Christ awaits us in the needy, Pope tells Caritas

April 22, 2016

Pope Francis met with 700 persons associated with Caritas Italia, the charitable agency of Italy’s dioceses, and called upon them “to be the stimulus and soul so that all the community grows in charity and is able always to find new ways to be close to the poorest.”

The audience took place on April 21 in the Paul VI Audience Hall and commemorated the forty-fifth anniversary of Caritas Italia’s foundation.

After touching upon migration, ecology, and the family, Pope Francis said that “the Lord draws near to us in the faces and in the stories of the brothers and sisters who are most in need.”

“He is at the door of our heart, of our communities, and waits for someone to answer his discreet but insistent call,” the Pope added. “Charity awaits: the merciful ‘caress’ of the Lord, through the ‘hand’ of His Church … The poor are the great offering God makes to our Church, so that she may grown in love and faithfulness.”

 

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Further information:

• Udienza ai partecipanti al Convegno della Caritas delle Diocesi Italiane (Holy See Press Office)
• The Pope receives Caritas Italia on the 45th anniversary of its foundation (Holy See Press Office)