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May 16, 2023By Justin McLellan, Catholic News Service
ROME (CNS) -- Christians active in international development are set apart from other humanitarian actors by their "genuine research of the good of the other and of the common good," said the Vatican foreign minister.
Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Vatican foreign minister, said that Christians' willingness to carry out missions "outside their own interests or the ones of a region, of a government and even of their own organization's visibility and influence" embodies the "Catholic identity" and "authentic effectiveness of charity."
The diplomat spoke May 12 at the opening of Caritas Internationalis' general assembly, which gathered some 400 delegates representing national and local Catholic charities from around the world in Rome May 11-16.
"In the face of a world torn apart by individualism, what will make your service effective is the witness of a family and of being the protagonists and builders of a community that transcends every border and culture," Archbishop Gallagher told them.
"The humanitarian activity that has always characterized Caritas Internationalis is nothing other than an expression of the charity of Christ," he said. "In this theological inspiration it must find its strength and identity, which distinguish it from other well-deserving non-profit or altruistic organizations."
Caritas' service of the poor, the archbishop said, advances "a culture of care that is central to the Gospel, bringing hope to those most fragile and to those facing situations of great suffering."
He noted that in the face of recent crises such as a pandemic, climate change, rising food insecurity and new conflicts, Caritas' "message of peace and fraternity" is more needed than ever.
"The promotion of charity and cooperation between peoples at the international level is an essential dimension of peacebuilding," he said, particularly considering the "growing danger that the current conflict in the heart of Europe poses for many countries" in addition to other conflicts.
"The world situation is perhaps no less complex today than it was 70 years ago, torn apart by Cold War tensions and the consequences of colonialist policies," he said. "There is no mystery that the temptation of following the logic of powers may still be strong, when in fact the logic of the Gospel should prevail."
Speaking after Archbishop Gallagher, Gabriel Ferrero de Loma Osorio, chairperson of the Committee on World Food Security, said that "more solidarity, more cooperation and more empathy," as modeled by Caritas, are needed both at the personal and institutional level to address the many factors that lead to food scarcity, such as armed conflict.
"It's a matter of building new paths of fraternity in our communities, our cities, countries and institutions," he said. "The voice of the poor is the voice of God, and we must translate that into action."