Up close, personal with the poor
Excerpts of the pope’s message for the World Day of the Poor to be held on November 19:
“May our concern for the poor be marked by Gospel realism. Our sharing should meet the concrete needs of the other, rather than a means of getting rid of superfluous goods.
“Caring for the poor is more than simply a matter of a hasty hand-out; it calls for re-establishing just interpersonal relationships that poverty harms. In this way ‘not turning our face away from anyone who is poor’ leads us to enjoy the benefits of mercy and charity that give meaning and value to our entire Christian life. It is easy to delegate charity to others, yet the calling of every Christian is to become personally involved.
“The poor become a film clip that can affect us for a moment, yet when we encounter them in flesh and blood on our streets, we are annoyed and look the other way.”
Justin Welby slams anti-gay law
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby had harsh words for his fellow Anglicans in Uganda for supporting a new law that makes homosexual acts illegal and subject to punishment, even by the death penalty.
“This is not about imposing Western values on our Ugandan Anglican sisters and brothers. It is about reminding them of the commitments we have made as Anglicans to treat every person with the care and respect they deserve as children of God.
“God’s love for every human being is the same, regardless of their sexuality, and the Church should never by its actions give any other impression.”
God transforms our hearts
In his Angelus on June 18, Pope Francis said: “If we want to be good apostles, we must be like children: we must sit ‘on God’s lap’ and, from there, look at the world with trust and love, in order to bear witness that God is the Father, that he alone transforms our hearts and gives us that joy and that peace that we ourselves cannot attain.”
(Compiled by Fr Joe Borg)