A Letter from the Bishop of Orlando

My Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Love … does not rejoice over wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails.  -  1 Corinthians 6-8

In his encyclical, CARITAS IN VERITATE, Pope Benedict XVI, wrote, “Charity in truth, to which Jesus Christ bore witness by his earthly life and especially by his death and resurrection, is the principal driving force behind the authentic development of every person and of all humanity.”  When you think about the work of Catholic Charities of Central Florida, does an image of Christ among us come to mind?  For me, this is very true.  Through the work of Catholic Charities of Central Florida, we extend our arms to hold a person in comfort; we offer a hand to a stranger to welcome them; we feed a hungry person food to sustain life; and we open wide the doors of homes to provide shelter.  We pray that we might be as Christ to one another in a very real sense through the gifts of labor and support for Catholic Charities.

This community need is always great and may sometimes seem overwhelming to us.  If we work together, person to person, parish to parish, parish to Catholic Charities, our hearts will be filled with great joy as the presence of the Lord comes to live through us, with us, and in us.

I am grateful to you as volunteers and to the staff of Catholic Charities for your continued ministry in His name.  Where charity is truth, God is there.

Sincerely yours in Christ,
 
Most Reverend John Noonan
Diocese of Orlando