Dr. Giuseppe (Joseph) Mosati, a physician from Naples, was canonized in Rome on October 25, 1987 at the conclusion of the Synod of Bishops on the vocation and mission of the laity in the Catholic Church. The readings that Sunday were taken from Matthew's Gospel on The Last Judgment, in which God invites those who gave Him food and drink, welcomed, clothed, and visited Him, to ‘inherit the kingdom' (Mt. 25:31-46). The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, said that the secret of Dr. Moscati's devotion to the needy was that he saw Christ in the sick person:
"The Church places before our eyes the figure of a man who, raised to the glory of the altars in this solemn canonization, says to all the laity in the Church: "Consider . . . your vocation!" The man whom we shall henceforth invoke as a saint of the universal Church presents himself to us today as the concrete realization of the ideal of the lay Christian." (Osservatore Romano, 9 November 1987)
The Pope suggested that Dr. Moscati deserved to be imitated, even by those who did not share his faith, for the way he carried out his many duties as head physician in a hospital, illustrious researcher, and university professor. But he added: Still, it was precisely this faith which conferred upon his efforts new dimensions and qualities, those typical of the authentically Christian layperson. Thanks to them, the professional aspects of his life became harmoniously integrated, supporting one another and being lived out as a response to a vocation, and thus as collaboration with the creative and redemptive plan of God (Osservatore Romano, 9 November 1987). This "new dimension" of faith frequently found expression in Dr. Moscati's own writing. He once articulated the perspective that faith brings to medicine as follows:
"A doctor so often finds himself before persons on the verge of dying, anxious for some consolation, assailed by pain. Blessed is that doctor who is able to comprehend the mystery of these hearts and to inflame them once again. Blessed are we doctors, so often unable to heal an illness, blessed are we if we remember that besides bodies we have before us immortal souls, for whom we must feel the urgency of the gospel precept of loving them as ourselves." (Osservatore Romano, 9 November 1987) Dr. Moscati summed up his personal experience with the central value of Christianity, that of love of God and neighbour, in these words: "Not science, but charity, has transformed the world." The Toronto Catholic Doctors' Guild adopted St. Moscati its Patron Saint on the 7th of November 1993. His example inspires us to harmonize and integrate our many acts of service, all of which flow from our vocations as lay healthcare workers to transform the world, not merely by means of our mastery of the science and technology of modern medicine, but most of all by charity. We celebrate St. Moscati's feast day each year on the 12th of April, which typically coincides with our Lenten retreat.
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