Saint Gertrude Parish - Lasne

15. I urgently appeal for hope for the billions of poor people who often lack the necessities of life. Faced with successive waves of impoverishment, there is a risk of becoming accustomed to and resigned to the situation. But we cannot turn a blind eye to the dramatic situations now found everywhere, not just in certain parts of the world. We encounter poor or impoverished people every day, some of whom may even be our neighbors. Often, they lack housing and sufficient daily food. They suffer from exclusion and the indifference of many. It is scandalous that, in a world with enormous resources largely devoted to armaments, the poor constitute "the major part [...], trillions of people." Today, they are present in international political and economic debates, but it often seems that their problems are presented as an addendum, as an issue added almost by obligation or marginally, when they are not considered mere collateral damage. In fact, when it comes to concrete action, they are frequently relegated to the last place.” [7] Let us not forget: the poor, almost always, are victims, not perpetrators.