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“Help make life easier for those suffering,” Ghanaian Archbishop on World Day of the Poor

Archbishop John Bonaventure Kwofie, Apostolic Administrator of the Sekondi-Takoradi Diocese congratulating Dame Theresa Arkhurst after her installation as the 8th National President of the St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Society at the Star of the Sea Cathedral at Takoradi on November 17, 2019.

As the Church marked the third World Day of the Poor initiated by Pope Francis through his Apostolic Letter, ‘Misericordia et Misera’, delegates of a charitable and devotional group of Catholic men, women and children in the West African country of Ghana have been encouraged to reach out to the poor in their immediate surroundings, including the sick and suffering who are struggling to keep hope alive.

“Keep the poor alive in your minds and help make life easier for those suffering and (the) sick,” the Archbishop of Accra, John Bonaventure Kwofie said Sunday, November 17 at the Our Lady Star of the Sea Cathedral in Ghana’s Sekondi-Takoradi during the thanksgiving Mass of the 8th Biennial National Delegates Congress of the St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Society

“Let’s not forget the sick in our families, homes, neighborhoods, workplaces and those abandoned at the hospital,” added Archbishop Kwofie who is also the Apostolic Administrator of Sekondi-Takoradi diocese.

Reflecting on Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter Misericordia et Misera in which he calls on everyone to be merciful and practice forgiveness in the manner taught to Christians by our Lord Jesus Christ in the Lord's prayer, Archbishop Kwofie noted, “The Holy Father emphasized the need to be merciful to the poor and admonished all and Christians in particular to remain faithful to the Lord's teaching on the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy.” 

Further, the Ghanaian Prelate reminded the Christians of the Holy Father's observation that "the social character of mercy demands that we not simply stand by and do nothing … it requires us to banish indifference and hypocrisy."

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Speaking to the customized theme of the day by the Society, "Emulating St. Theresa, Our Beacon of Hope for the Sick and Suffering," the delegates’ administrator of the Sekondi-Takoradi diocese, Msgr. Francis Abuah-Quansah urged the delegates in attendance to imitate their patron. 

“Like your Patron St. Theresa, give yourself to God because of your love for Him. Give yourselves to God in your sickness, sufferings and afflictions but not roaming from Church to Church,” Msgr. Abuah-Quansah advised.  

Speaking to ACI Africa, the newly elected national President of the Society of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, Dame Obaapayin Theresa Efua Arkhurst said, “We must bear the pain and agony of one another as followers of the little flower and one sure means to alleviate the suffering of a sister is to get closer not only at the time of need but all times.”

She added, "We must desist from caring for our friends and loved ones."

In a separate event in Ghana, while celebrating World Day of the Poor, the Noble Order of the Knights and Ladies of Marshall noted that currently, the poor are oppressed by the local authorities.

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“The poor lack the basic necessities of life and are often harassed and exploited in our towns and cities by local government authorities seeking to provide some semblance of order in our settlements,” reads in part the message signed by the Masrhallian leaders Sir Knight Charles L. L. Cobb and Dr. Agatha A. Bonney on the occasion of the World Day of the Poor Sunday, November 17.

“In some rural settings, traditional authorities still carry out banishment orders against the poor and vulnerable without much justification,” the Marshallians said and added, “Exploitation by the political class and immigration con-men are certainly the bane of the youth from poor and humble background.”

This year's World Day of the Poor was guided by the theme, "The hope of the poor shall not perish forever."