With the kick-off of the 2020 Archbishop’s Annual Appeal (AAA) “Growing in Faith, Giving in Love”, the Archdiocese of Hartford (AOH) begins anew a uniquely Roman Catholic venture and the continuation of the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ in our time and place—unlike any other Christian Church, non-governmental organization (NGO) or state or federal agency.

Each year the Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford promotes the AAA aimed at raising money to support the many and necessary Catholic Church’s Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy—as well as other non-Catholic non-profits that by their work carries out the actions of Christ. As we begin this annual fundraising event, many people will participate in a uniquely Catholic outreach comprised of charity and hope. Why is it uniquely Catholic? After all, don’t other Churches do this? What about the American Red Cross and other nonprofit agencies?

Certainly good works are not solely the domain of the Catholic Church. There are state and federal social service agencies and there are nonprofits that are both secular and religious that help the poor and the vulnerable. But let’s put this into perspective: The federal and state agencies are government bureaucracies, meaning they are fairly large in size and they cost a great deal of money to operate, and are funded by the power of the state to levy taxes—and they tend to be slow moving due to many regulations and procedures.

FACTS:

The Roman Catholic Church is mostly operated by volunteers and ministries. All the Church’s funding comes by way of volunteer giving—no power to tax—and our efforts to help are not restricted by volumes of regulations or redundant agencies. Additionally, we are not limited by state or national boundaries—we are a universal Church and have expertise that is worldwide as well as tried and tested for more than 2,000 years. The Roman Catholic Church is the largest private entity in the world providing food, shelter, education, healthcare and
more. Our structure is lean and while universal it is specific to a locale and to culture. We know what works best in Africa and what works in America; we know how to distribute food in Haiti as well as in the Sudan, and we know how to work in in Hartford or Boston as well as in Rome or Lima.

Whether you donate $5 or $5000 to the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal, your entire donation goes to the needy. There is little overhead and most of the overhead is provided by the pre-existent Church—the diocese, archdiocese or parish.

Our sole reason for being is to promote the Good News of the Gospel. We proclaim Christ’s mission to feed and care for the homeless, to educate the ignorant, to care for the sick, and to bring Hope to the hopeless. That is our mission that is our ministry.

Since 1997, through the Vicariate Outreach Program, the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal has allocated over $17 million in funding In 2019 for the fourth consecutive year more than $1 million went to 226 community-based local charities throughout Hartford, New Haven and Litchfield Counties to assist them in their important work of serving the needs of God’s people.

It is because of your support of the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal that we can make a difference in the lives of so many.

Thank you for your past support of the AAA—and for your future donations. More to come on the AAA and your works at work here in Connecticut.