WUCWO leaders lived a genuine synodal Board Meeting in Rome 

Dear friends,

With great joy I address this message to you after spending five intense and fruitful weeks of work in Rome. At the end of May, we successfully celebrated WUCWO’s 2024 in person Board meeting, with most of our Board members. We also had the presence of our International Representatives and the newly appointed members to the Board from Caritas Internationalis and the International Union of Superiors General (UISG).

"Mary arose and went with haste" (Lk 1:39) 

WUCWO 2024 Day

Dear friends of WUCWO:

We have just entered a very beautiful month, the month of May, especially dedicated to the Virgin Mary. It also coincides with the celebration of WUCWO Day on the 13th, the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. Finally, in many countries around the world, Mother's Day, so important and endearing to everyone, is celebrated this month. So many things to celebrate and be thankful for in May!

WUCWO Day reminds us that we are not alone, for we are part of a great universal network of prayer, joint actions and solidary support in which Catholic women around the world come together for training, sharing good practices, helping each other and working to transform the world, bringing to all mankind God’s Word and love.  This network, which extends to all corners of the world where our more than 100 organisations representing more than 8 million women, undoubtedly counts with the Lord's loving hand and Mary's infinite embrace.

That the dignity and worth of women be recognized in every culture… that discrimination ends. (Pope Francis)

For the role of women: Holy Father's Prayer Intention for the month of April

Dear friends,

This month, Pope Francis has invited us to pray “for the role of women” a gift that we cannot miss at WUCWO, joining our voices in prayer on a topic that concerns us all. “Let us not deny women a voice [...] Let us respect women,” the Pope reminds us. This message also calls us women to respect one another, to listen to one another, to marvel at the qualities of our fellow women, to learn from them and, above all, to walk the path of prayer together, praying for one another and always keeping our eyes on those who suffer the most. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMUs5H_pVFU

Accompany the suffering to be reborn and to pass from darkness to the light of hope in the Risen Lord. 

We believe in you, Lord Jesus. We believe that, with you, hope is reborn and the journey continues. 

Dear friends of WUCWO:

The days of the "Easter Triduum" begin; days in which we remember the death and resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We start with the Holy Thursday mass that reminds us of the last supper that Jesus had with his apostles, in which he instituted the Eucharist and the priesthood, as well as the washing of feet with which He taught his disciples and now teaches us how to serve others humbly. Have we learned from Jesus to serve others with humility, putting aside all kinds of protagonism?

Be informed, educated and transformed

Let us be prepared to assume our leadership in a Synodal Church in mission!

How many good things have been happening lately in the Church! especially with the beginning of the synodal process and the journey of the People of God towards a Church of communion, participation and mission that gets us closer to all, especially the most needy and vulnerable. With the Holy Father leading the way, we have placed ourselves more and more in the hands of the Holy Spirit who undoubtedly enlightens us to discover the Lord's plans for this moment in history.

Let us entrust the new year to Mary, the Holy Mother of God. 

Our times, bereft of peace, need a Mother who can reunite the human family. (Pope Francis) 

Dear Friends of WUCWO:

There is no doubt that this new year begins in the midst of conflicts and situations that threaten peace in the world, in communities and in families; but it also starts with a great number of challenges, opportunities to do good things and, for us, women of faith, with many reasons for hope. Therefore, I want to write this message as a welcome to the new year full of light and hope, confident that Mary, our Mother, will be walking beside us day after day, watching over us, encouraging us and interceding so that the Lord grants each one of us the graces we need.

“May the approaching Christmas season strengthen our commitment to open paths of peace”. (Pope Francis) 

Dear friends of WUCWO,

A year is coming to an end and, first of all, we must thank the Lord for the many blessings received. For us in WUCWO, it was an unforgettable experience to have had a private audience with the Pope. The Assembly in Assisi, where the perennial legacy of St. Francis and the light of the Holy Spirit guided us in defining the direction the organisation would take for the next 4 years, was also   wonderful. And what can we say about the Synod on Synodality? Witnessing such a transcendental moment in the life of the Church and the participation of women in it, as well as being able to collaborate in one way or another in the synodal process, will undoubtedly be something to tell future generations.

An urgent call to safeguard the world we inhabit. 

"…with the passage of time, I have realized that our responses have not been adequate, while the world in which we live is collapsing…” Pope Francis (LD 2)

Dear friends:

At the last Assembly in Assisi we adopted, among others, a resolution to work to correct the current global food crisis by promoting responsible consumption and reducing food waste. The resolution itself expresses that WUCWO women should engage in the urgent call to action enunciated in the Encyclical Laudato si' in relation to environmental and climate change issues, promoting ecological conversion.

Let us all join the Ecumenical Prayer Vigil for the forthcoming Synodal Assembly: “Together.” 

“The path to Christian unity and the path of synodal conversion of the Church are linked." Pope Francis

Dear friends of WUCWO,

As many of you will know, an ecumenical prayer vigil will be held on September 30 in St Peter’s Square in Rome to place the members of the Synod and the work of the Assembly in the hands of the Holy Spirit. It will be a historic event presided over by Pope Francis with 12 leaders from other Churches and Christian communities.  Together Christians of all denominations will unite in praise, silence and listening to the Word. That is why this initiative has been called "Together".

“Along with the young people we can boldly embrace the dream of God and blaze trails towards a joyful, generous and transforming participation, for the Church and for humanity”.

(Homily of His Holiness, Jeronimos Monastery, Lisbon, 2 August 2023)

Dear friends:

Now that the XXXVII World Youth Day has just concluded, I want to talk to you about the importance and urgency of working with and for young people. They bring us all their energy and creativity; they help us to be in closer contact with the world and infect us with their joy and enthusiasm. (It is enough to see the hundreds of videos that were circulated on this occasion). We, WUCWO women, can go to their encounter and help them discover the Lord in a world so polarized, violent, unfair and devoid of faith.

FORMATION FOR A MORE GENUINE SYNODAL SPIRITUALITY IS AT THE HEART OF THE RENEWAL OF THE CHURCH (Instrumentum Laboris).  

Dear Friends,

We are living historic moments in the life of the Church. Since Pope Francis announced in 2015 that: "The path of synodality is the path that God expects for the Church in this new millennium", we have sought, with the grace of the Holy Spirit, to get closer and closer to a Church that listens; to a Church of communion, participation and mission.