Sunday, July 26, 2026From the news

You Are Not on Your Own

In the face of suffering like that of cancer patients in Nigeria, God promises His presence and calls us, the Body of Christ, to be a sign of that presence through our solidarity.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.

Isaiah 43:2

If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.

1 Corinthians 12:26-27

My dear friends in Christ,

It is a heavy thing to sit with the news some days. Today, our hearts are drawn to our brothers and sisters in Nigeria, where we hear that many who are suffering from cancer feel as if they are on their own. It is a pain that is twofold: the physical trial of a terrible illness, and the spiritual desolation of feeling abandoned, left to face the struggle alone. This cry from the heart, “I am on my own,” is perhaps one of the most painful a person can utter. It is a cry the Lord knows well.

In our own lives, when we face illness, or grief, or profound uncertainty, this feeling can creep in. We can feel that our struggle is invisible, that we are adrift on a sea of trouble while the world moves on. And in those moments, the Lord speaks a word not of explanation, but of presence. He speaks to us as He spoke through the prophet Isaiah: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

This is God’s fundamental promise. He does not promise a life without fire or flood, but He promises to be with us in the midst of it. For every person in Nigeria enduring treatment, for every family member keeping vigil, for every doctor and nurse working against impossible odds, this is the first and most important truth: God is with you. You are not on your own. He has called you by name, and you are His.

But our faith does not leave us with this private consolation alone. God’s presence is made real and tangible through His people, through us, the Church. Saint Paul tells us so clearly: “If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it… Now you are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.” This is not just a beautiful idea; it is the reality of our baptism. The patient in Lagos is not a stranger; she is our sister. The overwhelmed doctor in Abuja is our brother.

Their feeling of being “on their own” is a wound in the whole Body of Christ. It is a call to us, far away as we may be, to refuse to be indifferent. We are called to suffer with them. What does this mean for us today? It means, first, to pray. To truly bring their suffering before the Lord in our own hearts, to make their struggle our own in prayer. It means to inform our consciences, to learn about the challenges faced by the poor and the sick around the world. And it means to foster in our own hearts a spirit of solidarity, recognizing that our well-being is bound up with theirs.

We are a people of hope. Not a flimsy optimism that things will magically get better, but a rugged hope grounded in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is a hope that believes that suffering does not have the last word. It is a hope that knows that even in the darkest valley, the Good Shepherd is with us. Let us be a sign of that hope for our brothers and sisters in Nigeria and for all who feel alone in their suffering. Let us remind them, and remind ourselves, that in the Body of Christ, no one is ever truly on their own.