“There are circles and sectors that present themselves as ilustrados (enlightened) — they sequester the proclamation of the gospel through a distorted reasoning that divides the world between ‘civilized’ and ‘barbaric,’” Francis said. “On this basis, contempt can develop for people considered to be second rate,” he said, adding that “all this also emerged during the Synod of Bishops for the Amazon.”
Poverty
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Church and tribal leaders gather for Native American anti-poverty summit
An anti-poverty summit that took place at the University of Notre Dame Oct. 15-17 brought together American Indian tribal leaders from around the country to discuss poverty issues on their reservations, with a goal of formulating tribal/church strategies to address that poverty.
Posted inFaith, News
Canadian cardinal-designate spent decades working with poor, marginalized
The Vatican announced that Pope Francis personally would ordain the cardinal-designate a bishop Oct. 4, the day before the consistory.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
400 years after first Jesuits arrived, Pope Francis celebrates Mass in Mauritius
“Our young people are our foremost mission! We must invite them to find their happiness in Jesus,” the pope said at Mass for 368,000 Catholics.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
“Poverty is not inevitable!”: Pope Francis’ message to the young people of Madagascar
Father Opeka welcomed Pope Francis to Akamasoa which, he said, “was one a zone of exclusion, suffering violence and death” but over the past 30 years “Divine Providence has created an ‘oasis of hope’ in which children have regained their dignity, young people have returned to work and their parents have begun to work to prepare a future for their children.”
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis in Madagascar: We cannot remain indifferent.
On Sunday, Sept. 8, his last day in Madagascar, Pope Francis celebrated Mass for approximately one million people. The overwhelming majority of those present at Mass are poor, but they love Francis because they see him as “a man of God” and “the pope of the poor,” one who is on their side in world where they have so little.
Posted inFaith, Vatican Dispatch
Pope Francis calls on Madagascar’s leaders to fight corruption, eliminate poverty and protect the environment
On his first day in Madagascar, Pope Francis issued a strong call to the governmental authorities of this island of 27 million people to fight “with determination” against “endemic forms of corruption and speculation,” to “confront” the situations that “create conditions of inhumane poverty,” and to protect the environment against damage to nature and the people.
Posted inDispatches, Politics & Society
As ranks of voting seniors increase, poverty persists among U.S. children
Children are consistently the poorest age group in the United States, writes Robert David Sullivan. But will they be heard in Washington as they become outnumbered by people over 65?
Posted inFaith, News
Priest donates $20,000 to coal miners whose company filed for bankruptcy
A priest in Kentucky handed out more than $20,000 on Monday to miners struggling to pay bills after the coal company they work for filed for bankruptcy protection.
Posted inNews, Politics & Society
Trump administration’s plan to change how inflation is measured concerns advocates for poor
The Trump administration is weighing a plan that uses a different definition of inflation to determine who lives in poverty and who does not.