This year, from November 10 to 17, 2019, the third edition of the World Day of the Poor will take place. This was reported on November 9, 2019, by the Press Office of the Holy See through a statement. The World Day of the Poor was instituted by Pope Francis to give a sign of attention and inclusion to people who live daily on the margins of society and is organized and promoted by the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization.
January 26, 2022

Message from Pope Francis

Documents (AGENDA TO ANIMATE COMMUNITIES)
January 26, 2022

"The hope of the poor will never be frustrated" (Ps 9:19). “The words of the psalm are presented with incredible relevance,” is the theme chosen by Pope Francis for the Message of this Third World Day of the Poor. It is a psalm written at a time when arrogant people without any sense of God persecuted the poor to take even the little they had and subject them to slavery.

Esto es algo que “hoy no es muy diferente”, apunta el Pontífice en el citado mensaje. Las palabras del salmo “no se refieren al pasado, sino a nuestro presente, expuesto al juicio de Dios”, ya que “también hoy debemos nombrar las numerosas formas de nuevas esclavitudes a las que están sometidos millones de hombres, mujeres, jóvenes y niños”.

Concierto previo

On the eve of the celebration of the Third World Day of the Poor, 7,000 needy people were the guests of honor at the third concert With the Poor and for the Poor, held last Saturday, November 9, in the Paul VI Hall of the Vatican. Maestro Nicola Piovani, winner of an Oscar for the soundtrack of the film Life is Beautiful, directed the Italian Cinema Orchestra and was attended by families in difficulty, the elderly, homeless people and many others in situations of fragility and precariousness.

Mass and lunch with the Pope On Sunday, November 17, at 10 a.m., Pope Francis will preside over the Eucharist in St. Peter's Basilica with the presence of the poor, accompanied by some voluntary associations. Afterwards, the traditional lunch with the Holy Father will take place. In it, 1,500 poor people are invited to the Paul VI Hall, set up as a large dining room with 150 tables, for a festive lunch in their honor. These men and women come from Rome, the dioceses of Lazio and other dioceses in Italy.

Inclusion sign

The lunch is offered by Roma Cares and at the end of it the participants will receive gifts: pasta packages from the La Molisana brand and oil from the Coldiretti company. This lunch with the poor is also held as a sign of inclusion, in each parish and voluntary organization that has joined the initiative, both in Rome and Italy and in the rest of the world, depending on the possibilities.

Outpatient clinic in St. Peter's Square

On this occasion, the experience of the outpatient clinic in San Pedro Square will be repeated, where throughout the week there will be completely free medical consultations, treatments and clinical analyzes for indigent people, who normally have difficulties accessing this type of services. This time, thanks to the support of important health organizations and the dissemination of this initiative, the available medical specialties have increased, which will be: general medicine, cardiology, diabetes, dermatology, rheumatology, infectious diseases, gynecology, ophthalmology, podiatry, vaccination against the flu and ultrasounds. The clinic has been in operation since Sunday the 10th and will continue until Sunday, November 17, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Exceptionally, there will be some interruptions to the service on Wednesday morning for the Pope's audience and on Sunday morning for the recitation of the Angelus.

Impact of initiatives

All these activities linked to the World Day of the Poor achieve growing support year after year, indicates the aforementioned statement. Last year, the clinic received around 2,000 patients in one week who received 3,500 free services. The intervention of the doctors was providential in three patients who suffered a heart attack at the time of the visit and several people with serious infectious diseases were also identified, who were followed up for the necessary period after the celebration of the World Day. Likewise, news is expected to arrive about the abundant initiatives coming from all the dioceses of the world.

Collaborating entities

The services provided in this structure are possible thanks to the help provided by some entities that already collaborated with the Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, along with other new ones that have joined this year.

Specifically, not only the Directorate of Health and Hygiene of the Vatican City State, but also the specialists of the Catholic University – Gemelli Polyclinic, the University of Tor Vergata and the Assistance Pole and Care Home of the Holy Family, the S. Giovanni Hospital – Addolorata, the INMP – National Institute for the Promotion of the Health of Migrant Populations and the Fight against the Diseases of Poverty, have made a valuable contribution. In addition, the reception, selection and assistance service for visitors, as well as the center's doctors, is provided by the Corps of Volunteer Nurses of the Italian Red Cross, the Association of Women of the Italian Red Cross ONLUS and the Italian Society of General Medicine and Primary Care.

The creation of the outpatient clinic and the preparation of the various World Day of the Poor initiatives have also been supported by: UnipolSai, Gilead, Roma Cares, Euroma 2, Fondazione R.H., Regia Congressi, Sequirus S.r.l., Confederazione Nazionale delle Misericordie d’Italia, Halga Italia S.r.l., Methodo, LEO Pharmacia, Lloyds Farmacia, Dedalus S.P.A. and Kilabs.
January 26, 2022

SOURCE: ZENIT
January 26, 2022