure the sufferings he does. Even more, through our prayers we connect ourselves to the human equation, where suffering and pain are marginalized by our tremendous capacity to dream, hope and love. FATHER VAZKEN MOVSESIAN St. Peter Armenian Church & Youth Ministries' Center