One of the biggest misconceptions about organ donation is that your religious beliefs could stop you from becoming an organ donor. For the millions of Catholics and Christians around the world, Pope Francis just put that fear to bed permanently. According to Pope Francis, “a gift to the suffering Lord who said that everything we have done for a brother or sister in need we have done for him.” Pope Francis has been known as the pope of love. He has been open to many progressive ideas and has lead the church into a new era. If you have been interested in getting involved in organ donation, get in contact with one of our specialists here at LifeCenter today!
The Pope’s Statement
On April 13, 2019. Pope Francis met with the Italian Association of Organ Donors at the Vatican to discuss the importance of organ donation. Pope Francis stated, “Faced with threats to life, which we unfortunately have to witness almost daily… society needs these concrete gestures of solidarity and generous love to make it clear that life is something sacred.” The main distinction of his talks was that the donation needs to be for the good of others, and not for monetary gain. He believes that organ donation and blood donation need to be done as “An unpaid, free act.”
He goes on to say “In fact, any form of commercialization of the body or any part of it is contrary to human dignity. In giving blood or an organ of the body, it is necessary to respect the ethical and religious perspective.” Pope Francis believes that by giving the gift of organ donation freely, “we will receive our reward from God according to the sincere and concrete love we have shown toward our neighbor.” This belief of selfless giving pervades almost every aspect of Christianity, stemming from Jesus’s words to “Give and gifts will be given to you.” This is not to say that you should ever expect anything in return for giving anything to anyone, but by acting selflessly, we will be rewarded in kind.
How To Get Involved
Organ donation is one of the best ways to truly make an impact on someone’s life. Regardless of if you register as a living or a deceased donor, you can rest easy knowing that you are doing your part in creating a kinder world. The pope’s statement adds yet another benefit to becoming an organ donor by actually adding your spirituality and religion into the mix. You can easily get involved with organ donation in a number of ways. The easiest way to get involved in organ donation is by becoming an organ donor yourself. If you are already an organ donor and want to go the extra mile, you can register as one of our volunteers. If organ donation has affected you or your family, you can also become a LifeCenter ambassador or even join our team as an employee!
