Back to the heart

Dear Friends: Dilexit nos, the fourth encyclical letter from Pope Francis, is focused on the importance of building a "civilization of love" in today's world, revealing and changing what injustice has ruined, especially on a social level as a loving response from Christ. It presents the heart as the centre of the human being, where body, mind and spirit are in accord. Hence, the urgence of "returning to the heart".

During the preparation for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in 2014 the Vatican convened a meeting with Catholic organisations and ILO to make the Decent Work a goal of the plan. This is expressed in Goal 8 in order to "promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all". Since that moment, Caritas, CONFER, HOAC, Justice and Peace, JEC and YCW began to work in Spain on the development of a space of sensitivity which was named Church for Decent Work (ITD for its initials in Spanish). In these ten years, ITD has reached the spread of its message thank God and the work of diocesan boards, but there is still a lot of work to do because there are millions of people without a decent work for salary, schedules, both physical and contract insecurity reasons, etc.

Justice and Peace Europe debated the challenges of the lack of information and the contribution of the Social Doctrine of the Church to the renovation of an authentic public speech. The forty people representing twenty Justice and Peace European commissions, as well as some invited, were gathered from 20 to 23 September in the Prague Annual International Seminary and General Meeting. The theme of the International Seminary was the "Dialogue in Truth is the Only Answer in Time of Inestability".

The 44th Spanish Social Week was held on 8 and 9 November 2024 in Valladolid. The theme was "Dialogue, the path forwards the Church". On the document of conclusions, inside the Church, Clericalism and the lack of listening to the voices of laity and women are being criticized in the Church, which contributes to polarisation. We can identify numerous causes for this disagreement, such as partisan struggle, media influence and the lack of ethical leadership.

On the back page, we share the encounters of this quadrimester such as the Frontera Sur exchange, the annual conference of the Spanish Commission for Justice and Peace in Majorca, the act on the European Anti-Trafficking Day, and at the same time we remember the dates taking place against poverty. We wish you a good start to the new year from the firm defence of peace.

Fidel García Gutiérrez
Secretary- general