Tallaj’s reflection about his meeting with Pope Leo XIV

Friends,
I am still processing what I experienced a few days ago in France, during the apostolic visit of Pope Leo XIV. Being in Lourdes is already a profoundly moving experience: it is a place where you come face to face with human pain, but also with immense hope. There, among so many people seeking healing, I had the opportunity to speak with the Holy Father.
It was not the typical protocol meeting. I was able to talk with him one-on-one about what we see every day. I told him about our family at SOMOS, the people in our New York neighborhoods, and our brothers and sisters in the Dominican Republic. I wanted him to know the reality of those patients whom the system too often fails to see.
I got a lump in my throat when I told him about our doctors and what we experienced during the pandemic. I told him how we risked our lives in service of those most in need, and how our work was, in some way, a vocation deeply lived, and full of faith. I spoke about the fear, the brutal exhaustion, and how, even amid all of that, the doctors and workers of SOMOS entered the most forgotten communities so that no one would have to die alone. Then we placed ourselves at the service of New York City in the vaccination campaign and the recovery. I wanted him to know that there on the front line, there was immense love for those who have less.
The Pope listened to me with a kind of attention that disarms. He spoke to me about his predecessor and the “call to love” he left us as a task. He told me something very true: that our profession cannot remain in the coldness of diagnosis. Approaching a sick person, touching them, and listening to them must be an affective, human act, not just a medical one.
And as we spoke about all this, we ended up talking about migrants. We both agreed on something fundamental: when a migrant comes to us – tired, scared, lacking a support network, and having left their entire life behind – caring for them has nothing to do with politics; it is pure service. It is looking them in the eye and recognizing their dignity.
I left Lourdes with a full heart, but also with a sense of urgency that I want to share with you. In the place where Our Lady appeared to remind us of God’s love, and where people come seeking a miracle or a cure for their ailments, the Pope reminded us that we, too, can be a miracle for the people most in need today. It is not about great acts, but about constant love and total dedication.
Whether it is a family member who is losing their health, a neighbor who is alone, a migrant who has just arrived seeking refuge, or those discarded by society because of their poverty or their appearance… let’s get closer. Let’s not desert them. Medicine saves bodies, but the only thing that really heals this society is to embrace each other’s humanity.
A heartfelt hug, Ramón Tallaj