ASIA/PHILIPPINES – In the Year of the Poor, Lent is a favourable time for solidarity

Manila (Agenzia Fides) – In the Year of the Poor, Lent is a favourable time for solidarity, it is an opportunity to help persons in difficulty, a time for “being a good neighbour”: this was said by the Archbishop of Caceres, Mons. Rolando Tirona, president of Caritas Philippines, named by the Filipino Bishops “National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace, ” (NASSA). Fides learned that the Archbishop has encouraged the faithful to take part in the initiative Alay Kapwa (Help your Neighbour), the programme of evangelisation and Lenten action launched in 1975 by the Catholic Church in the Philippines, and which recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of its institution . The season of Lent is an opportune time for prayer, fasting and penance, and also “for practicing works of charity, and living the message of mercy and compassion emphasised by Pope Francis” said the Archbishop.
The programme, Fr Edu Gariguez Secretary executive of Caritas explains, stems not from a logic of assistance , instead it aims to give the poor the means to play a part in improving their quality of life, fostering a “culture of self-helping” among its beneficiaries.
The priest says the Alay Kapwa programme fully corresponds the Holy Father’s call for a Church which “reaches out to people on the fringes of society” and reflects, from the point of view of the poor and the oppressed. (PA) (Agenzia Fides 20/2/2015)