“You are the healing hands of Jesus,” Bishop Edward Malesic told the medical professionals who gathered Oct. 17 for the annual White Mass. The bishop celebrated the liturgy in Mary, Mother of the Good Shepherd Chapel at the Center for Pastoral Leadership in Wickliffe. Dinner and a speaker followed Mass.
Members of the local Order of Malta, a Catholic lay religious hospitaller organization, attended the event with members of the Cleveland Guild of the Catholic Medical Association.
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The bishop, who is recovering from recent ankle surgery – his second this year -- shared his story, and his hope, with the group, which includes doctors, nurses, medical students and others in the medical profession.
“We all hope for different things,” he said. “I hoped that my first ankle surgery earlier this year would end my problems. But another surgery was needed. Now my hope is to get rid of my crutches,” he quipped. “Your patients have hope for healing,” he told the medical professionals, “But sometimes that doesn’t happen … God’s promise of salvation is our hope, the hope that does not disappoint.”
The world is filled with division and hated, the bishop said. Sometimes, people lose hope and take matters into their own hands, which can be problematic.
“The cross is a sign of hope, the passage from death to life … The hope of the future is already breaking forth,” Bishop Malesic said. “The work you do will be a sign of hope … The kingdom of God is at hand is the message we hear in the Gospel, and that kingdom is the hope that will never disappoint.”
After Mass, the group moved to the Founder’s Room for dinner and a witness talk by guest speaker Dr. Kathy Lutter.
Dr. Lutter spoke about her experiences as a devout Catholic and an obstetrician/gynecologist in the Columbus, Ohio area for more than 40 years. A member of the Columbus Catholic Medical Guild, she said she faces moral and ethical dilemmas daily in her profession.
She talked about attending the Ohio March for Life in Columbus a few years ago to help people understand what was happening in the state with regard to abortion laws. Dr. Lutter described the fallout she experienced after she was recorded surreptitiously.
“I had faith, and it got me through … My spirituality was enhanced … Without God, I couldn’t have done it,” she said. Dr. Lutter told the audience to “be good at what you do and be kind to your patients. Be the best doctor you can be.”
Dr. Ron Sobecks, a hematologist/oncologist who has led the Cleveland Catholic Medical Guild since its establishment in 2012, is retiring from that position. He introduced Dr. Jim Ohliger, a family practitioner, who will be the new president.
Save the date: The medical guild’s annual conference will be Feb. 28, 2026, at St. Albert the Great Parish Life Center in North Royalton.