By Lisa Zengarini
Before his General Audience on Wednesday morning, Pope Francis met with a delegation of the Foyer Notre-Dame des Sans-Abri and of the Association of Friends of Gabriel Rosset, two French Catholic institutions based in Lyon involved in assisting and offering shelter to the homeless.
The Foyer Notre-Dame des Sans-Abri (Shelter of our Lady of the Homeless) was founded in the mid-900s by Gabriel Rosset, a French Catholic layman and teacher who devoted his life to the poor and marginalized.
In 2023 the shelter assisted 8.360 people in need in the southern Rhône Department. The association assisting them numbers today over 1,000 volunteers and 420 employees.
Witnessing God’s closeness, compassion, and tenderness
In his address Pope Francis warmly thanked the group for their ongoing dedication to helping the marginalized which, he said, offers a concrete witness to three qualities of God: “closeness, compassion, and tenderness.”
He recalled that professor Rosset, remembered this year on the fiftieth anniversary of his death, displayed profound compassion by responding to the needs of the “poorest of the poor” with courage and faith, treating each suffering individual as the presence of Christ.
“He heard the cry of the poor and didn’t look the other way nor close his eyes,” the Pope said, remarking that assisting a poor person, is a “sacred act” in the Church, aligning with its mission of mercy.
