This past Sunday, many of us took time to honor that special someone who taught us how to ride our first bicycle, change our first tire, catch our first baseball, and get through life without calling a plumber or asking for directions. Father’s Day was celebrated in 52 countries around the world, from Cuba to Greece to Afghanistan.
The Bible has some important things to say about the value of godly fathers. “A righteous man who walks in his integrity – How blessed are his sons after him.” (Prov. 20:7) Even the Trinity itself is described in terms of a Father-Son relationship.
Sadly, many children have never known a father’s love. Some are orphans, others abandoned, others imprisoned in a home life wrecked by drug and alcohol abuse. The absence of a father figure helps to perpetuate the cycle of poverty in countries where even healthy, intact families struggle to get by. That includes Mozambique, where Cross Catholic is working with a local ministry called Reencontro to provide shelter, food, clothing, health care, and emotional support for AIDS orphans and other vulnerable children.
Thirteen-year-old Alicia came to Reencontro after her father passed away and her family was thrown out on the street. The Catholic-led program gave Alicia’s family a place to stay, saved her little sister Lidia from severe and incapacitating malnutrition, and enrolled Alicia in a Catholic boarding school, where she has learned to trust in her heavenly father to supply all her needs.
“I used to think that I wanted to become a nurse, but now I feel that my vocation is to become a nun,” Alicia said. “So in the future, I want to dedicate my life to the service of the church and to those who suffer.”
Click here to learn more about how Cross Catholic is reaching out to fatherless and vulnerable children.