December 12, 2013
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Today Caritas Internationalis published a video, where Pope Francis reads his message and gives his blessing to the campaign One Human Family, Food for All. Below is an English translation of Pope Francis’ words.
Dear Brothers and dear Sisters,
Today, I am happy to announce to you that our latest Caritas Internationalis has launched a campaign against global starvation and that I intend to fully support it. The work of this confederation, including 164 member organisations from 200 countries and regions all over the world, is the focus of the Church’s mission and its attention to those who suffer because of scandalous hunger, to those with whom the Lord identified when he said, „I was hungry and you gave me food.”
When the apostles told Jesus that the people who came to listen to his words were hungry, he invited them to seek food. The poor themselves found only five loaves of bread and two fish. But with God’s grace they managed to feed many people, as well as gather what was left and prevent wasting the leftovers.
Nowadays, we are facing a global scandal of almost one billion – one billion people still suffering from starvation. We cannot look aside and pretend that it does not happen. The food that is available in the world can feed everybody. The parable about multiplying bread and fish teaches us exactly this: when there is a will, what we have will never be wasted. On the contrary, it will be abundant and it will never be thrown out.
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, I invite you to make a space in your hearts for this emergent situation, from the respect of the right to appropriate nutrition, which is the right of all, given to us by God. We share what we have in the Christian Caritas with those dealing with many obstacles when trying to satisfy this basic need. We also support the authentic cooperation with the poor so that through the outcomes of their and our work they can live a dignified life.
I invite all the institutions in the world and all the denominations to act as one human family and to give a voice to those silently suffering from hunger, so that the voice changes into a roar which can shake the world.
This campaign is also an invitation for all of us to become more conscious in our food choices, which often lead to wasting and ill-use of available sources. It is also a reminder to stop thinking that our daily activities do not have an impact on the lives of those suffering from hunger in the first place.
I am asking you wholeheartedly to support this noble campaign of our Caritas organisations which will act as one human family with the goal of ensuring food for all.
Let us pray to God giving us grace to envisage a world in which no one has to ever die of hunger. I give you my blessing for this grace.
Pope Francis, 10th December 2013
Video available in Italian with English subtitles.
