GROWING SOLIDARITY
From Prayer to Action
World Day of the Poor & World Youth Day 13-20 November, 2022
Join our week-long program of prayers, reflections and actions created by Caritas youth that will help us to understand how to better serve, accompany and defend the poor. ‘For your sakes Christ became poor’ (2 Cor 8:9) and ‘Mary arose and went with haste’ (Luke 1:39) are the themes of this year’s World Day of the Poor and World Youth Day. Like the growth of a tree, which inspires the evolution of this program, we hope that your new insights will grow into strong and beautiful actions to serve the poor in new and meaningful ways.
This program was originally created to mark the week between the 2022 World Day of the Poor and World Youth Day, from 14-20 November, 2022
Day 1
Prepare the ground
Before a seed can go into the ground, it is essential that the environment where the tree will grow is properly prepared. This could involve ensuring that the soil is healthy enough to receive and nurture the seed, or clearing the area so that the tree has enough room to grow. In the same way, today let’s prepare ourselves for our reflections and actions for the week ahead. Join us at 10:00am Rome time on Caritas Internationalis’ Facebook page as we mark the World Day of the Poor with an online Mass animated by Caritas Youth from all over the world. Or, watch the Mass at any time on the @iamCaritas YouTube channel.
DAY
2
Choose your seed
SEE
What do you see others currently doing in your community to serve the poor? What opportunities exist that you would like to get involved in?
JUDGE
St. Paul tells us, ‘For your sakes Christ became poor’ (2 Cor 8:9). What do you think St. Paul means by ‘poverty’ in this sense? Can this type of poverty counteract the type of poverty that causes so many in our communities to suffer?
ACT
Choose one thing in your life that prevents you from becoming ‘poor’ in the same way that Jesus became poor. Try to go without it until Sunday. On Sunday decide, can you do away with it for good?
DAY
3
Plant your seed
SEE
What gifts do you have, that you could ‘plant’ in your community’s efforts to serve the poor?
JUDGE
Pope Francis says that we should become poor like Jesus, in the sense that we should be close to the poor and live simply. In what ways are you poor like Jesus? In what ways are you not?
ACT
Use one of your gifts today to serve the poor, or to bring the poor in from the margins of your community!
DAY
4
Nurture your seed
SEE
What initiatives in your community go beyond simply providing charity to the poor? Do you see any initiatives that ‘nurture’ the poor, protect their dignity, and help them to develop to their full potential?
JUDGE
In what ways do you live that could prevent the poor from living in an environment that allows them to access the necessities of life and develop to their full potential? In what ways do you help to create this healthy environment for everyone?
ACT
Is there something that you need to buy today? If so, try to buy it from an individual or enterprise that could really use your support – like a small business, or a self-employed artisan – rather than from a large company that might not source its products ethically.
DAY
5
Watch your tree grow!
SEE
Have you ever seen a project that truly transforms the lives of the poor and, by extension, the wider community? What was the most noticeable part of the transformation to you?
JUDGE
Pope Francis says that Christians ensure that no one lacks the necessities of life with a sense of joy and responsibility. When do you find joy in serving the poor? When do you find it challenging to find joy in serving the poor?
ACT
Go out and perform a small act of kindness to someone in need today, and remember to keep a smile on your face so that you spread not only your help but also your joy. Watch as your joy transforms the lives of those around you!
DAY
6
Watch your tree change with the seasons
SEE
How have some extraordinary events (like the Covid-19 pandemic, war, etc.) changed the face of poverty and the types of poverty in your community? How have you seen these events change communities around the world?
JUDGE
When you experience changes in your own life or in your community, does this affect the way that you your openness towards the poor and how you treat them?
ACT
Have a conversation with someone who has been affected by a crisis: ask them about their journey to where they are today, and truly listen to how they have struggled.
DAY
7
Admire the beauty of your tree
St. Luke tells us that when she learned that she would conceive and give birth to Jesus, ‘Mary arose and went with haste’ (Lk 1:39) to visit Elizabeth.
This action that has inspired the 2022 WYD theme also inspires Caritas’ Call to Action for you on this day: Arise and go with haste to share the extraordinary gifts that you have been given, and put them at the service of those in need.
This week you have reflected not only on the gifts that you may offer, but also on the gifts that the poor may offer to you and your community. Go out this weekend and serve the poor in a new way that makes room for their gifts as well, and see how much you can accomplish together! In doing so, remember the words of Pope Francis in his 2022 World Youth Day Message: “In this beautiful season of your lives, press ahead and do not postpone all the good that the Holy Spirit can accomplish in you!”
DAY 8
Harvest the fuits
A healthy tree is able to produce a harvest in each growing season. The fruits of the harvest are truly a gift to the whole ecosystem. How do you harvest the gifts that you have been given? Do you use your gifts to help your local – and global – community?
On this World Youth Day, we are called to remember Mary who ‘went with haste’ to share the news of the gift of Jesus. Join us at 10:00am Rome time on Caritas Internationalis’ Facebook page as Caritas Youth from all over the world lead us in a prayer of the Rosary (or watch the video at any time on the @iamCaritas YouTube channel). This prayer will also include messages from Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, President of Caritas Internationalis, and Fr João Chagas, Head of the Youth Office of the Dicastery of Laity, Family, and Life.