The theme this year is “The Eucharist, Lourdes and Pastoral Care for the Sick,” and Pope Benedict notes there are two significant events this year in the Church that connect to this: “the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the apparitions of the Immaculate Mary at Lourdes, and the celebration of the International Eucharistic Congress at Quebec in Canada.”The Holy Father then offers a reflection on the link between the “Mystery of the Eucharist, the role of Mary in the project of salvation, and the reality of human pain and suffering ... ”To read the message for the 16th World Day of the Sick, courtest of Zenit news service, click HERE.