Pope Francis made a surprise appearance in St. Peter's Square yesterday at the end of the Mass for the Jubilee of the Sick and the World of Health, which was celebrated by Monsignor Rino Fisichella. Carried in a wheelchair, he said: "I ask the Lord that this touch of His love reaches those who suffer and encourages those who care for them". He then expressed his sentiments regarding healthcare professionals: "I offer my prayers for the health workers, nurses, and doctors who are not always provided with the necessary resources to operate in a safe and comfortable manner, and who are occasionally victims of aggression. Their mission is not easy and must be encouraged and valued", with the hope that "the necessary resources will be spent in treatment and research, so that healthcare systems may be inclusive and attentive to the most fragile and poorest". The pontiff also stated, "Certainly illness is one of the most difficult and hard trials of life, in which we touch with our hands how fragile we are", because it "can come to make us feel like the people in exile, or like the woman of the Gospel: deprived of hope for the future. But it is not so. Even in these moments, God does not leave us alone, and if we surrender ourselves to Him, right when our strength ends, we can find comfort in His presence". After renewing the call to trust in God, Bergoglio also recalled Benedict XVI’s testimony on illness. "Facing suffering together makes us more human, and sharing pain is a vital milestone on the path of holiness", he emphasized, and spoke to the sick: "At this point in my life, I share a lot: the experience of illness, of feeling weak, of depending on others for many things, of needing support. It is not always easy, but it is a school where we learn every day to love and allow ourselves to be loved, without demanding or rejecting, without regretting or despairing, grateful to God and our brothers and sisters for the good we have received, abandoned and hopeful for what is to come".