Pope Francis met at the Vatican with participants from the “Rare Words Run” race. This initiative by the “A Rare Life” Association aims to give a voice to people with Allan-Herndon-Dudley syndrome, who suffer from severe intellectual disability.
“The illness that affects our children is a genetic, hereditary disease only found in male children. Only 200 people worldwide suffer from it.”
They told him they needed his help and prayers to find the necessary strength to move forward with hope.
Following the moving testimony, the pope hugged the father of Davide, one of the children affected.
POPE FRANCIS
“The association's name says you all know how to see the positive side: that every human life is unique, that if the illness is rare or very rare, life is also rare. That positive view is a miracle typical of love. And love does this: it knows how to see the good in the negative situations, it knows how to safeguard the small flame in the middle of a dark night.”
The Holy Father explained that in a situation as difficult as having an ill child, love is the most powerful source of strength.
