Welcome to Caritas Portsmouth
Caritas Portsmouth supports parishes, schools and groups across the diocese to reach out to those on the margins to share the love and mercy of God in practical ways.
Guided by the words of Pope Francis in Laudato Si’, our work combines the themes of social and environmental justice as we hear and respond to ‘both the cry of the earth and cry of the poor.”
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The Two-Child Benefit Cap
The two-child benefit cap, introduced in 2017 undermines the financial security of families with three or more children, trapping families in poverty, often because of common but unpredictable life events such as illness and job loss. This has a longer-term impact on child development and future opportunities and the Catholic Bishops of England and Wales tell us that it is contrary to our Catholic Social Teaching by implying “that society owes less financial security to third, fourth or younger children, de facto meaning they are devalued”. The Child Poverty Action Group suggests that abolishing the two-child limit would lift 300,000 children out of poverty and reduce poverty’s severity for an additional 700,000 children.
Last week we joined other members of the Caritas Social Action Network by signing a letter to the Prime Minister requesting the lift of this benefit cap.
The Catholic Bishops of England and Wales are calling for us to contact our MP to end the two-child cap. They have created a template for you to complete online.
Anti-Slavery Week
Anti-Slavery week ran from 14th-20th October and we hosted Stevie Waight from the Medaille Trust at the last Caritas networking lunch to explain more about Modern Slavery, how to spot the signs and what to do if you had a concern.
There are around 50 million people trapped in slavery around the world and 122,000 in the UK so this is something that is found in all our communities. Pope Francis urges us to walk in the footsteps of St Bakhita who was sold as a child into slavery and was a victim of traffickers. “Saint Bakhita encourages us to open our eyes and ears to see those who go unseen and to hear those who have no voice, to acknowledge the dignity of each person, and to fight trafficking and all forms of exploitation”
Click to download the notes from the event with links to useful resources. Notes from Modern Slavery Networking Lunch You can download an Modern Slavery spot the signs poster here.
Becoming the Church Beyond Walls
The Church Beyond Walls Workshop is a interactive session to help your parish start exploring the needs in your local community and deciding how to respond to them. Following the See-Choose-Act pathway it is an opportunity to focus on getting to know your neighbourhood and the specific opportunities it offers for engagement and outreach using the gifts and resources of people in your parish.
Based on the goals of the 10 year mission plan You Will Be My Witnesses, the workshop includes
- The opportunity to answer the question ‘what does poverty look like in this parish/pastoral area?’ examining what poverty is, and what is it’s impact
- A mapping exercise to identify examples of social outreach already present
- Identifying the most pressing needs and ways to respond in line with Catholic Social Teaching
This workshop is suitable for small parish groups or wider pastoral areas so if you would like to find out more or book a session, please contact us at [email protected]
