In his homily opening the new Liturgical Year, given in the dos Jerónimos monastery in recent days, Cardinal José Policarpo, Patriarch of Lisbon, appealed to Catholics to respond to the present “need for charity” in order to promote a real transformation of society. The Patriarch of Lisbon declared that “the main dysfunctions of society could find an effective solution in respect for the divine commandments. “From God’s commandments – he continued – flow in full the positive values of the family, respect for life, sexuality as the fruit of love, honesty in business transactions and in the management of material goods, the fight against corruption, and truthfulness in all human and social relations”. Cardinal Policarpo forcefully underlined that “obedience of these commandments is not only a religious credo, and that Christian charity must not be merely a pious affirmation, but must signify the making of real choices and the fulfilment of courageous actions that demand from those who have faith the gift of life in favour of God and their neighbour”. Precisely for this reason – he explained – “loving the Lord means transforming the world into the Kingdom of God”.
