Mangalore, Dec 23: Bishop of Mangalore Diocese Dr Aloysius Paul D'Souza stressed on the need to extend a helping hand to the underprivileged sections of the society in accordance with the call given by Pope Francis that a church must be poor and for the poor.
Delivering his Christmas message at a press meet at Bishop's House here on Monday, he conveyed his Christmas wishes and blessings to people and said that the Diocese of Mangalore had taken up various activities and programmes towards eradicating poverty from the society.
Calling upon Christians to join hands with people from other religions to wipe out the prevalent poverty in the society, he said that the poor, marginalised and the underprivileged were considered close to God and Christians had a mission and responsibility in this regard.
“Christmas, the festival and celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, has meaning if it is celebrated with humbleness and spirituality. As Pope Francis has evoked, we must help the poor live a life of dignity and supplement the eradication of poverty from the society,” he said, calling upon the faithful to respect the poor and treat them as equals.
He expressed his desire that Christmas celebrations should inspire and motivate people to work for the poor and the needy.
Vicar General Fr Denis Prabhu, Chancellor Fr Henry Sequeira, Fr Willian Menezes and Fr Marcel Monteiro were present.
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