via OSV News:

In a video message to the annual ALS Walk for Life in Chicago, he said he mourns for those who have died from the disease and praised caregivers as well as researchers and all involved in fighting the neurodegenerative disorder….

“You have been given a very difficult burden to bear. I wish it otherwise,” he said. “Your sufferings, however, offer you an opportunity to discover and affirm a profound truth: The quality of human life is not dependent on achievement. The quality of our lives is dependent on love. In your suffering, you can experience a depth of human love previously unknown….

“And finally, a word to those who mourn,” Pope Leo concluded. “After a time of caring for your loved ones with ALS, you now mourn their passing. You have not forgotten them. And, in fact, your love has been purified by your service and then by your mourning. You have learned and are every day entering more deeply into the most profound of mysteries — death is not the final word. Love conquers death. Love conquers death. Love conquers death.”