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by Rev. Fr. V.V. Paulose, Toronto, Canada
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy, peace on
you." (Romans 15:13)
Do you think of ending your life?
Some times the burden of life, disfigurement of body, or marginalization by the
society make the people to think about to end their life. When darkness
encircles from all sides of life, the morale and anchor to float may brake in to
hopelessness’. Here love, faith and hope play their decisive roles. There is
hope for all living creatures as long as they have the ebbs of life. Even if you
are the last man left in the world, still there is hope. Hope in the resurrected
Christ. There are plenty of people living in and around you not to express the
real feelings of shame and pressure of society imposed on them due to the
deformity of their physic. Church has a vital role to play in this juncture to
remove the shame and acceptance and engagement of the people who are in the
verge of braking down and death.
Nicole was born with a genetic disorder called neurofibromatosis (NF), which
causes tumours to grow in the tissue around nerves. She has small growths all
over her body, including many on her hands and face. She was once told to leave
a public pool because a parent was afraid she would contaminate the water. "That
didn’t give me a chance to explain that my condition is not contagious. That was
one of the worse experiences of my life. I wanted to die. Hundreds of times I
thought of ending my life." There is no known cure or effective medical
treatment. In Canada, one in every 3,500 people has NF, almost as many as Cystic
Fibrosis, and more than ALS and Huntington’s disease combined . Nicole Porlier
now happily married and running a wine- making business(Aptly called The Glass
Half Full) with her husband, this vivacious and out going woman has chosen hope
over despair. She recently joined the board of directors of NF Canada. Nicole
says, "You have to have hope, no matter who you are or else you don’t have
anything."
"Declares the Lord, ”For I know the plans I have for you- plans to prosper you
an don’t to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”( Jeremiah 29:11)
Amen
Jesus, remove the shame the society imposed on the
sick and deformed. We pray for those who are in the brink of committing suicide.
Let the people have the hearts of compassion and knowledge. Let your love and
hope encircle those who are in very distressful condition. All we ask in the
name of Jesus.
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