Church collections for charity

The annual collection for the Church's charitable activities and homes will be held during all Saturday evening and Sunday Masses this weekend.

The money collected will go to homes for the elderly and those which provide shelter to homeless children, young people and others without a family to take care of them, as well as to Caritas, Dar tal-Providenza, the Social Assistance Secretariat of the Catholic Action and the Refugee Section of the Secretariat for Emigration and Tourism.

There are currently 271 children in Church homes and 720 persons in its homes for the elderly. Caritas provides 22 different services reaching hundreds of people while Dar tal-Providenza provides shelter and care for 125 persons with disabilities, the Social Assistance Secretariat gives various forms of assistance to people in need and the refugee section is helping around 388 persons, including 67 children, from different 13 countries.

Foodstuffs and other commodities in baskets may also be donated and placed in churches. The contributions will later be passed on to homes for children, young people and persons with special needs, as is being indicated to each parish.

A token from the collection, together with cash offerings, will be presented to Archbishop Joseph Mercieca by the parish priests and representatives of each parish during Mass, at St John's Co-Cathedral, Valletta on February 3 at 6 p.m.

Charity Day is organised through the initiative of the Council of the Church Secretariat for Social and Charitable Action (Caritas).