The 164 national Catholic charities that form the Caritas Internationalis (CI) confederation are holding their general assembly next week in Rome, during which over 300 delegates from across the globe will set plans for the next 4 years aimed at improving the lives of those living in poverty and misery. The Caritas Internationalis General Assembly will be held May 12-17 on the theme, ‘One Human Family, Caring for Creation’. “Pope Francis has asked us to go to the ‘peripheries’ to help those in need,” said Caritas Internationalis President Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras. “During the Caritas Internationalis General Assembly, the peripheries will come to Rome to seek better ways to improve our service to the most vulnerable”, said the Salesian cardinal who is stepping down from CI after 8 years. Philippines Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila and Maronite Archbishop Joseph Soueif of Cyprus are the two candidates for president.
“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. He said there were 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 21st Conference of Parties on climate change in Paris.
Among the delegates will be 50 extra guests representing young people, volunteers, grassroots communities and campaigners against hunger. 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. (Source: CI)
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