Pope Leo XIV visited 15-year-old Ignacio Gonzálvez, a Spanish participant in the Youth Jubilee, at the Bambino Gesù Hospital in Rome. Ignacio is suffering from severe lymphoma and was unable to interact with the Pope due to sedation. The Pope spent about 30 minutes with Ignacio, his parents, and family, offering words of comfort and emphasizing the importance of faith and eternal life. The Pope had previously asked the crowd at the prayer vigil to pray for Ignacio and two other pilgrims who died during the Jubilee. Following the visit with Ignacio, the Pope greeted patients, parents, and staff in the oncology ward.
4 months ago
Pope Leo XIV made a surprise visit to 15-year-old Ignacio Gonzálvez, a Spanish participant in the Jubilee of Youth, at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù Pediatric Hospital in Rome on the evening of August 4, 2025 1 2 4. Ignacio had been hospitalized for several days due to severe lymphoma affecting his respiratory tract, which caused him to collapse during the Jubilee events 1 2 4. He was in the intensive care unit and sedated at the time of the Pope's visit 1 2 4.
The Pope spent approximately 30 minutes with Ignacio's parents, Pedro Pablo and Carmen Gloria Gonzálvez, and his two siblings, Adela and Pedro Pablo Jr., who were gathered by his bedside 1 2 4. During the visit, Pope Leo XIV prayed with the family, reciting the Hail Mary and Our Father, and offered words of comfort and blessing 1 2 4. He emphasized, "We are made for heaven," and stressed the importance of doing God's will, noting that "our true place is eternal life in heaven" 1 2 4.
Ignacio's parents expressed deep gratitude and profound consolation for the Pope's visit 1 2 4. Carmen Gloria described it as a "sign that God has not abandoned me" and a confirmation that "Jesus Christ came close to me and said, ‘You are not alone’" 1 2 4. Pedro Pablo called the Pope's words "the best thing that could have happened to us," stating that their journey of faith "has become a mission... to bear witness to hope in the midst of illness" 1 2 4. Ignacio's sister, Adela, shared that seeing the Pope in person brought her "peace and calm," transforming her tears into laughter 2 4.
The Pope's visit to Ignacio followed his public appeal for prayers during the August 2 prayer vigil at Tor Vergata, where he asked one million young people to pray for Ignacio's health 1 2 4. During the same vigil and the Sunday Angelus on August 3, Pope Leo XIV also offered condolences for two other young pilgrims who died during the Jubilee: 20-year-old Maria Cobo Vergara from Spain, who had terminal cancer, and 18-year-old Pascale Rafic from Egypt, who suffered a heart attack 1 2 4. The Pontiff later met with Pascale's pilgrimage group at the Vatican 1. After visiting Ignacio, Pope Leo XIV extended his compassion to other young patients in the oncology ward and greeted hospital staff, reciting prayers and offering blessings 1 4. The Bambino Gesù Hospital is renowned internationally for its pediatric services and has a history of papal visits, including those by Pope Francis to Ukrainian children and during his "Fridays of Mercy" 1.
What is the Church's teaching on suffering?
The Catholic Church teaches that suffering, while an evil and a trial in itself, can become a source of good when united with the suffering of Christ . Through Christ's Passion and Resurrection, all human experience, including suffering and death, has been redeemed .
Christ's dying on the Cross provides meaning for human suffering, offering inspiration and strength to overcome resentment and grow through pain into new life . Suffering is an invitation to imitate Christ, who died to redeem humanity from sin, and thus, it can enrich both the individual and the entire Church .
The sufferings of Christ brought about the world's redemption, an inexhaustible and infinite good . In the mystery of the Church as His Body, Christ has, in a sense, opened His redemptive suffering to all human suffering . When a person suffers in union with Christ, they not only receive strength from Him but also "complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church" (Col 1:24) . This highlights the creative character of suffering, as it allows individuals to participate in Christ's redemptive work .
Suffering becomes an effective means of union with the Cross of Christ . It is an act of obedience to the Father and a loving act of surrender to God's providence . By accepting suffering with the Crucified, believers engage in intercession through Christ and the Church . This participation in Christ's sacrifice of love is a distinctive and privileged way to know Him .
Patient endurance of suffering has a twofold value: witness and redemption .
Suffering, when experienced for love and with love, allows a person to grow more fully conformed to Christ and more closely associated with His redemptive work . This interior maturity and spiritual greatness in suffering result from cooperation with the grace of the Crucified Redeemer, who acts within human sufferings through the Holy Spirit, transforming the spiritual life and revealing the wonderful interchange at the heart of the Redemption .
While suffering is an experience of evil, Christ has made it the firmest basis of eternal salvation . Through His suffering on the Cross, Christ confronted the roots of evil, sin, and death, conquering Satan . Christ reveals the horizons of the Kingdom of God to the suffering, leading them into a world free from sin and built on the saving power of love . Suffering is transformed from within by Christ's presence and the power of His Spirit .
The Church also recognizes the spiritual motherhood of Mary, through whom Christ wishes to penetrate the soul of every sufferer, so that every form of suffering, given new life by the Cross, becomes not human weakness but the power of God .