Aloysius John new Secretary
General of Caritas Internationalis
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| Caritas is often the first on the scene to help, and stays on when other humanitarian agencies have left |
The Caritas confederation this week elected Aloysius John as
the new Secretary General for a mandate of four years. He told Vatican Radio
& News about how he plans to put his new mandate into practice.
By Linda Bordoni
Aloysius John’s election came at the end of the
confederation’s 31st General Assembly during which Cardinal
Luis Antonio Tagle was reconfirmed as President.
John succeeds Michel Roy who finishes his
two-term mandate this year. He is no stranger to the Rome headquarters of
Caritas Internationalis where he has been heading the Institutional Development
and Capacity Strengthening of the network.
After having been elected by the representative council
following four days of intense meetings to plan out the Catholic confederation’s
strategic direction for the next four years, Aloysius John told Linda Bordoni
of his feelings of motivation and inspiration with which he has received this
new mandate.
Aloysius John said that it is with a spirit of service and
humility that he takes on this assignment.
He said Caritas has been entrusted by the Church “to help
the poor and the needy to become autonomous – recognizing their place in
society, in the image of God”.
Of course with a large and complex confederation like
Caritas Internationalis, with its 160 members who work in almost every country
of the world, vision, fore-planning and strategy are of utmost importance.
Inspired by Catholic faith, Caritas describes itself as the
helping hand of the Church, reaching out to the poor, vulnerable and excluded,
regardless of race or religion, to build a world based on justice and fraternal
love. It carries out its mission with short and long term relief and
development programmes and when a crisis hits, it is already on the ground
thanks to a capillary network that includes small groups of volunteers to some
of the biggest global charities.
So, John explained, his mission is to work with efficiency
in order “to help the poor have the best in society”.
The Gospel is our programme
Addressing Caritas members during the just ended General
Assembly, Pope Francis said the Gospel must be their programme.
“The Gospel is our programme”, John said, “and if I look at
the parable of the Good Samaritan it inspires me.”
His example of compassion, he added, his attention,
care for the wounded, the way he was able to get down to his level to
carry him and take him to the inn to receive the care he was in need of shows
us with what spirit we must conduct our work.
“This is the parable that guides me. We should be
compassionate towards the poor, love them and care for them, listen to them and
defend their rights,” he said.
Challenges
Aloysius John said his first challenge on the job will be to
make sure the Caritas family is working for a common vision and then respond
effectively and efficiently to the needs of the people.
This, he said, means capacitating the people who are going
to support those in need.
And then, he continued, we need to focus on finances and on
how to receive funding from solidarity; how to animate solidarity and empower
others to become co-responsible in responding to the needs of victims of
disasters, conflict and poverty.
Mobilizing the process at different levels
The new Secretary General also spoke of the need to make
sure this process is mobilized on different levels.
“For example at a parish level, in Christian communities -
by helping people learn how to help in situations of emergency,” he said.
And of course at a diocesan level and at the national level
by lobbying political leaders and involving the international community.
During the General Assembly it was agreed that a top
priority lies in the review of a strategic framework for Caritas as it faces
the urgent need for a change in the model of development in the face of climate
change.
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