SB3 Cluster Assembly February 2023

“Metanoia: A Change of Heart”

OBJECTIVES

1. For the members to appreciate our Mission in CFC of

“Building the Church of the Poor”.
2. To live out our faith by committing to this great work by
raising the dignity of themselves and others.

DYNAMICS

1. Have the group activity “You cannot pour from an empty

cup”
2. Listen to the talk: “Building the Church of the Poor”

ACTIVITY

Needs: 6pcs 1.5 Coke Bottles, 6 Pails, Prices good for 12-15
people

1. Form 6 groups and form a line.

2. Each group will be given a bottle with different holes in it.
3. The objective of the game is to fill a container within a
time frame.
4. Group with most filled container wins.

EXPANDED TALK OUTLINE

1. Guide Question: “Do you understand our mission in CFC

and YFC of “Building The Church of the Poor”? How can you
help in this great mission of our community?”
2. Anchor Verse:
 a. Luke 6:20-21
“Looking at his disciples, he said: ‘Blessed are you who are
poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you
who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you
who weep now, for you will laugh.’”
3. Introduction
a. We are all equal in God’s eyes. The community has been
blessed by God through the years. From renewing the
family to evangelizing the youth, God has shown us how
he loved us and how we express our love to him.
b. As we push through in our life as YFC’s, we are faced with
the reality that there are people who are still in need of a
helping hand. People who are still struggling to survive the
ever changing world.
c. The Church believes that all of Creation is a gift given
equally to all of humanity to be shared in such a way that
every person has the necessary resources to live a life that
reflects their dignity – this includes not just material
basics but also opportunities to fulfill ones potential.
d. It is the right of every human to be treated in accordance
with their innate dignity and society ought to be ordered
towards that good. Socio-economic structures which put
and keep people in poverty and disadvantage therefore are
inherently unjust and require change.
e. It is our mission as YFC to bring God’s love to those who
need them! We must put into our hearts the mission given
to us as YFCs “Young people being and bringing Christ
wherever they are.”
4. Who are the poor and needy?
a. The Homeless and the Outsiders or The Forgotten
It is the basic right of every human being to be in a place
where they can feel safe and accepted. It is everyone’s
 right to have a home where they are shielded from the
forces of nature. Yet, in the reality of life, not everyone is
given a chance to have a roof over their heads. This also
counts people who do not feel safe at their own homes,
who have felt outed and rejected at their places of
dwelling. There are people who, not only don’t have
homes, but no family or people that they can call their
own. They are those who are shunned and rejected by
society for being unconventional or being different.
b. The Hungry
Food is a basic necessity. It is what gives nourishment to
the body to strengthen us in our daily activities. Yet in our
world, hunger is still a predominant problem. Not
everyone has access to food, some even to clean water.
There are also those who are spiritually hungry, those who
do not receive nourishment from the church, and those
who do not receive the right to be strengthened by the
faith.
c. The Orphans and the Oppressed
To "oppress" someone means to keep them in
subservience and hardship, especially through the unjust
exercise of authority. They are the people who are
frequently subjected to social injustices, people who are
powerless to resist and must accept the treatment they
receive. Oppression is harmful wherever and whenever it
occurs, but it can be especially difficult to deal with when
we are constantly bombarded with stories of violence,
discrimination, social justice violations, and suffering on
social media and in the news. Harsh actions, such as
cheating people, denying them services, or speaking
rudely to them, are more obvious signs of oppression.
 However, there are also subtle oppressions, such as being
ignored or disregarded.
The abandoned orphans are in need of love and help.
These children are experience hardships as when they are
not in places that protect them; they are oppressed and
taken advantage of. Having no parents or parent figures is
traumatic and may make the child mature faster. Every
child deserves to play and to be a kid.
d. The Afflicted and Suffering
i. Suffering from physical sickness
People, who are bedridden, those who are unable to
help themselves in order to survive.
ii. Those suffering from mental health illness
These are people who have succumbed to the pain of
their poor mental health. People who are in need of
support and love as sometimes they find it hard to love
themselves.
iii. They are the people who are sick or those who are
suffering from their disabilities.
People who are incapacitated to be able to live for
themselves or to support themselves or their families.
5. Building God’s church
a. Recognizing them as equals
i. We are all equal in the eyes of God. When we share we
ought to give our best, not just in our attitudes, but
also in the things that we offer to them.
ii. Giving them our best makes them feel special and
would somehow raise their dignity.
iii. We must desire a bright future for them. We must
wish that they also enjoy the blessings that we have like
a good education and a life with God. We must dream
with them and for them.
b. Know their needs and be one with them
i. How we love the poor is a clear indicator of how we
understand God’s love for us. Too often, in
misunderstanding God’s love we make the poor the
object of our charity, the front cover of our programs,
the focus of our grant requests, or the target audience
to fill our seats. We make them listen to sermons before
we feed them, ask them to join the church before we
clothe them. We use them as objects instead of people
loved through us. God is love, and by being endowed in
his image, as they are, we ought to love them for who
they are in God’s kingdom here on earth. It is important
to do this because Jesus loved them enough to die on
the cross for them.
c. Be their voice
i. Engage with members of the community in the
identification of the root causes of poverty and
strategies for overcoming them; be a voice with the poor.
ii. Promote positive legislations, policies, and systems that
affect the poor, recommend actions on such issues or
on potential new opportunities that will benefit the
poor. We have means of spreading awareness to
different platforms and avenues; a simple share is a
click away to a better life for someone, an inspiration
post can be cringe but can also be uplifting, or voicing
out dissatisfaction will ultimately create awareness.
iii. Support community efforts and other advocacy
groups or organizations working to eliminate the causes
of systemic poverty, as long as the approach is
consistent with the teachings of the Catholic Church.
6. Conclusion
a. The Gospel, as we grow in its knowledge, is always calling
us to see the world from the perspective of the poor,
forgotten, marginalized and outcast and to be like Jesus in
accompanying them, being in true relationship with them
and working for a kingdom where the poor come first.
b. The ways our church, our community, serves and loves
the poor are not exhaustive. There is one gospel of Jesus
Christ, but there is no one way to love our neighbors.
c. We are reminded time and again in Scripture that God is
on the side of the poor, not because they are superior, but
because poverty is an affront to God’s design for us and he
stands with and wants justice for those whom the world
has discarded and diminished in such a way.
d. The CFC-YFC Advocacy promotes positive, progressive,
life-altering change that produces good fruit. Let us,
followers of Jesus Christ, be the catalyst for facilitating
this change by loving, advocating for, educating, and
sharing with the poor of this world.
7. Guide Question:
a. “Are you willing to open your heart completely to the poor
and the needy?”
b. Do you understand our mission in CFC and YFC of
“Building The Church of the Poor”? How can you help in
this great mission of our community?