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Cardinal Backs Charity’s Scottish Expansion
- By SCMO
- Published 8/05/2009
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Friday 8 May 2009
Cardinal Backs Charity’s Scottish Expansion
Cardinal Keith O’Brien is set to announce that a leading Catholic charity will open an Scottish office to expand its work for persecuted and oppressed Christians around the world.
At a Mass to be celebrated in his cathedral on Monday 11 May he will unveil plans for "Aid to the Church in Need" (ACN) to open an office this summer in Motherwell. ACN, which supports at least 5,000 projects per year in more than 130 countries, supporting persecuted Christians and the Catholic Church overseas.
The move to establish an office in Scotland represents one of the most important milestones in the charity's 35 year history.
The Cardinal will say in his homily: “The Bishops of Scotland have readily agreed to the opening of an office in Scotland for Aid to the Church in Need enabling it to more effectively fulfil its mission to the suffering Church throughout the world.”
Cardinal O'Brien will describe the new office development as “good news” for Scottish Catholics and suffering Christians, adding: “ACN has had the encouragement of the bishops of Scotland over the years.As Aid to the Church in Need would readily acknowledge, the compassion of the Scottish Catholics has been quite outstanding.”
Neville Kyrke-Smith, UK Director of ACN, explained that the office, in the Dalziel Building, Scott Street, close to Motherwell’s Cathedral of Our Lady of Good Aid, will become “the hub” of ACN Scottish activity, as "the main point of contact between Scottish benefactors and those they are helping”,
Mr Kyrke-Smith said the initiative would “bring the reality of the suffering Church closer to the people of Scotland who in the past suffered so much for their faith”.
A Scottish administrator will be appointed to co-ordinate events, meetings and other gatherings as well as encourage support and prayer for the charity’s work.
ENDS
Peter Kearney
Director
Catholic Media Office
5 St. Vincent Place
Glasgow
G1 2DH
0141 221 1168
07968 122291
pk@scmo.org
www.scmo.org
NOTES TO EDITORS:
You are welcome to send along a reporter and/or a photographer to the ACN Edinburgh Event at St Mary’s Cathedral, Broughton Street, on Monday, 11th May begins at 7pm with Mass celebrated by Cardinal Keith O’Brien of St Andrews and Edinburgh, who will preach. Talks in the cathedral hall follow with presentations by Lebanese priest Fr Samer Nassif on the Middle East and ACN UK Head of Press and Information John Pontifex providing an eye-witness account of anti-Christian persecution in Orissa, India.
Thanks to increasing benefactor support, ACN UK has been able to increase its aid payments from about £1 million in 1991 to £4.2 million last year.
For more information, please contact:
John Pontifex,
ACN UK Head of Press and Information
020 8661 5161
07815591427
www.acnuk.org
Cardinal Backs Charity’s Scottish Expansion
Cardinal Keith O’Brien is set to announce that a leading Catholic charity will open an Scottish office to expand its work for persecuted and oppressed Christians around the world.
At a Mass to be celebrated in his cathedral on Monday 11 May he will unveil plans for "Aid to the Church in Need" (ACN) to open an office this summer in Motherwell. ACN, which supports at least 5,000 projects per year in more than 130 countries, supporting persecuted Christians and the Catholic Church overseas.
The move to establish an office in Scotland represents one of the most important milestones in the charity's 35 year history.
The Cardinal will say in his homily: “The Bishops of Scotland have readily agreed to the opening of an office in Scotland for Aid to the Church in Need enabling it to more effectively fulfil its mission to the suffering Church throughout the world.”
Cardinal O'Brien will describe the new office development as “good news” for Scottish Catholics and suffering Christians, adding: “ACN has had the encouragement of the bishops of Scotland over the years.As Aid to the Church in Need would readily acknowledge, the compassion of the Scottish Catholics has been quite outstanding.”
Neville Kyrke-Smith, UK Director of ACN, explained that the office, in the Dalziel Building, Scott Street, close to Motherwell’s Cathedral of Our Lady of Good Aid, will become “the hub” of ACN Scottish activity, as "the main point of contact between Scottish benefactors and those they are helping”,
Mr Kyrke-Smith said the initiative would “bring the reality of the suffering Church closer to the people of Scotland who in the past suffered so much for their faith”.
A Scottish administrator will be appointed to co-ordinate events, meetings and other gatherings as well as encourage support and prayer for the charity’s work.
ENDS
Peter Kearney
Director
Catholic Media Office
5 St. Vincent Place
Glasgow
G1 2DH
0141 221 1168
07968 122291
pk@scmo.org
www.scmo.org
NOTES TO EDITORS:
You are welcome to send along a reporter and/or a photographer to the ACN Edinburgh Event at St Mary’s Cathedral, Broughton Street, on Monday, 11th May begins at 7pm with Mass celebrated by Cardinal Keith O’Brien of St Andrews and Edinburgh, who will preach. Talks in the cathedral hall follow with presentations by Lebanese priest Fr Samer Nassif on the Middle East and ACN UK Head of Press and Information John Pontifex providing an eye-witness account of anti-Christian persecution in Orissa, India.
Thanks to increasing benefactor support, ACN UK has been able to increase its aid payments from about £1 million in 1991 to £4.2 million last year.
For more information, please contact:
John Pontifex,
ACN UK Head of Press and Information
020 8661 5161
07815591427
www.acnuk.org