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A letter from the Caritas Australia Chairperson:
Dear Friends,
The season of Lent that is about to begin invites us into a time of reflection, transformation and conversion as we
seek healing for the brokenness of our world and its people. Our efforts should not be just inward and individual but
outward and social; in this way we take the opportunity to respond to God’s call for a better world.
Blueprint for a better world is this year’s theme for Project Compassion and is inspired by the Millennium
Development Goals. Also known as the MDGs, they are eight life-changing goals to halve world poverty by 2015. With
1 billion people still living in extreme poverty, we must become aware of the sufferings of humanity, and put our
compassion and faith into action.
For the Church, these goals are not just development objectives for freedom from hunger, for the right to an education
and health, for equality and for a sustainable environment; they encompass all that is necessary for our brothers and
sisters to realise their human dignity and enable everyone to ‘have life and have it to the full’ (Jn 10:10).
The world as a whole is on track to achieve MDG 1: eradicate extreme poverty; yet there is great concern, especially
with the financial crisis, that without a collective and unswerving effort from the global community, the seven
remaining goals might not be reached. In his latest encyclical Caritas in Veritate, Pope Benedict XVI affirms the
approach of Caritas Australia in achieving these goals through participation, subsidiarity, and solidarity. Each of us has
a duty to make these goals a reality.
This year as you journey through Lent, you will come to know how Caritas Australia, with the support of generous
Australians, has been able to implement life-changing projects to contribute to the achievement of these eight goals.
The projects include:
1) Eradicating hunger and poverty for vulnerable families in Cambodia
2) Ensuring that children have access to primary schooling in Derby, Western Australia
3) Supporting women survivors of violence and working for just relationships in East Timor
4) Improving child and maternal health in Papua New Guinea
5) Helping to combat HIV/AIDS and other diseases in El Salvador
6) Assisting communities to have access to safe drinking water and sanitation and working towards environmental
sustainability in Malawi.
In 2009, Project Compassion raised $8.7 million dollars. Your generosity, through almsgiving and solidarity with
others, has enabled Caritas Australia to continue to support some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in
the world.
This Lent, as we pray, fast and give alms, may we reflect on who we are and who God is calling us to become: the
loving, healing presence of Christ in the world today.
Yours sincerely in Christ,
Archbishop Adrian L Doyle
Chairperson, Caritas Australia
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