Linda Kumar is hurting but hopeful.
And though she has good reason to complain, the lifelong Catholic and St. Bernadette parishioner prefers to live seeking God’s love, the unsurpassed sense one can experience in quiet moments with her heavenly Father.
Around 5 a.m. every day, Kumar arrives at the church on 60th street about a mile south of Bell Road in Scottsdale, Ariz., to refill its holy water fonts and maintain the candles in the grotto outside.
She takes great pains in that service — literally.
About a year ago, the 70-year-old underwent hip surgery, but last August the joint began hurting again. The ache spread, and her doctor said she has osteoarthritis, especially a problem in her knees and ankles.
“It’s really painful at times, it can be excruciating,” she said. “My physical therapist told me this is probably how it’s going to be the rest of my life.”
Kumar is among a group of Diocese of Phoenix faithful waiting to learn if they have been selected by the Sovereign Order of Malta to travel with the organization to Lourdes, France, in April. Led by the Order — one of the world’s largest and oldest lay service entities — thousands visit the city nestled in the French Pyrenees mountains each year to soak in the peaceful, divine atmosphere of the grotto where St. Bernadette witnessed a series of visions of the Blessed Mother in 1858. The local bishop four years later declared those apparitions to be legitimate, and Pope Leo XIII authorized a special Mass commemorating them.
The Order will notify its selected pilgrims in about two weeks.
But as Kumar and others awaited travel news, they, along with dozens of worshippers, received the Anointing of the Sick during the annual World Day of the Sick Healing Mass at St. Bernadette Church on Saturday.
“This is our effort to bring a little bit of Lourdes here,” said Order of Malta Phoenix area leader Steve Jerome, KM.
Interest in this year’s trip has been “very high,” Jerome noted. “There are over 100 candidates. We can only take 55 to 60.”
‘God is near us’
Around 400 of the faithful filled St. Bernadette as Diocese of Gallup, NM, Bishop James Wall led a team of Crosier Fathers and Brothers anointing the sick and celebrating the Liturgy of the Word and Eucharist.
This year, the Order added confessions and the praying of the rosary prior to Mass, coordinator and St. Bernadette parishioner Patricia Johnson DM said.
During the Anointing, administered after the Homily, clergy apply holy chrism oil to a recipient’s forehead and the palms of his or her hands while praying, “Through this Holy anointing, may the Lord in His love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit,” and “May the Lord who frees you from sin save you and raise you up.”
Guidance and authority for the Sacrament is provided in the Church’s Code of Canon Law 998-1007.
“God,” said Bishop Wall, “is near us in any setting. This truth is…important at this Mass, to let those among us, especially those ill or infirm [know] they are not alone.”
2025 marked the 33rd annual World Day of the Sick.
Established in 1992 by St. John Paul II – a year after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease — the day is dedicated to prayer for those ill and infirm, as well as their caregivers,
Dioceses and churches worldwide celebrate Mass on or near Feb. 11, St. Bernadette’s Feast Day. The Diocese of Phoenix holds the rite on the preceding Saturday.
The event also lets the public turn in prayer requests for Knights and Dames, members of the order, to take to Lourdes. This year’s pilgrimage will take place April 26-May 7.
Founded in the 11th century by Benedictine brother Blessed Fra’ Gerard to serve poor and sick pilgrims of all faiths on the streets of Jerusalem, the Sovereign Order of Malta today provides medical help and refugee care in more than 100 countries without regard to race or religion. Its U.S. Western Association comprises Arizona and 11 other states.
Johnson said a candidate’s doctor must confirm the individual can withstand the more than 14-hour trip from Los Angeles International Airport to Lourdes. During the weeklong stay pilgrims, known as “malades,” — French for sick or ill — are accompanied by a Knight or Dame, as they are pushed around in a small cart during their travels.
Eight Arizona candidates are being considered.
While not among them, Cristina Teran will send prayer cards for herself and her best friend, a woman in her late 40s recently diagnosed with dementia.
“This has been a shock. It changed my perspective on life,” said Teran, 49.
A parishioner of St. John the Evangelist in Tucson, Ariz., and a mother of two, Teran said her body is going through the physical changes that come with age, and it’s been painful at times.
“I’m seeking the calm and peace the Virgin Mary gives me,” she said. “Being a mother, she understands.”
‘A light that will guide you’
Terri Rowe, a parishioner of Most Holy Trinity in the Sunnyslope section of Phoenix, attended her 16th Mass. Despite her faithfulness, Rowe may have questioned a day earlier whether she would make it.
Wheelchair-bound with spinal problems, and more recently gout, Rowe was barely able to get out of bed Friday, weakened and sick to her stomach.
“[It] was a horrendous day. [But] I need to be here,” she said, a warm smile, her eyes clear, her tone full of joy that belied her suffering.
“God is always with me. I know whatever I’m going through, he’s right there, even at my bleakest moments. Any trials are for a good reason. Whenever I have a lot of pain or difficulty getting around, I offer it up.”
Her words reflected Pope Francis’ thoughts in his 12th annual World Day of the Sick message Jan. 14, in which he urged the ill and infirm and their caregivers to lean into God’s grace, love and faithfulness.
“Sickness, then, becomes an occasion for a transformative encounter…an experience that, even at great cost, makes us all the stronger because it teaches us that we are not alone,” the pope said.
Bishop Wall echoed that theme Saturday.
“More than anything else, suffering makes us aware that hope comes from the Lord. In the midst of our suffering, we’re not alone; we’re not abandoned. God is always with us,” he said, opening his homily.
“Nothing is beyond the reach of God.”
Suffering, said the bishop, is a means to realize hope in a tangible way by encountering the living Christ. Just as the man with leprosy encountered Jesus during his healing – the act recorded in the day’s Gospel reading Matthew 8:1-4 — one can encounter Christ in one’s prayers and solitude, listening for His voice and sensing his touch.
As Teran filled out her prayer cards, she reflected on hope, the theme of this 2025 Jubilee year.
“Hope is waiting with patience,” she said. “I do believe everything happens for a reason. I don’t understand sometimes. My logic is different than God’s, but I still need to trust and accept. With hope, [waiting for answers] is hard, but it’s not impossible.
“Hope is like a light that will guide you. It won’t take your problems away but will help you carry on with whatever it is you need to go through.”
Featured Photo by Jeff Grant
