Angolan Catholic Archdiocese Launches Christmas Initiative to Support the Vulnerable

He said laywomen in his Metropolitan See will champion the charity initiative given the “sensitivity inherent in their motherhood, which adds value to the dimension of solidarity and humanitarian nature of the project.”

“Femininity speaks to us of that sensitivity that goes beyond what is sometimes presented as strictly logical and rational. It's an affectivity that is natural and they are here giving this testimony and committing themselves to this cause of solidarity,” Archbishop Dias said about the role of the laywomen in the initiative.

He said that the lay women who are leading the Archdiocese's solidarity campaign for people in need belong to various walks of life and professional backgrounds, but that “they are also committed to the daily lives of every man and woman.” 

Filomena Víctor, a member of the organizing committee of the charity initiative expressed optimism that the initiative would attract the participation of those outside Luanda to make it a success.

“ We embrace the cause and hope that people and society will also take part in it,” she added.

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Josefina Lamberguer, another member of the organizing committee, said, "We've joined this initiative by the Archdiocese of Luanda to give our face to a campaign that is humanitarian.”

She continued, “Today we have 64 parishes and large parts of our parishes' lives are in the community where the difficulty is most visible, where we can distinguish who is who, who really needs help and who needs it the least.”

“And around these parishes there are some people with a little more possessions. So we've come to really appeal to these little windows of our parishes, who also attend our parishes, to join in this Solidarity Christmas, to contribute a little, with what they have, what's extra, because in addition to what we buy, we sometimes receive presents and anything that can be shared, we'd be grateful,” she said.

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate.