At their Spring General Meeting which concluded on Wednesday 8 March in Maynooth, Bishops expressed their thanks to pupils, schools and families throughout Ireland for their continuous support for the annual Trócaire Lenten campaigns which have transformed the lives of millions of people.
2017 marks the 44th Trócaire Lenten campaign and its theme “humanitarian need across the world” highlights the scale of people living in crisis situations arising from conflict and climate disasters. The family pictured on this year’s Trócaire box is from a village in Honduras that faces regular flooding from storms and rising sea levels. Trócaire’s project in the village keeps people safe by providing for safe evacuation while campaigning for access to safer homes.
Bishops expressed deep concern at the worsening hunger crisis facing people in the developing world, in particular across central Africa – Nigeria, South Sudan and Somalia – and in Yemen, and asked for prayers for an end to the terrible conflicts that have left so many people displaced and hungry. Food stocks have been exhausted and famine has already been declared in parts of South Sudan, while a state of national disaster has been declared in Somalia and this has been compounded by drought and conflict.
Bishops said, “In a world of plenty, people are dying because they do not have enough food to eat. It is unacceptable that, in the 21st century, starvation remains a reality for so many on the planet, with women and children being the most vulnerable.” Bishops encouraged all people of goodwill to support Trócaire’s 2017 Lenten campaign by requesting a Trócaire box from their local parish or by donating online at https://www.trocaire.org/getinvolved/lent
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