Do not turn suffering into a spectacle

Accounts of stigmata and extraordinary illnesses have always attracted doctors, witnesses, and visitors. They can raise legitimate questions, but behind the phenomenon there was always a sick person, exposed and in need of respect. Curiosity turns cruel when it consumes the pain of others as content. Sharing images, asking for details, or drawing near only for what is sensational can forget that no one exists simply to feed your amazement. Faced with an extraordinary story, ask first what good you do by spreading it. Protecting privacy, verifying facts, and looking at the whole person is far more Christian than collecting details. Compassion knows how to stop looking.