In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Peace be with you.

Dear friends,

I am pleased to greet you, the members of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities USA, during your visit to Rome and to the Vatican.  I pray that your time here, at the heart of the Universal Church, will not only strengthen your bonds with the Successor of Peter, but will also help you to draw nearer to the heart of Christ, in whose love we are all invited to share.

During this Easter season, we read the biblical narratives of the Resurrection and the Lord’s subsequent appearances to his Apostles.  As they and their fellow disciples began the task of evangelization, Jesus helped them (cf. Mk 16:20) while assuring them, “Remember, I am with you always, even to the end of time” (Mt 28:20).

As was the case with the Apostles and with the early Church, the proclamation of the Gospel through caring for the poor and for those most in need will always present certain difficulties on both the personal and the institutional levels (cf. Acts 6:1-7).  These include finding sufficient resources, demonstrating to others that this type of service is an integral part of authentic Christian living, and not giving way to discouragement, particularly when we meet those whom we cannot help in the way that we would like.  I am fully aware that the Catholic Charities agencies in the United States of America are by no means immune from these challenges that continue to manifest themselves in our own day.  Yet it is precisely when we are confronted with such obstacles that we must learn to hear Jesus’ voice saying to us once again, “I am with you always!”  Even today, Christ draws near to accompany his disciples, especially in moments of frustration and doubt, as he did with Saint Thomas the Apostle, with the disciples on the road to Emmaus (cf. Jn 20:24-29; Lk 24:13-35).

That is why I encourage you, and I encourage your worthy efforts and I express gratitude for your willingness to carry on our Lord’s ministry of compassion, especially to the least among us.  In doing so, you seek to find solutions to inhumane situations, to alleviate the suffering of individuals and families, and to relieve the burden of those who are weighed down by hardship and strife.  In all of these circumstances, it must be the charity of Christ that compels you in your daily work (cf. 2 Cor 5:14).  That is, the desire to bring to others material aid with the love of the heart of Jesus, for it is in that love that they will find genuine rest and their dignity will be respected.

In this sense, it is true that “love for our neighbor is tangible proof of the authenticity of our love for God” (Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi Te, 26).  Yet it is also the case that authentically loving our neighbor entails offering them the possibility of a true encounter with God.  Your work with the less fortunate continues to provide a privileged opportunity to share the joy of the Resurrection, and I thank you for this sincere witness of faith.  The practical assistance that you and your partner agencies offer the disadvantaged allows them to experience God’s love through you, and opens a path for them to enter into a lasting relationship with.  At the same time, it enables you to come into contact with the flesh of Christ by seeking to see and serve him in our brothers and sisters (cf. Mt 25:31-46).  In this way, your works of charity become a mutual encounter with the Lord who is present among us.

Once again, the Lord has promised us: “I am with you always” (Mt 28:20).  The Risen Lord comes to instill peace in our hearts and open up paths of hope and new life, assuring us that he truly is “making all things new” (Rev 21:5).  Let us therefore allow the hope of Easter to break into our lives and to guide our service, motivated by his promise.

With these sentiments, I offer good wishes for your noble mission and assure you and all of your colleagues of a remembrance in my prayers.  I entrust all of you to the loving intercession of Mary Immaculate, patroness of the United States, and I willingly impart my Apostolic Blessing, which I extend to all the agencies associated with Catholic Charities USA, as a pledge of peace and joy in the risen Lord. Thank you.