AFRICA/SIERRA LEONE - “Since the Pope was admitted to hospital people all over the country are debating on the value of life and the role of the elderly” says a missionary in Sierra Leone, where in the 1960s children with polio were seen as “children of the devil”

Freetown (Fides)- “The Pope’s stay in hospital is provoking reflection on the value of human life. This is particularly true in our youth groups because our children and young people are deeply saddened by the thought that the Pope is ill and suffering” said Xaverian missionary Fr Eugenio Montesi who works with children and young people in difficulty in Sierra Leone. “People everywhere in Sierra Leone are following the development of the Pope’s condition on radio and television” Father Montesi told.
“Special prayers are offered for the Pope in every parish. Since the Pope was admitted to hospital people all over the country are debating on the value of life and the role of the elderly here in a society which is very young. People are beginning to realise the equal dignity of every person and that everyone, even the sick and the elderly, has something to give to others”.
“This fills us with joy. It is a fruit of the faith sown among people who in the 1960s saw children crippled with polio as “children of the devil”. Today these unfortunate children have their place in society, they are no longer excluded” the missionary concluded. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 3/3/2005 righe 20 parole 253)