Pope Leo XIV praised the work of Catholic Charities USA on Monday, encouraging the organization not to be discouraged despite institutional challenges.
In his address to the board of directors during a private audience, the pontiff expressed gratitude for their work with the less fortunate in the United States and noted the current funding difficulties the organization and similar organizations face from the United States government.
"As was the case with the apostles and with the early Church, the proclamation of the Gospel through caring for the poor and for those most in need will always present certain difficulties on both the personal and the institutional levels," Leo said. "I am fully aware that the Catholic Charities agencies in the United States of America are by no means immune from these challenges that continue to manifest themselves in our own day. Yet it is precisely when we are confronted with such obstacles that we must learn to hear Jesus' voice saying to us once again, 'I am with you always!'"
Kerry Robinson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, described the audience with Leo as encouraging for their work in helping disadvantaged people. In a press briefing after the audience, she discussed her organization's recent funding cuts from the U.S. government, citing policy differences on migration and donor skepticism following cases of abuse in the U.S. Catholic Church.
"Agencies that have had decades-long relationships with the USCCB to resettle refugees continue to care for the people in their charge, even in light of across-the-board federal cuts," Robinson told EWTN News. "Catholic Charities USA at the national level is almost entirely privately funded, so we did not see direct cuts. For 20 years, we have been working to usher in a culture of contemporary best practices, accountability, and financial transparency to restore trust in the Church. Because of the hard work of the last two decades, we do not see that crisis negatively affecting Catholic Charities' fundraising today."
During the audience, Robinson gave the pope a book detailing the "People of Hope: Faith-Filled Stories of Neighbors Helping Neighbors" initiative in which a museum of hope, outfitted in a car, will embark on a three-year nationwide tour, encouraging visitors to the car museum to look for ways to help the less fortunate.
Robinson described the initiative as not merely making a difference in one's life but as a cause to "actually end generational cycles of violence and poverty."
