Volunteers to bring Christmas to the streets of Chile

Santiago, Chile, Dec 16, 2004 / 22:00 pm

As part of an outreach called, “Let’s evangelize the heart of the city,” thousands of volunteers, mostly young people, will participate in a campaign to bring Christmas cheer to the poor and the homeless.

Participants in the outreach, including students and professors, will walk the streets, subway stations, public squares and bridges in Chile’s capital of Santiago to reach out to those who are poor and homeless.  

According to Father Andres Moro, Head of Campus Ministry, “not only students, but also administrators, teachers and the entire community of higher education in Santiago” are enthused with the project.” He said it was a great opportunity for students “to look beyond their campuses and schools and understand the reality of the city, which needs to be evangelized.”

“Christmas on the Streets 2004 will allow us to reach out the poorest of the poor,” Father Moro added.  He emphasized that “when we speak of this encounter with the poorest of the poor we are not only talking about those who are economically poor, but also those who do not have material needs but, for various reasons, live this season without the most profound meaning of Christmas, which is the encounter with Christ.”

“Christmas on the Streets shows us that each person’s time is a beautiful gift.  It reminds us that we don’t need big gifts or flashy displays,” Father Moro added.