MEXICO CITY, NOV. 11, 2009 (Zenit.org).- A book-length report published by the Mexican bishops along with the national division of Caritas is issuing an urgent call to help the poor.
The report, titled «The Poor Cannot Wait,» written in part by the Episcopal Commission for Social Pastoral Care, calls for the study of poverty «with a fresh imagination in light of the mission of the Church, together with all men and women of good will.»
The document reported that «the situation of the poor in Mexico gets worse every day.»
«The achievements of the past in this area are lost in the convulsive sea of a global financial crisis that, as in all crises and emergencies, is primarily affecting the poorest and making evident the raw reality of dehumanizing poverty,» it affirmed.
Bishop Gustavo Rodríguez Vega of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, the president of Caritas in that country, wrote an introduction to the report in which he affirmed, «In this situation, we cannot but make our own the dramatic appeal made by Pope John Paul II in Santiago de Chile in 1987: ‘The poor cannot wait.'»
The prelate stated, «If poverty and inequality threaten the dignified life of millions of men and women in Mexico, we cannot do without the continental mission to which we have been called so that in Christ our peoples will have life.»
He called for «a purposeful, dialoguing and committed approach to contribute to the overcoming of this scourge that painfully hurts millions of people in our homeland.»
With the publication of this book, the bishop affirmed, «We wish to offer a working instrument to all ecclesial entities working for the cause of the poor, inviting them to take to heart the words of the Lord who says to us, ‘You give them to eat.'»
May this reflection cause us to ask ourselves «if what is being done is being done in the best way, in appropriate places, with the pertinent strategies and with evangelical consistency,» he added.
Dialogue
Bishop Vega noted that «the overcoming of poverty is an objective that calls upon all the sectors of civil society and the agencies of public service.»
He added, «We must unite efforts to reach this objective; we cannot do it alone and the best way to achieve it is respectful, sincere and committed dialogue.»
The document has three sections and includes an interactive CD with maps of the provinces and attachments with results of the research.
To carry out the research for this analysis, the bishops collaborated with the Lindavista Center of Mexico City.
Reports estimate that Mexico, which has a population of some 111 million, counts 60 million people as being close to the poverty line. Of these, 19 million live in abject poverty.
