“Stretch forth your hand to the poor” (Sir 7:32)
“Brother, when you see a poor man, you see a mirror of the Lord and his poor mother.” This phrase attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi, gathers a particular approach that guides the celebration of this new World Day of the Poor. This is not an abstract concept. It is about specific faces. It is about God in person.
At the time of the Pontificate of Francis, the Franciscan charism occupies a prominent place on the agenda of ecclesial renewal. The name chosen by the current Bishop of Rome updates the events of God in Umbria in the thirteenth century and proposes an anthropological reference to repair the creation that threatens ruins.
For this reason, the Office of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation in collaboration with the JPIC-Media teams offer this resource to deepen on the World Day of the Poor in four approaches: from Integral Ecology, from a contemplation of the reality, from a discernment from the brotherhood and from a commitment of being a samaritan.
