For the month of April, Pope Francis asks prayers for those caught in the “drama of addiction.”
He says this includes gambling, pornography, browsing the internet too often, not to mention the “dangers of virtual space.”
The pope prays that “supported by the 'Gospel of Mercy' we can alleviate, care for and heal the suffering associated with new kinds of addiction.
He recommends that those suffering from addition be “properly helped and accompanied.”
More than 23 million Americans over 12 years old battle a substance abuse disorder with either alcohol, illicit drugs, or prescription medications.
There are around 247 million drug users worldwide, numbers that count as an epidemic.
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