Pope calls for greater effort to reduce poverty

Published: 2007-10-17

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The extreme poverty in which millions of the world's people live is an offense to their human dignity, Pope Benedict XVI said at his weekly general audience. The pope marked the U.N.'s International Day for the Eradication of Poverty Oct. 17, just moments before he announced the names of the 23 churchmen he would induct into the College of Cardinals Nov. 24. Focusing on the problem of poverty, the pope said, "The disparity between rich and poor is becoming more evident and disturbing, even within the most economically advanced nations." According to the United Nations, 980 million people live in "extreme poverty," struggling to survive on less than $1 per day. "This worrying situation calls on the conscience of humanity because the condition in which a great number of people live offends the dignity of the human person and consequently compromises the authentic and harmonious progress of the world community," Pope Benedict told the estimated 30,000 people at his general audience.

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