Pope Francis urges Christians to care for the poor

POPE Francis has urged Christians to put their faith into practise by caring for the poor through personal involvement.
He made this call on Tuesday in his World Day of the Poor message which this year falls on Nov 13.
In this year’s message for the annual observance themed “For your sakes Christ became poor (2 Cor. 8:9)”, Pope Francis recalled the words of St. Paul to the Christians of Corinth, in order to encourage their efforts to show solidarity with their brothers and sisters in need.
The Pope noted that the World Day this year came “as a healthy challenge, helping us to reflect on our style of life and on the many forms of poverty all around us”.
The sixth World Day of the Poor, celebrated in the midst of this situation, invited us to reflect on the summons of the Apostle to “keep our gaze fixed on Jesus” who though rich became poor so that by his poverty we might become rich, the Pope said.
He recalled that when St. Paul visited Jerusalem he met with Peter, James and John, who urged him not to forget the poor, and the Apostle set about organising a great collection to aid the community of Jerusalem that was experiencing a great hardship due to food shortages.
“In the same manner, every Sunday during the celebration of the Holy Eucharist,” said the Pope, “We have done the same thing, ‘pooling our offerings so that the community can provide for the needs of the poor’– something that Christians have always done ‘with joy and a sense of responsibility’.”
Solidarity, the Pope explained: “Is sharing the little we have with those who have nothing.”