Over half of those displaced in Sudan itself are children under the age of 18 years, with reports from the UN describing them as having "endured more than a year of separation, human rights violations, trauma, violence, and lack of access to basic services".

In April of this year, the Sudan Catholic Bishops Conference raised concerns that "the international community has forgotten the Sudan crisis."

Read More

In a forward for the booklet titled "Equality, Encounter and Renewal", which was published March 7, Sister Alessandra Smerilli, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, lamented the historic marginalisation of women around the world.

"Despite the equal dignity of every human person, historically over the centuries, in so many aspects of life, women have not been allowed access to the same opportunities men have had," she said.

Apart from facing numerous barriers to opportunity, women and girls, she said, "have also disproportionately been innocent victims of violations against human dignity."

Read More

The aid was halted on 30 March 2023 in the Tigray region following the discovery of "widespread and systemic" diversion of substantial food supplies intended for the starving populace.

The suspension was broadened to cover all of Ethiopia in early June.

"Millions of people have been without food for three months, severely impacting the health and safety of those already traumatised and deprived from a two-year war and extended drought," emphasised Alistair Dutton, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis.

While other essential aid such as nutrition programmes for women and children, safe drinking water and support for agricultural activities and development continues, the cessation of food distributions is further endangering lives, particularly those of the elderly, the unwell, children and internally displaced persons.

"People are dying from starvation. In recent weeks, hunger has claimed hundreds of lives in Ethiopia's northern Tigray region due to food scarcity. This is neither humane nor moral," Dutton continued.

He added that theft and corruption in food aid must not be tolerated.

A comprehensive investigation is necessary he says - "Those responsible should be held accountable. To prevent future diversions, it is necessary to have strong, transparent accountability mechanisms in place."

Caritas is echoing the pleas of several Ethiopian religious leaders.

In a joint letter to the Ethiopian Government, USAID and the WFP, Cardinal Berhaneyesus and Rev. Kes Yonas warned that further delays in food aid delivery will only exacerbate the crisis for those in need.

Patriarch Abune Mathias and Bishop Tesfaselassie Medhin also expressed their concerns about the severe suffering caused by the suspension of this crucial support.

Dutton concluded by saying that while USAID and WFP have stated that food assistance will resume only when robust monitoring measures are in place.

"People cannot wait. Essential aid must reach those in need immediately, as every day is crucial", says Dutton.

Source

• Caritas Internationalis

Ms Robertson, 45, joined Caritas Australia based at North Sydney in a junior position more than 20 years ago.

She has spent the intervening years dedicated to humanitarian work there and in other organisations, including as CEO of Mary MacKillop Today.

She returned to Caritas Australia to become its first female CEO in 2019 and has lived, worked and travelled in more than 50 countries.

On 15 May, she was elected to the new global senior leadership team at the Rome Caritas Internationalis confederation general assembly.

She was recommended for election by the new president, Archbishop of Tokyo Tarcisio Isao Kikuchi, alongside whom she will serve a four-year term while remaining the CEO of Caritas Australia.

They were joined by the new secretary-general Alistair Dutton, executive director of SCIAF (Caritas Scotland), and treasurer Patrick Debucquois.

The Sydney Catholic said her election was a surprise.

"The vice-president role has never been held by a woman before and never by an Australian or anyone far from the major centres of power, so it hadn't even crossed my mind," she said.

"In any role I've held at Caritas, it feels like it's my home, so I'm not daunted.

"What I do feel is a weight of responsibility for the women who form part of our confederation because this is a very big step forward in responding to calls for greater diversity at a leadership level."

She was 15 when she first heard about the church's international aid and development organisation.

"A woman named Cath Leary came to my school, Loreto College in Normanhurst, about the work of Caritas," she said.

"Her presentation deeply affected me. This was in the 90s when famine was ripping through Africa, and scenes of dying children were on the front pages of newspapers.

"I'd always felt a call to serve, and I spent a while considering some sort of religious vocation, not knowing, I guess, how to respond to that deep sense that this was what I was supposed to be doing.

"And so when I heard Cath, I knew I wanted to work at Caritas, and that was it.

"She planted that seed in me that you can actually make a difference. You don't have to be a bystander to things that are going wrong in the world."

In her new role, Ms Robertson will share responsibility for making governance decisions and represent the global Caritas network at major international events and other forums exploring solutions to global poverty and injustice.

She'll also continue spending time in communities to strengthen connections between them and Caritas.

The new global leadership team have already had their first meeting, partly to reflect on Caritas' mission to express Christ's love in the world and how to keep it at the centre of their decision-making processes.

The new vice-president said they also discussed practical considerations around staffing and governance issues.

Part of their task will be to move Caritas Internationalis forward positively from the crisis which saw Pope Francis stand down its senior leadership and place it into temporary administration last November.

Cardinal Michael Czerny of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development said Caritas Internationalis' "workplace dynamics" prevented the general secretariat from operating properly, undermined staff welfare, and "represented clear and real dangers" to the global network's work and reputation.

Ms Robertson said that as Caritas Australia operates independently under the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, there was little impact on its work despite the disruption at the level of the broader confederation.

"I have always felt supported by the bishops conference and individual bishops and dioceses, members of the Catholic community, parishes and schools," she said.

"I wasn't part of those decisions or unpacking them [about the former leadership of Caritas Internationalis].

"But what I can say is that having just been at the general assembly, and having the opportunity to meet the pope and talk to him and other members who were part of that decision-making, is that the confederation is now in a really good place.

"We're united, we have a sense of our vision for where we're going, and we all have a real commitment to getting back to having the centre of our focus being on the people that we serve and our core mission.

"In fact, I think the general assembly was probably one of the most amazing experiences of my life in many ways, and quite emotional to be honest.

"It's hard to describe, but if you put 500 people in a room together whose lives are dedicated to the work of bringing joy in some of the darkest places on the planet, you have this amazing feeling of the Spirit being with you and a sense of great joy."

Ms Robertson said she thought Australians were generally respected in the international Catholic community for contributions to effective leadership.

"I was in Rome with a couple of my staff and they were all quite involved in various sorts of large decisions being made," she said.

• First published by Catholic Weekly. Republished with permission.

When we embrace God's love and when we love one another in him, we plumb the depths of our identity, as individuals and as Church, and the meaning of our existence.

We understand not only how important our own lives are, but also how precious too are the lives of others. We perceive clearly how every life is unique and inalienable, a marvel in the eyes of God.

Love opens our eyes, expands our gaze, and allows us to recognize in the stranger who crosses our path the face of a brother or sister who has a name, a story, a drama, to which we cannot remain indifferent.

In the light of God's love, the reality of the other comes forth from the shadows, emerges from insignificance, and acquires value and relevance.

The needs of our neighbour challenge us, trouble us, and arouse in us a sense of responsibility.

It is always in the light of love that we discover the strength and courage to respond to the evil that oppresses others, to respond to that evil personally, and to confront it by committing ourselves fully and rolling up our sleeves.

God's love makes us sense the weight of the other's humanity as a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light (cf. Mt 11:30).

It leads us to feel the wounds of others as our own and challenges us to pour the balm of fraternity on the invisible wounds that we perceive present in their heart.

Do you want to know if a Christian is living charity?

Then look closely to see if they are willing to help freely, with a smile on their face, without grumbling or getting annoyed.

Charity is patient, Paul writes, and patience is the ability to endure unexpected trials, and daily labours without losing joy and trust in God.

For it is the result of a slow travail of the spirit, in which we learn to master ourselves and acknowledge our limitations.

As we learn to relate to ourselves, interpersonal maturity also develops, and we come to realize that other people too "have a right to live in this world, just as they are" (Amoris Laetitia, 92).

Breaking free from self-referentiality, from considering what we want for ourselves as the core around which everything revolves, even to the point of bending others to our desires, requires not only restraining the tyranny of our self-centredness but also cultivating a creative and dynamic ability to let the charisms and qualities of others come to the fore.

Living charity - caritas - thus entails being magnanimous and benevolent, recognising for example, that to work together constructively first requires "making space" for others.

We do this when we are open to listening and dialogue, ready to consider opinions that differ from our own, not insisting on our own positions but seeking instead a meeting point, a path of mediation.

The Christian who lives immersed in the love of God does not nurture envy, for "love has no room for discomfiture at another person's good fortune" (Amoris Laetitia, 95).

Love is not boastful or arrogant, for it has a sense of proportion.

Love does not set us above others, but allows us to approach them with respect and kindness, gentleness and tenderness, sensitive to their frailties.

"If we are to understand, forgive and serve others from the heart, our pride has to be healed and our humility must increase" (Amoris Laetitia, 98).

Love is not self-serving but aims to promote the good of others and to support them in their efforts to achieve it.

Love does not take into account wrongs endured, nor does it gossip about the evil done by others; rather, with discretion and in silence, it entrusts everything to God, putting aside judgement.

Love covers everything, says Paul, not to hide the truth, in which the Christian always rejoices, but to distinguish the sin from the sinner so that, while the former is condemned, the latter may be saved.

Love excuses everything so that we may all find comfort in the merciful embrace of the Father and be cloaked in his loving forgiveness.

Paul concludes his "hymn" by stating that charity, as a more excellent way to reach God, is greater than faith and hope. What the Apostle says is completely true.

While faith and hope are "provisional gifts", that is, linked to our lives as pilgrims and wayfarers on this earth, charity, by contrast, is "a definitive gift", a pledge and a foretaste of the final time, the Kingdom of God.

Everything else will pass away, while charity will never end.

The good that is done in the name of God is the good part of us that will not be lost or wiped away. God's judgement upon history is based on the "today" of love, on his discernment of what we have done for others in his name.

As Jesus promises, the reward will be eternal life: "Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world" (Mt 25:34). Continue reading

• Pope Francis
• Excerpt from Pope Francis message to participants in the General Assembly of Caritas Internationalis May 2023

The election follows a period of turmoil that led Pope Francis to remove the previous leadership team. Caritas Internationalis is keen to build a future and wants to move forward together.

Archbishop Kikuchi takes over from a highly regarded predecessor, Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.

Kikuchi's involvement with Caritas dates back to 1995, when he began as a volunteer at a refugee camp in Bukavu, now part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

He later served as the executive director and president of Caritas Japan from 1994 to 2004 and 2007 to 2022, respectively. Additionally, he was president of Caritas Asia from 2011 to 2019 and was a member of various Caritas committees.

Before becoming president, Kikuchi served as the Archbishop of Tokyo since 2017.

His early years as a missionary in Ghana acquainted him with the challenges faced by remote communities, aligning well with Caritas's work in serving marginalised populations.

First woman vice president

During the announcement of the new leadership team, the attention focused on Kirsty Robertson, who assumed the role of Caritas Internationalis's first woman vice president.

Robertson, the head of Caritas Australia, emphasised the significance of women's representation at all levels of the organisation.

"It is only right and just, I think, to see the face of women at all levels in our confederation," she told reporters.

"The face of poverty is the face of a woman."

The newly appointed secretary-general, Alistair Dutton, who will lead the daily operations of Caritas Internationalis expressed a forward-looking attitude, emphasising the importance of learning from the past and focusing on the future.

He says that it is time the Church's global charity network focused on its mission of helping the world's poor.

Speaking to journalists on Tuesday, he pointed to situations like the wars in Ukraine and Sudan and the recent earthquake in Syria and Turkey.

Dutton told the journalists that these are the kinds of situations where Caritas needs to focus its efforts and supply Christian humanitarian assistance.

Dutton replaces Aloysius John, a French citizen of Indian descent who was ousted in November after staff at the Caritas headquarters complained of a toxic work environment.

On the eve of the general assembly, John accused the Vatican of staging a "brutal power grab" fuelled by a "colonialist" attitude of northern, wealthy Caritas chapters over poorer ones in the developing world.

As Archbishop Kikuchi assumes his new role, he has urged Caritas staff and volunteers to be witnesses of God's love in all their endeavours, whether in administration or in the field.

Sources

AP News

Crux Now

CathNews New Zealand

La Croix International

Speaking at a week-long meeting in Rome of the global confederation of 162 national Caritas chapters, Czerny (pictured) explained that the move was necessary for the well-being of staff at Caritas and was not a condemnation of its work.

"I am sure that all of you were surprised and disturbed by this," Czerny told the audience.

"The appointment of a temporary administrator was an act of love and care, not a denunciation ... It was a necessary call to repair and fine-tune a body that is essential for the whole church."

The November decision saw Francis fire Caritas secretary-general Aloysius John, president Filipino Cardinal Antonio Tagle, Tagle's vice presidents, the treasurer, and ecclesiastic assistant.

The move came after an external investigation revealed "real deficiencies" in management that had affected staff morale at the Caritas secretariat in Rome.

While there was no evidence of financial wrongdoing or sexual misconduct, former employees described a toxic workplace environment under John, where staff were bullied, harassed and humiliated.

Several quit, giving up sought-after income tax-free Vatican employment rather than remain in abusive conditions.

Czerny insisted that the dismissals were necessary and appropriate and were by no means a criticism of Caritas or its work providing emergency aid and development assistance to the neediest worldwide.

The cardinal explained that the investigation had "revealed patterns of workplace relationships and processes that prevented the general secretariat from operating properly; furthermore, they undermined the well-being of staff.

They put the operations, name and reputation at risk, not only of Caritas Internationalis but of all Caritas."

"Brutal power grab"

On the eve of the Caritas assembly to elect new leaders, John wrote an open letter to the Caritas representatives, criticising Czerny's office for a "brutal power grab" and casting his ouster in racial terms.

John, a French citizen of Indian descent, said that the wealthier donor countries from the "North" had never wanted a Caritas secretary-general from the "South" and wanted to impose their will on the confederation.

On Saturday, Archbishop Tarcisius Isao Kikuchi of Tokyo was elected as the organisation's new president.

He will hold office for four years and may be reelected for a second term.

Addressing the assembly's 400 delegates, the archbishop stressed that Caritas "must be in the front line to receive, accompany, serve and defend the poor and vulnerable."

"This mission must be upheld and capture all attention of the members of the confederation, and I would like to be the one to lead the entire organisation to fulfil this important mission of the Church together with the Secretary-General," Kikuchi said.

"All are invited to walk together."

Sources

AP News

CBCP News

CathNews New Zealand

Aloysius John, who was removed from his position as secretary-general in November 2022, alleged that his ousting was a result of the "deliberate will" of some Vatican officials.

Pope Francis removed the entire leadership of Caritas Internationalis after an independent review reportedly found deficiencies in the organisation's "management and procedures, seriously prejudicing team-spirit and staff morale."

The review examined "the workplace environment of the [Caritas Internationalis] General Secretariat and its alignment with Catholic values of human dignity and respect for each person."

Mr John, a French citizen of Indian descent, claimed that Caritas leaders from wealthier "Northern" regions never wanted a leader from the "South". The Caritas president, Filipino Cardinal Antonio Tagle, was also removed from his position during the clean-out of top management.

There was no evidence of financial wrongdoing or sexual misconduct, the Vatican said. But former employees described a toxic workplace environment under John, where staff were bullied, harassed and humiliated. As a result, several quit, giving up sought-after income tax-free Vatican employment rather than remain in abusive conditions.

Caritas was functioning well

John insists that Caritas was functioning well and was in good financial shape when he was fired. He also said he had sought the independent inquiry to better support staff who had complained.

He said the Vatican's decision to fire him was "made in haste, with incredible violence and very poor public communication." He added the decision had "discredited the Church and one of its jewels, Caritas Internationalis."

"It is a brutal power grab," he wrote of the takeover by the Vatican's development office.

The confederation's general assembly will take place from 11-16 May, during which new leaders of 162 national chapters will be elected.

John warned attendees to "guard against any 'political' drift and thus remain at the service of the poor, in the spirit of the Gospel." He also thanked Caritas Internationalis members who proposed that he run for this year's assembly but alleged that the Candidature Committee "arbitrarily and without any explanation rejected" the proposal.

Caritas Internationalis, founded in 1951, is a Catholic confederation of 162 charitable organisations in 200 countries worldwide. The governance of Caritas Internationalis is elected for four-year terms during the general assembly.

Sources

Religion News Service

Licas News

CathNews New Zealand

Oranga Taurikura - A Thriving Life - is a 5-year integrated development programme which CANZ leads.

It works through established community organisations to provide food and water security, build healthy lifestyles, and strengthen agriculture and income-earning opportunities. These aim to help communities to be more resilient in the face of climate change and other challenges.

New Zealand donors and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade's New Zealand Aid Programme support Oranga Taurikura's aims.

CANZ's report covers the period from July 2021 to December 2022. It shows CANZ's grassroots partners have been highly adaptable through the COVID pandemic and in other crises and disasters. Oranga's development, design and initial implementation happened mostly during the COVID emergency.

The Pacific and Southeast Asia region programme aims to reach more than 90,000 people in Cambodia, Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste and Tonga in the five-year period ending June 2026.

Progress towards reaching all five specific outcomes set for the new programme is being made, the Caritas report says.

These five outcomes are described below with a description of a few of each specific outcome's successes.

Outcome 1 - Improved Food and Water Security and Healthy Lifestyle

Examples:

• In Fiji, the report notes by June 2022, Tutu Rural Training Centre (RTC) was able to supply about 50,000 vegetable and fruit seedlings and cuttings extra to its usual output. The Centre has also expanded its Women in Agriculture programme.
• In Papua New Guinea, Caritas PNG is planning for sustainability of accessible water infrastructure and food security.

Outcome 2 - Strengthened Climate and Disaster-Prepared Households and Livelihoods

There has been significant progress towards workplans in relation to this outcome.

Examples:

• In Cambodia, DPA conducted training in Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), agriculture, leadership and financial literacy. It also began investigating cacao production with target farmer associations.
• In the Solomon Islands, a supervisor briefing and four locally-provided training courses were implemented.

Outcome 3 - Local Partners

The report notes local partners are more effective at implementing agreed programme objectives and scaling up.

Examples:

• Development Partnership in Action (DPA) in Cambodia has repeatedly demonstrated high capability in changing contexts to progress agreed outcomes. It has robust systems and well-proven methods and approaches, and considerable networks across Cambodia.
• Local leadership in many of the seven districts in Timor-Leste where HAFOTI Shelter for the Timorese Woman operates. Opportunities for further professional development and training are available.

Outcome 4 - Strong Community Voice and Influence in Decisions that Impact Their Lives

Example:

• The DPA in Cambodia allowed withdrawal from Community Land Titling (CLT) activities for villages that do not wish to continue.

Outcome 5 - Increased Public Engagement and Support

Examples:

New Zealand provided a range of resource and support during the reporting period.

• Two CANZ appeals in 2021 and 2022 promoted the programme and partners through CANZ's website, newsletters, educational material, parish visits, direct donor engagement events and social media updates.
• CANZ has supported and helped implementing partners develop the ability to collect and share promotional material.

Source

• Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand

Both countries were struck by two powerful earthquakes on Monday last week.

They need solidarity from all of us - and they are "in part already martyred by a long war", the pope says.

By Sunday 12 February, the death toll was over 33,000 and climbing.

Hundreds of engineers, medical personnel and rescue workers have been sent to the devastated countries to search for people trapped under wreckage and aid the thousands without shelter in freezing winter conditions.

"Let us pray together so that these our brothers and sisters can go forth in the face of this tragedy, and let us ask Our Lady to protect them," Francis said last Wednesday, before praying with thousands of visitors and pilgrims gathered for his general audience.

Numerous Catholic charitable and aid organisations are helping in practical ways.

Caritas Internationalis, the umbrella organisation of national Catholic charities, has launched a fundraising campaign. It is also asking for donations of winter clothing especially for infants and young children. The charity has been active in Turkey since 1991 and in Syria since 2011, primarily providing aid to refugees.

Bishop Paolo Bizzeti, apostolic vicar of Anatolia, said that the earthquakes were "a tragedy within a tragedy," since the region is already "full of refugees from various countries who have fled terrible situations.

"It is difficult to receive the aid necessary given the state of the roads" he noted.

In Syria, Aid to the Church in Need, a pontifical foundation that provides aid to Catholic communities worldwide, is already supporting reparation projects in Aleppo so people can return home.

The charity said an estimated 7,500 people slept in Aleppo's churches, convents and other locations the night after the earthquakes.

Initially, help for Syria was blocked, because of international sanctions against the country.

Syrian patriarchs and heads of churches demanded the lifting of "unjust sanctions", calling for "exceptional measures" to secure delivery of humanitarian aid.

Syria has been under US sanctions since 1979, when Washington designated it a state sponsor of terrorism. The restrictions were tightened amid the Iraq war in 2004 and repeatedly once civil war broke out in 2011, which led to a collapse in relations between Syria's government and the West.

"We, the three patriarchs with the heads of churches in Syria, demand from the United Nations and the countries imposing sanctions on Syria to lift the embargo and the unjust sanctions imposed on the Syrian people, and to take exceptional measures and immediate initiatives to secure the delivery of the much-needed relief and humanitarian aid," the church leaders said in a statement last Thursday.

"We appeal to governments, international organisations, NGOs, charities and peace advocates everywhere to expedite the support of relief and rescue efforts, irrespective of any political consideration."

Their call has been heeded.

On Friday, the US announced it has temporarily eased its sanctions on Syria. It aims to speed up aid deliveries to the country's north-west, where almost no humanitarian assistance has arrived.

Source

• OSV News
• UCA News
• The Guardian
• CNN

Whether that image of the pontiff was fair or not, it stuck, so much so that it featured in the opening paragraphs of many papal obituaries.

Today, one sometimes wonders why Francis, in equal and opposite fashion, hasn't yet been termed by his own critics the "Lear Pope," meaning a leader who doesn't hesitate to act - who, in fact, can come off as perhaps a bit rash or impetuous, but never indecisive.

Francis's latest such "Lear moment" came Tuesday, when the Vatican announced that he has essentially placed the global Catholic charity Caritas into receivership.

He fired its entire leadership team and appointed his own interim administrator, Italian organisational consultant Pier Francesco Pinelli, who will run things ahead of the next General Assembly of Caritas set for May 2023.

The changes came as a surprise even to most Caritas personnel, who were gathered in Rome for their first in-person meeting since the Covid pandemic broke out in 2019.

A press briefing with Caritas leaders from various parts of the world was staged Tuesday morning with no mention of the impending papal decree, which came out just as the briefing was wrapping up.

Caritas, whose headquarters are in the Vatican, is a federation of Catholic charitable organisations that operate in more than 200 countries.

In 2020 it reported income of $5.2 million and expenses of $4.5 million, though that's just the Rome budget and does not reflect income and expenses for its various members.

No real explanation was given for the abrupt papal take-over, other than a sort of via negativa - that is to say, we know what the reasons weren't, as a Vatican statement said there was no evidence of financial or sexual impropriety.

(It's telling about the Catholic Church in 2022 that if someone gets fired, you have to say out loud that it wasn't because of money or sex - because if you don't, everyone will assume one of those two things had to be the reason.)

Beyond excluding those two factors, the statement simply said that an internal review had revealed "real deficiencies" in management, leading to damage to "team-spirit and staff morale."

Many observers tend to believe that the problems, at least in part, centred around the ousted Secretary General of Caritas, meaning its day-to-day CEO, an Indian layman with French citizenship named Aloysius John (Pictured).

John came to power in 2019 after other candidates for the top job dropped out, and rumours suggest charges of heavy-handed leadership and suspect management on his watch.

In one possible sign of discontent, Vatican News, the official news platform of the Vatican, reported Tuesday that when Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle read the decree aloud to Caritas members, it was greeted with applause.

Speaking of Tagle, his reputation likely will take something of a hit in the wake of the upheaval. Continue reading

Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle (pictured left), whose second term as Caritas president was to end in May, has also lost his position.

Francis appointed a temporary administrator to oversee improved management policies and to prepare for the election of new officers in May.

Caritas Internationalis is a hub for 162 charitable organisations in 200 countries. Its mission is to serve the poor and most vulnerable. The Vatican's Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development oversees it.

The Dicastery said a review by an independent panel on Caritas Internationalis's workplace environment found no evidence of financial mismanagement or sexual impropriety.

In a statement it said, however, "other important themes and areas for urgent attention emerged from the panel's work.

"Real deficiencies were noted in management and procedures, seriously prejudicing team-spirit and staff morale."

Pier Francesco Pinelli, a business management consultant, and two psychologists conducted the review, which included interviewing current and past employees.

Francis has now appointed Pinelli to temporarily oversee the Dicastery. Maria Amparo Alonso Escobar, a Caritas veteran, and the Rev. Manuel Morujão SJ will assist him.

Tagle will also assist Pinelli prepare for the future by taking "special care of relations with the local churches and the member organisations," the papal decree says.

The Dicastery says the officers' suspension "has no impact on the functioning of member organisations and the services of charity and solidarity they provide around the world.

"On the contrary, it will serve to strengthen such service."

Tagle says member organisations should be reassured knowing that the Pope's decision came after "a careful and independent study of the working environment of the secretariat and the governance exercised by the people and bodies in charge."

The papal decree, he said, is "a call to walk humbly with God" and be open to a process of discernment, which includes acknowledging shortcomings.

The announcement about the Caritas leaders' replacement came while about 100 Caritas representatives from around the world were having a two-day meeting in Rome.

They were reflecting on "how to strengthen local leadership within the confederation and enhance fraternal cooperation among member organisations".

In his decree, Francis said Caritas Internationalis assists him and the bishops "in the exercise of their ministry to the poorest and most needy, participating in the management of humanitarian emergencies and collaborating in the spread of charity and justice in the world in the light of the Gospel and the teachings of the Catholic Church.

"To improve the fulfilment of this mission it seems necessary to revise" the current regulations governing Caritas Internationalis, a task that Pinelli will guide, Francis said.

Pinelli says he hopes "to initiate processes of reconciliation and improvement that can bear fruit in the long run for this association".

The continent is facing a looming food crisis caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

In better times, between 2018 and 2020, Africa imported 44 percent of its wheat from Russia and Ukraine.

"A striking phenomenon is the link between food insecurity, violence and climate change," says Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis, Aloysius John.

"They are interlinked. When people find themselves in extreme conditions and highly vulnerable, survival becomes the motivation for any kind of activities and often ends in violence and conflict."

The situation is worst in the Horn of Africa and the arid Sahel region, John says.

"In the Sahel region, more than 12.7 million people are exposed to a highly vulnerable situation of hunger as well as exile from their rural homesteads," he says.

Caritas - a confederation of Catholic relief and development agencies - is concerned about Africa's reliance on food imports.

"Africa has been the dumping site for the surplus of large-scale industrial production of food," says John.

"It's destroyed food supply chains and local traditional farming - and needs immediate and quick attention."

Of the 160 million people living on the Horn of Africa, 45 percent will be affected by food insecurity, he says.

The formerly "fertile land of the Nile" is worst affected by severe drought and scarce rainfall.

Violence and conflict in the region compound the problem.

One percent of the land is irrigated. It's "totally insufficient" to feed the population.

People are on the move.

They and their livestock have been forced to leave their traditional homelands in search of humanitarian aid or any means to sustain their survival.

"A recent Caritas report calls for "the implementation of just food systems - from production to consumption" as "key for the development of global South nations".

Food injustice has been meted out in different forms, John says.

Traditional agriculture has been destroyed and replaced by vested interests. Market-oriented, large-scale agriculture is suffering today due to climate change and droughts, he says.

In some parts of Africa, cheap industrially-raised imported chicken, milk and meat are endangering locally raised produce.

Restoring justice to the global food systems means stopping using Africa as a dumping site.

Promoting and socialising local communities to water harvesting, natural fertilisers and pest control is also vital.

The Ukraine-Russia war shows how the global South needs to take ownership of its own food chains, John says.

"It is important to develop local agriculture, traditional farming, identify local food habits and mainstream them into development projects.

"A community-oriented and community-based development paradigm which takes integral ecology into account needs to be developed.

"This will help promote local food systems and supply chains leading to food independence," he says.

Source

• Crux Now

"My visit to Bangladesh was first of all to witness the solidarity of the confederation in Caritas Bangladesh and to the people of Bangladesh for their generosity in receiving the displaced people from Myanmar — the Rohingya" he said during a press briefing at Dhaka Reporters Unity auditorium on February 24 during his five-day visit to the South Asian nation.

He lamented that "our world is undergoing a major disaster today.

"Millions of people are being put on the wrong road with no point of return because of selfishness, because of wrong decisions and because of violence. So they are put on the wrong road, in exile. I met some of them," he said.

Read More

Caritas NZ says the pilgrims are in Glasgow to pray and to press world leaders for strong action at COP26 - the 26th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Religious leaders representing Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist and Baha'i traditions are offering prayers and calls for concrete actions.

The 31 October to 12 November conference is the first requiring countries to honour their Paris accord commitment to submit new, more ambitious plans to environmentally-damaging emissions.

Caritas NZ says the global Catholic charity has three critical targets it wants to see COP26 progressing:

• Strong emissions cuts to keep the 1.5C target alive
• More climate finance that is targeted and more readily accessible to the most vulnerable communities, equally shared between mitigation (cutting emissions) and adaptation. Finance to address Loss and Damage already incurred by the poor must be stepped up, recognising the ecological debt owed by richer countries to poorer ones.
• Tackling climate change in an integrated way, including protection and restoration of ecosystems and prioritising the needs of the poor in a just transition, in line with Laudato Si'.

During the conference, Caritas will hand over its "Healthy Planet, Healthy People" petition along with other messages from faith-filled activists and leaders from around the world.

Several hundred people gathered in the vicinity of the Scottish Events Centre when the conference opened, to pray for world leaders at the conference.

"We remind governments of their commitments made in Paris in 2015 to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees," says a multifaith declaration read at the event and signed by more than 50 religious leaders from Scotland and the United Kingdom.

Another multifaith statement asks "governments to swiftly and justly transition the global economy from fossil fuels toward renewables and compensate communities already affected by climate change."

"Across our doctrinal and political differences, we know that we must change our ways to ensure a quality of life which all can share, and we need to provide hope for people of all ages, everywhere, including future generations. To offer hope in the world we need to have confidence that those in power understand the vital role they have to play at the Glasgow COP26."

Scottish Catholic Bishop Brian McGee says the interfaith group is offering prayers for world leaders. It also expects to exert pressure on them to deliver on public demands for an urgent response to the climate crisis.

"Certainly that's what a lot of people have been doing. That is contacting the politicians and explaining to them that this is really, really important and we have to do something here," he says.

McGee says Catholic action at the climate summit shows love of God's creation and those suffering the impacts of global warming.

Pope Francis's "extraordinary leadership" in widening the ecological question beyond conservation has widened the way we look at creation and people suffering the impacts of global warming, McGee says.

"It's about how we treat people. It's about justice in all its forms."

Source

• La Croix
• Caritas
• Image: Caritas Internationalis

Officials say at least 171 people have died since the flooding began last week. Many more are injured and 155 are missing.

Images of Germany's flooded villages and towns have prompted international aid agencies to offer compassion and concern.

Agencies including Catholic-run charities like Aid to the Church in Need, Misereor, and Caritas Internationalis are touching base with their 'related' German organisations.

Messages through them from developing countries like Cuba, Honduras, Zimbabwe and Mali show their support for one of Europe's most prosperous nations.

"This solidarity is touching and perhaps a small consolation for the people who lost loved ones as well as their belongings in the flood," says Florian Ripka, managing director of Aid to the Church in Need Germany.

She has received messages from Lebanon, Ukraine and Papua New Guinea. "Even if our project partners cannot help materially, they are close to the people with thoughts and prayers," she says.

Misereor, the German bishops' organisation for development cooperation, is receiving similar messages. "It shows us that solidarity is not a one-way street," Misereor says.

Many messages mention concern that climate-related hazards can strike with great force even in temperate zones.

The message from executive director of Caritas India, Paul Moonjely, says Germany's deadly floods are a "wake-up call" to start tackling the urgent climate problem vigorously.

He also wrote of his gratitude to Germany, saying: "People in Germany have always been helpful and willing to reach out to suffering populations around the world, especially in India."

They want to give something of this "deep feeling" back to the Germans, Moonjely's says.

Islamic associations in Germany such as the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs and the Islamic Relief asked their members for donations.

They reminded Muslims that the recent pilgrimage to Mecca and the July 19-23 observance of Eid al-Adha, the Islamic feast of sacrifice, call for mercy toward all people.

The commissioner for environmental and climate issues at the German Catholic bishops' conference, Bishop Rolf Lohmann, says the deadly floods, which have claimed more than 200 lives across Europe, are a "sign of a change in the climate and the environment."

After the heat and drought of past years, "the inconceivable catastrophe of heavy rain and floods" was an illustration of climate change, he says.

Besides immediate emergency aid, long-term measures to protect against floods were needed, Lohmann says.

His diocese in Muenster in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia sustained widespread damage.

There also is a need for "rapid and efficient action against climate change," Lohmann says.

"If we do not act decisively now, it will be too late," he explains, saying the responsibility to act falls on individuals as well as governments.

Lohmann is calling for the wider use of renewable energy, product procurement based on ecological and social criteria, reducing waste and environmentally friendly forms of transport.

He is also demanding that social equality be considered when implementing environmentally sound measures.

They must be affordable for all social groups, he stresses.

At the same time, he says it is important to adhere to ethical criteria in financial investments.

Source

• NCR
• The Scotsman

The global "Share the Journey" campaign aims to build "bridges of hope between islands separated by fear," says Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, president of Caritas Internationalis.

Although the campaign has formally ended, its message continues. Communities are encouraged to change attitudes toward immigration by getting them to know their migrant neighbours.

"We gave ourselves a few challenges: not just seeing the migrants but looking at them with compassion; not just hearing their voice but listening to their stories and concerns; not just passing by the other side but stopping, as the good Samaritan, and living a moment of communion with them," Tagle says.

Anyone can get involved.

They can go on a sponsored or symbolic solidarity walk with refugees, invite migrants to shared meals, or light a virtual candle.

Some people may want to share messages or stories, which will be gathered into a compilation for Pope Francis.

Asked about ways to measure the success of the four-year "Share the Journey" campaign, both Aloysius John, secretary-general of Caritas Internationalis and Tagle spoke of individual encounters where people were "converted" to recognizing the migrant in their midst as a brother or sister.

"People have been touched in different ways, touched by the suffering," says John.

The ongoing campaign hopes to develop "a new consciousness, a new way of looking at people on the move and developing this culture where, instead of fear of the 'other,' we see a human person and we give them the love, the attention, that we know every human being deserves," Tagle says.

"We cannot set a time frame; we cannot say, 'At the end of 2021 everyone, including Caritas workers, should have been converted already.' We hope that happens, but knowing human freedom and human frailty," some people will need more time."

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing and with many nations claiming a need to protect their own citizens first, we face "the risk of intensifying selfishness and the fear of strangers," Tagle says.

The call is for everyone to show solidarity and " continue to share the journey with migrants, especially at this most difficult moment."

"The mission continues," Tagle says.

"Where there is indifference and intolerance toward migrants, Caritas will stand by them to express the love and concern of the Mother Church," John says.

His comment is echoed by Msgr Bruno-Marie Duffé, secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

He notes the campaign's key elements reflect Catholic teaching on migrants, beginning with the fact that they are human beings with dignity and rights to be protected.

Everyone has a journey, an intimate pain that haunts them and each of them has a hope: to be considered as a person, to be called by name, to be welcomed and recognized, he says.

Source

• Detroit Catholic
• Image: Caritas Internationalis

Many of the pandemic's socio-economic effects are aggravating human trafficking and exploitation, which the International Labour Organization (ILO) says affects over 40 million people.

Caritas and COATNET are urging governments to intensify efforts to identify victims of trafficking and put a stop to the trafficking business.

Secretary general of Caritas, Aloysius John, says "Focused attention on the pandemic must not prevent us from taking care of the people most vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation."

John says local Caritas and COATNET member organisations, along with civil society organisations all over the world, are providing much-needed safety nets for victims of trafficking and exploitation.

The work is continuing, even during the pandemic and includes accompanying the victims in their difficulties, offering material, medical, legal and psychological help.

Insufficient attention, however, is being paid to the pandemic's collateral damage, which has especially affected migrants and informal workers, who are now more exposed to trafficking and exploitation.

Securing housing is an important form of prevention against trafficking.

"The state of emergency has worsened the risk of homelessness for agricultural seasonal workers who cannot comply with hygiene and social distancing measures and who have no food because lockdown means they can't work," Catitas Spain says.

Lockdown and travel restrictions mean human trafficking victims have less chance of escaping and seeking help when they are held against their will.

Human trafficking numbers including children have increased and exploitation opportunities during the pandemic are especially featuring children. In addition, lockdown measures have caused sharp increases in cases of violence against minors.

Caritas says in India, "there has also been an increase in cases of child labour and child marriage. Due to the difficult economic conditions, families marry off their young daughters so there's one less mouth to feed."

Moreover, as a result of school closure many children are being forced onto the streets to search for food and money, increasing their risk of being exploited.

For other children, serious dangers also come from the Internet, where children using it for home schooling can be lured and exploited.

Caritas Internationalis and COATNET:

- urge governments, as a matter of priority, to provide victims of human trafficking with access to basic services, in particular shelters and support hotlines, access to justice and to support organisations that take care of them.

- ask institutions and civil society organisations to provide children with protection from the abuse and exploitation, in particular through the internet.

- ask governments, in this time of Covid-19, to put in place urgent and targeted measures to support workers in informal sectors and to intensify efforts in identifying victims of trafficking and exploitation, through greater control and measures such as labour inspections.

- and urge all people to be vigilant and to denounce cases of human trafficking and exploitation.

Soure

• Independent Catholic News
• Image: UN News

Insufficient attention "was paid on the collateral damage of the ongoing pandemic, especially on migrants and informal workers, who are now more exposed to trafficking and exploitation," Caritas Internationalis says.

Caritas voiced its concerns to highlight the plight of human trafficking victims in advance of the commemoration of the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, on 30 July.

It wants "urgent and targeted measures to support workers in informal sectors such as domestic work, agricultural and construction work, where most vulnerable workers (i.e. undocumented migrants) can be found," it said.

Caritas also noted that according to the International Labor Organization, at present there are "40 million people in our world today" who are victims of human trafficking.

Human trafficking victims are even more at risk as a result of the current health crisis "due to lack of housing and job security resulting from government measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19."

"Lack of freedom of movement caused by lockdown and travel restrictions means that human trafficking victims in many countries have less chance of escaping and finding help when they are held in situations against their will,".

"Among them, there are many victims of trafficking for sexual exploitation. Domestic workers face increased risks economically, and also physically and psychologically, as they are even more cut off from society during the pandemic," it said.

Restrictive measures have made it difficult to identify cases of trafficking and an increase in violence against children, particularly online exploitation in homes "with little parental supervision," Caritas says.

"At one point during lockdown in India, for example, 92,000 cases of child abuse were reported to authorities over the course of just 11 days.

"Children from economically vulnerable families may be also forced on the streets to beg, facing high risk of exploitation," Caritas says.

The secretary general of Caritas, Aloysius John, says victims of human trafficking and exploitation "need immediate attention."

He is calling on governments "to provide them with access to justice and to basic services, in particular shelters and hotlines, and also to put in place urgent and targeted measures to support workers in informal sectors."

"We also call institutions and civil society organizations to protect children from abuse and exploitation, also through internet and new media, and we ask all people to be vigilant and to denounce cases of human trafficking and exploitation," he says.

Source

• Catholic News Service
• Image: Skoll Foundatiion

"Two major crises require immediate and determined action by people of goodwill, leaders and all members of the human community," said Aloysius John, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis.

First of all, international debt "often paid by the sweat and fatigue of the poorest in these countries." Second, the economic sanctions in the Middle East, particularly Syria, that has had a domino effect on neighboring nations, including Lebanon, that is hosting millions of Syrian refugees. Read more