In his message for the Fraternity Campaign in Brazil, held during Lent, Pope Leo XIV calls for a concrete commitment to provide dignified housing for those who do not have it.
By Benedetta Capelli
Lent is a “sacred time,” as Saint Augustine wrote, in which one receives “a special call from God to authentic conversion.”
Pope Leo wrote this in his message dated February 11 for the Fraternity Campaign in Brazil, organized for over 60 years by the local Bishops’ Conference.
This year it is dedicated to those who suffer because they lack dignified housing.
In the text, the Pope recalls that “in this time of intense prayer,” it is necessary to renew commitment to “the poorest and most needy, with whom Christ himself identifies.”
They are, in fact, “the true recipients of our preferential love,” as the Pope emphasized in the Apostolic Exhortation Dilexi te, which calls for addressing the structural causes of poverty.
Dramatic consequences of lack of housing
The theme of the 2026 Fraternity Campaign is inspired by the verse from the Gospel of John, “He came to dwell among us,” and urges people to look at this reality of suffering.
Pope Saint John Paul II described the housing crisis as a “serious problem” that “has negative consequences on the individual, family, and social levels.”
In his Encyclical Letter Sollicitudo rei socialis, he wrote, “The lack of housing is to be considered a sign and summary of a whole series of economic, social, cultural, or simply human shortcomings.”
A constant attitude
Pope Leo’s invitation is that this reflection should inspire not only isolated actions but a true awakening of conscience.
He prayed it may generate in everyone “the awareness that sharing the gifts the Lord generously grants us cannot be limited to a period of the year, to a campaign, or to occasional initiatives, but must be a constant attitude that commits us to encounter Christ present in those who have nowhere to live.”
Housing policies
The Holy Father went on to express his hope that the initiatives born from the Fraternity Campaign will bear lasting fruit, praying, “May they inspire government authorities to promote public policies so that, by working together, it may be possible to offer the most needy populations significant improvements in housing conditions.”
Pope Leo XIV concludes by entrusting this hope to Our Lady of Aparecida, Patroness of Brazil, befoer imparting his blessing to those who work “so that everyone may have dignified housing.”
