Caritas Sunday
Sunday 28th January 2018Sunday 28th January is Caritas Sunday and an opportunity to hear more about Caritas Diocese of Salford, our home charity of the Diocese. The second collection after Mass, and the ongoing support, will allow us to respond where the need is greatest in our Parishes in the year ahead.
As the official ‘home’ charity of our Diocese, Caritas Diocese of Salford has 21 formal services and centres; helping homelessness; poverty alleviation; those suffering from benefit sanctions; raising awareness of human trafficking; welcoming the stranger; visiting the elderly and housebound; campaigning for justice; working in our schools, and housing and supporting young mothers and babies.
There are now over 90 Caritas Representatives across the Diocese; volunteers in each of our churches who help to share information from Caritas; to communicate the great work that we are already doing in our parish, as inspiration to the rest of the Diocese; and to provide support for us to set up Community Groups to help those in need.
This time last year, thanks to your help, the Caritas Sunday appeal raised £37,238 which went directly to our Refugee Response.
This money has gone directly to support all of the wonderful work to welcome refugees and asylum seekers across the Diocese:-
From almost zero activity just two years ago, and thanks to your support, Caritas has:
- Set up Refugee and Asylum Centre Drop-Ins in Wythenshaw and Rossendale to provide casework support and a welcome face to those escaping war or persecution in their homeland
- Provided Volunteer led English lessons
- Worked with Revive in Manchester to arrange days out in parish communities in the Ribble Valley and Irlam
- Launched the Refugee Dine with Me parish initiative
- Continue to pioneer the Refugee Community Sponsorship Programme. This is now being taken up by 9 further parishes in the Diocese from the original pilot at St Monica’s, Flixton.
- Caritas also offers emergency accommodation to those who find themselves destitute, and individual supporters have been campaigning for the cases of individual asylum seekers and even housing them in their own homes
We continue to respond to poverty and social injustice in our parishes in whatever form it might take. Thanks to this year’s second collection, we will be able to respond to where the need is greatest throughout the year ahead.
If you are interested to get involved in social action in this Parish, with Refugees or to help others in need, then please speak to your Parish Priest, your Caritas Representative or direct to Caritas on 0161 817 2270 or via parishreps@caritassalford.org.uk
