Staring death, destruction and starvation in the face on a daily basis, Christians in Gaza are staying steadfast to their commitment to love and serve, sharing ever-dwindling resources with their Muslim neighbours, report employees of two Catholic charities active in the Middle East.

The Diocese of Hamilton and Development and Peace - Caritas Canada are harnessing the power of film to educate people on social issues across the globe in a casual yet engaging way. 

Holy Land Catholic leaders have appealed for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Canadian support in dealing with the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe.

As Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, began restricting Canadians in August from accessing and sharing news content on its platforms in response to Bill C-18, The Online News Act, it wasn’t only news organizations feeling the effect.

A student program by Development and Peace-Caritas Canada is giving young people the opportunity to put their faith into action through the completion of social justice activities in their school community. 

The federal government plans to spend a lot of money — $496.9 billion in 2023-24 — but the growth in federal spending projected by the latest budget hasn’t done anything for Canadian agencies that deliver humanitarian assistance and development aid in poor countries around the world.

A simple stable is where God chooses to be born into the world, a helpless infant child. Many Christian households display creches with baby Jesus figurines as part of Advent preparations for Christmas.  There is another kind of “stable” though where Jesus wants to be present as this particular Christmas approaches, the stabilization centres of Somalia. 

With one-third of Pakistan underwater, millions on the move, waterborne illnesses, diarrhea, lost crops, lost roads and bridges and electricity infrastructure, the humanitarian challenge is immense, said Scott Braunschweig.

Pope Francis’ recent visit to Canada marked a historic moment for the Catholic Church. After delivering an apology for residential schools, the pontiff laid the groundwork for reconciliation with Indigenous communities, stressing the importance of moving forward in peace, unity and love.

In a hungry world, Development and Peace is giving Canadian Catholics a chance to save lives. Using its partnership with Canadian Food Grains Bank, Canada’s Catholic development agency is taking advantage of an Ottawa matching fund to get money and the food it can buy to starving people.

Development and Peace has new marching orders — new orders that are older than the Church.

At 30, Brenda Akaraza still laughs as easily as any teenager. She’s still as earnest as any university freshman.

Canadians don’t know whether their pension fund is booking profits off nine-year-olds packing boxes 10 hours a day in Guatemala, or off of Uygher workers let out of their re-education camps to pick cotton. When Canadians click on a deal while shopping online, they can’t tell whether child or forced labour was part of the bargain price.

Cash and care go hand in hand in the Catholic response to the crisis in Ukraine.

As Canada begins to step out from under the shadow of COVID, Canada’s Catholic development agency is greeting the new day and Canadian politicians with its most ambitious, spiritual and political Share Lent campaign in years.