(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said Tuesday whoever lives the mission of “Caritas” is a true witness of Christ.
Speaking during his homily for the opening Mass of the XXth General Assembly of “Caritas Internationalis”, the Pope said the Church’s humanitarian and development organization reveals the power of Christian love and the desire of the Church to reach out to Jesus in every person, especially the poor and the suffering.
The Mass, in St. Peter’s Basilica, inaugurated the “Caritas Internationalis” General Assembly during which members of the Caritas Confederation from across the globe come together to approve a strategic framework and a budget for the next four years.
Please find below the translation of the full text of the Pope’s homily:
HOMILY FOR THE OPENING MASS
OF THE XXth GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF CARITAS INTERNATIONALIS*
12.5.2015
The reading from the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 16: 22-34) that we have just heard presents us a somewhat special character. It is the jailer of the prison at Philippi, where Paul and Silas were imprisoned following an up roar of the crowd against them. The magistrates first had Paul and Silas beaten and then sent to prison, ordering the jailer to keep a good guard. So, during the night, when the man felt the earthquake and saw the prison doors open, he was full of despair and thought of killing himself. But Paul reassured him; and trembling and full of wonder, the man got down on his knees and pleaded for salvation.
The story tells us that the man immediately took the necessary steps on the path towards faith and salvation: together with his household, he listened to the Word of the Lord; washed the wounds of Paul and Silas; received Baptism with his entire family; and finally, full of joy, he welcomed Paul and Silas into his home, setting the table and offering them something to eat.
The Gospel, proclaimed and believed, urges us to wash the feet and the wounds of the suffering and to prepare the table for them. The simplicity of the gestures, where the acceptance of the Word and the sacrament of Baptism are accompanied by the welcome of the brother, as if these were indeed one single gesture: to welcome God and to welcome others; to welcome others with the grace of God; to welcome God and express this act in the service to our brothers and sisters. Word, Sacraments and service refer to and nourish each other, as can already be seen in these testimonies of the early Church.
We can see in this gesture the entire vocation of Caritas. Caritas is now a great Confederation, widely recognized throughout the world for its work and accomplishments. Caritas is a reality of the Church in many parts of the world and must still seek a greater expansion in the different parishes and communities, to renew what took place in the early days of the Church. In fact, the source of all your service lies in the simple and docile welcome of God and neighbor.This is the source; if you take away this source Caritas will die. This welcome is first personally experienced by you, so that you may then go out into the world, and there, to serve others in the name of Christ, whom you have met and whom you will continue to meet in every brother and sister that you will approach as your neighbor. Thanks to this, you will actually avoid the risk of being reduced to a mere humanitarian organization.
There are no large or small “Caritas”‘, they are all the same. Let us ask the Lord for the grace to understand what is the true dimension of “Caritas”; the grace so as not to fall into the deceit of believing that well-organized centralization is the right road to take; the grace to understand that “Caritas” is always to be found in the peripheries, in each particular Church; the grace to believe that the central “Caritas” is only aid, service and common experience but it is not the head of them all.
Whoever lives the mission of Caritas is not simple charitable worker, but is a true witness of Christ. He is a person who seeks Christ and allows Christ to seek him; people who love with the spirit of Christ, a spirit of gratuitousness and gift. All of our strategies and plans remain empty unless we carry this love in us. Not our love, but His. Or better yet: our love, purified and strengthened by His love.
In this way, we can serve everyone and set the table for all. This is also a beautiful image that the Word of God offers us today: setting the table. Even now, God sets the table of the Eucharist. Caritas sets many tables for the hungry. In recent months you launched the great campaign”One human family, food for all”. There are still so many people today who do not have enough to eat. The planet has enough food for all, but it seems that there is a lack of willingness to share it with everyone. We ought to set the table for all, and ask that there be a table for all. We must do what we can so that everyone has something to eat, but we must also remind the powerful of the Earth that God will call them to judgement one day and there it will be revealed if they really tried to provide food for Him in every person (cf. Matt.25: 35) and if they did what they could to preserve the environment so that it could produce this food.
And thinking about the table of the Eucharist, we cannot forget our Christian brothers and sisters who have been violently deprived of the food for the body and for the soul: they have been driven from their homes and their churches – at times destroyed. I renew the appeal not to forget these people and these intolerable injustices.
Together with many other charitable organizations of the Church, Caritas, therefore, reveals the power of Christian love and the desire of the Church to reach out to Jesus in every person, especially the poor and suffering. This is the path that lies ahead of us. With this perspective, I hope that you will carry out your work during these. We entrust them to the Virgin Mary, who has made this welcome of God and neighbor as the fundamental criteria of her life. In fact, tomorrow we will celebrate Our Lady of Fatima, who appeared to announce victory over evil. With such a great support, we are not afraid to continue our mission. Amen.
*The official text is published on the website of the Holy See.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said Tuesday whoever lives the mission of “Caritas” is a true witness of Christ. Speaking during his homily for the opening Mass of the XXth General Assembly of “Caritas Internationalis”, the Pope said the Church’s humanitarian and development organization reveals the power of Christian love and the desire of the Church…
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(Vatican Radio) ‘One Human Family, Caring for Creation’ – that’s the theme of the Caritas Internationalis General Assembly which kicked off Tuesday in Rome. A press conference introducing the works of the 12-17 May Assembly was held in the Vatican Press Office. Pope Francis was to officially open the Assembly with a special Mass Tuesday evening at 5:30 pm local time in Saint Peter’s Basilica. Click here to follow the Mass live . Over the next five days, more than 300 delegates from around the world will lay out plans for the coming four years, aimed at improving the lives of those living in poverty and misery.
“Pope Francis has asked us to go to the ‘peripheries’ to help those in need,” said Caritas Internationalis President Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga. “During the Caritas Internationalis General Assembly, the peripheries will come to Rome to seek better ways to improve our service to the most vulnerable”.
Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga will officially open the event on 13 May at Domus Mariae Church Palace Hotel.
Guest speakers will include Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace; theologian Fr Gustavo Gutierrez O.P; economist Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Dr Jacques Diouf, Special Envoy for the Sahel and the Horn of Africa; and Beverly Haddad from the University of Kwazulu-Natal.
Some fifty young people, volunteers, grassroots communities and campaigners against hunger will also be present.
“Inequality, migration, climate change, conflict, and the scandal of hunger are challenges facing Caritas and its mission to promote development and justice,” said Michel Roy, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis. “There are major opportunities coming up to work towards this goal, such as a new papal encyclical on human ecology, the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals and the COP 21 climate meeting in Paris”.
Key leadership roles will also be up for election. Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga will step down as president after eight years. Candidates for president are Archbishop Youssef Soueif , president of Caritas Cyprus and Cardinal Luis Tagle, Archbishop of Manila. Elections for the leadership will take place on 14 May.
After the General Assembly, Caritas delegates will go to the EXPO 2015 in Milan for an official EXPO Caritas Day on 19 May. The event is part of Caritas’ campaign ‘One Human Family, Food for All’ which aims to end hunger by 2025.
During Tuesday’s press conference, Michel Roy described the General Assembly as a unique moment to “celebrate who we are and what we do.” Mr Roy said that Caritas had prepared a 5 point strategic framework that would be discussed over the course of the meeting.
Michel Roy also explained that there will be a “new governance coming out of this Assembly” A new President of Caritas Internationalis will be elected as Cardinal Maradiaga will have completed the maximum two terms at the helm of the organization.
Listen to Michel Roy, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis:
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) ‘One Human Family, Caring for Creation’ – that’s the theme of the Caritas Internationalis General Assembly which kicked off Tuesday in Rome. A press conference introducing the works of the 12-17 May Assembly was held in the Vatican Press Office. Pope Francis was to officially open the Assembly with a special Mass Tuesday evening…
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(Vatican Radio) A Press Conference was held at the Holy See Press Office on Tuesday to present details the Caritas Internationalis General Assembly which runs from the 12-17 May in Rome and is held every four years.
The theme for the event is ‘One Human Family, Caring for Creation’ and it brings together over 300 delegates from around the world who will discuss plans for the next 4 years that will entail helping the most vulnerable.
Attending the briefing on Tuesday was the President of Caritas Internationalis, Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, Michel Roy, the organistion’s Secretary General, Teologian, Fr. Gustavo Gutiérrez, O.P., and Haridas Varikottil, an expert in Agriculture from Caritas India.
Listen to Michel Roy, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis
During his intervention to journalists, Michel Roy described the Assembly as a unique moment to “celebrate who we are and what we do.” Mr Roy said that Caritas had prepared a 5 point strategic framework that would be discussed over the course of the meeting. The 5 strategic orientations he spoke of are:
“ To help the Church to be a poor Church for the poor.”
The work of Caritas will continue to respond to major emergencies.
Promoting integral human development.
To strengthen global solidarity.
To strengthen and developed the capacity of the weakest or more vulnerable members of the Caritas Internationalis network.
Over the course of the Assembly there will be a number of guest speakers including Cardinal Peter Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, who will speak on the subject of climate change.
Michel Roy also explained that there will be a “new governance coming out of this Assembly” A new President of Caritas Internationalis will be elected as Cardinal Maradiaga will have completed the maximum two terms at the helm of the organization.
(from Vatican Radio)…