Last Sunday, November 17, the VIII World Day of the Poor was celebrated throughout the Church. The initiative, first proposed in 2017, was strongly desired by Pope Francis to urge the Church to “go out” of its walls to encounter poverty in the many meanings in which it manifests itself in today’s world.

Various initiatives took place throughout the Church, beginning, as appropriate, with Francis himself, who invited 1,300 refugees and displaced persons from different countries who are staying at the Astalli Center, an institution of the Jesuit Refugee Service in Rome, to a luncheon in the Paul VI Hall. Among those attending were African, Ukrainian, Albanian, and citizens from around the world who were welcomed in Rome.

In the Argentine Church, many dioceses have joined with initiatives such as lunches or food dishes, hairdressers, and services provided to our less fortunate brothers.

From the Asociación Civil Crónica Blanca, and as a conclusion to all the proposed activities, we want to stop and reflect on the different types of poverty that scandalize our time. We will refer on this occasion to the material poverty that afflicts many, focusing on the experience of Caritas Argentina; to an evil that shakes the world and also vast regions of our people, such as human trafficking, with the participation of a Mexican nun in charge of Thalita Khum (a religious organization that fights in the world against this terrible scourge); and, finally, to the widespread drama of addictions that enslaves many young people, with the experience of the work carried out by a priest from Rosario in that city.

The event will be with prior registration https://forms.gle/asTEMtvGt5gAw55H9

And it will take place tomorrow, Saturday 11/23 under the Zoom webinar modality.