The Vincentian Family in Juiz de Fora, Brazil, is rising to the call of the World Day of the Poor by organizing its second “ação de caridade” (charitable action) in the service of those experiencing homelessness. In this initiative, the Vincentian Family will offer meals to those living on the streets, accompanied by prayer and music—bringing together communal support, spiritual nourishment, and human dignity in one gesture of love. Through these prayerful gatherings of motivation and life, the flame of compassion and care for our neighbour is kept alive. This concretely reflects how faith and social action can unite to bless and transform lives.

The project behind this outreach is known locally as the Banho Solidário Vicentino (Vincentian Solidarity Bath). Over the past five years, it has carried forward the mission of promoting dignity among people living in the streets of Juiz de Fora. The initiative is not just about providing physical needs, but also about offering companionship, support and a sense of belonging to persons whom society often overlooks.

In parallel, a new library has been created for the families assisted by the Bath programme: the Maria Henoe Guedes Pereira Library. Born from the idea of Vanderson Aparecido Gomes Magalhães, member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, the library provides a space for culture, socialisation and personal esteem among people living on the streets and their families. It has received donations of books across literary genres, computers and a television. It is envisioned as a beacon of hope, a meeting place in which the voices and dreams of the marginalized can be heard. Through this, the Vincentian outreach aims not only to meet immediate material need but also to empower, to restore dignity and self-esteem, and to proclaim that every human being is valued.

This example from Juiz de Fora beautifully mirrors and deepens the intention behind the World Day of the Poor. The Day was established by Pope Francis in 2017 as an annual observance to encourage the Catholic Church and the wider world to reflect on poverty in its many forms, to listen to “the cry of the poor”, and to respond by sharing and acting in fraternity. The first celebration took place on 19 November 2017.

Looking ahead to the Ninth World Day of the Poor, to be celebrated on Sunday 16 November 2025 (the XXXIII Sunday in Ordinary Time), the newly-elected Pope Leo XIV issues a message titled “You, O Lord, are my hope” (from Psalm 71:5). In this message he underlines that the poor can become witnesses of a strong and steadfast hope precisely because they embody hope in situations of uncertainty, instability and marginalisation. He affirms boldly that the gravest form of poverty is not to know God.

Moreover, Pope Leo stresses that helping the poor is first a matter of justice, before being a question of charity. He calls attention to the structural dimensions of poverty and challenges the Church and society not simply to alleviate symptoms but also to address root causes – poor work conditions, inadequate education, lack of housing or health care, all of which fail in a world where security is sought through weapons rather than solidarity. The message invites the faithful to recognise the poor not as passive recipients of help, but as creative subjects who provoke us to discover ever new ways to live out the Gospel today.

In this light, the Vincentian action in Brazil is timely and exemplary. Offering meals, fostering community through prayer and music, and creating a library for empowerment—all these are concrete signs of hope, of justice made flesh. They respond to the message of the World Day of the Poor in three significant ways: firstly, by placing persons experiencing homelessness at the centre, not as objects of pity but as companions in mission; secondly, by combining charity with spiritual accompaniment, recognising that the most serious poverty is sometimes that of being abandoned or unseen; and thirdly, by fostering human growth and dignity through culture, learning and relational presence.

As the Vincentian Family in Juiz de Fora moves toward this second charitable action, it reminds us that the World Day of the Poor is not just a yearly commemoration but a lived opportunity: to open our eyes, extend our hands, and open our hearts. The dinner table becomes a table of solidarity; the prayer becomes a dynamic of community; the library becomes a sign that every human person—no matter where they live or how they suffer—is worthy of hope. May such initiatives inspire communities everywhere to respond in faith and love, to be attentive to the “least of these,” and to live the Gospel that Pope Leo invites us to embody: to place our hope in God — and to draw from that hope the justice, compassion and transformation our world so desperately needs.