In ShareLife, we live the Gospel value to love thy neighbour

We are called to support many charitable causes within the Church — the offertory of our parish, special collections, mission appeals, church renovations — as well as requests from charities outside of our faith.  As an archdiocese, we also have an annual appeal called ShareLife, where we invite our parish communities to support the charitable outreach of the Catholic Church. While parishioners contribute to this appeal each year, there are many who are not aware of what ShareLife supports or the importance of contributing to this collection.

In 1976, Archbishop Philip Pocock made a courageous decision that changed the way Catholics supported the charitable activity of the Church. As a result of a decision made to fund Planned Parenthood, His Grace announced that the Archdiocese of Toronto was withdrawing the Catholic agencies from the annual United Way campaign. I sometimes comment that if this decision was made today it might gather a mention at the end of a newscast on television or radio and possibly be found in small article in the newspaper. When the archbishop made this announcement on March 19, 1976, it was front page news and the top story on television and radio newscasts for days as people spoke for and against the decision that the Church had made.

At the time, the Archdiocese of Toronto held an annual appeal called Share Lent to support St. Augustine’s Seminary and Development and Peace. After review, it was determined that this appeal could also support the Catholic social service agencies and on Sept. 17, 1976, Archbishop Pocock issued a Pastoral letter called For Which We Stand where he announced the creation of the ShareLife appeal in the archdiocese. In his letter, His Grace noted that the purpose of this appeal was to “re-affirm then Church’s traditional concern for the poor, the under-privileged, the sick and the infirm. It is a community work of organized charity in our Toronto Church which reaches as far back as 1850. Our roots of service in the community are that deeply entrenched.”’ 

Why ShareLife?

As a faith community, we want to know that our charitable donations are making an impact that is aligned with the values that we hold as Catholics. When we contribute to the ShareLife appeal, we are providing for the mission work of the Church and helping to bring the hands of Christ to those in need. Making a gift to ShareLife is more than a financial transaction — it is how we live the Gospel value to love one another as I have loved you. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus asks who was the neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers, and when told it was the one who had mercy on him, Jesus replied “Go and do likewise.” We are called to be there for those in need, to extend our hands to those who require support, who we see (and cannot see) that are turning to our faith-based agencies for help. By supporting ShareLife we are answering the call of Our Lord to show mercy to those who seek help from the work of the Church.  

ShareLife funded social service agencies offer programs for those seeking counselling, people with special needs, the elderly, immigrants and refugees, children and youth. Our agencies also provide for the education of our clergy, hospital chaplaincy programs, support for young mothers and their babies and the evangelization of our faith in the developing world. More recently, support for ShareLife has made it possible for over 30 parishes and community organizations to provide food and meal programs at a time when food bank usage is at record levels. In this special section, there is a story from a woman who was helped by Rosalie Hall at a critical time in her life, and today she supports our annual appeal in the hope that someone will be helped like she was many years back.  

This is one of many examples of how our support for ShareLife has made an impact — the man who has overcome addictions and rebuilt his life, the refugee family who fled persecution because of their faith to be welcomed to Canada by a parish community, the family learning to support their deaf child — all this and more made possible as a result of our generosity toward ShareLife.  

The Archdiocese of Toronto provides many ways to put our faith into action, one of these being the annual ShareLife appeal. As you think about how you want to bring your Catholic values to life through your charitable contributions, consider making a donation to ShareLife. A gift to ShareLife is more than a financial transaction — it is one of the ways that we answer the call of Jesus to be there for people who need our help. By supporting our annual appeal, Catholics in Toronto are continuing the promise that Archbishop Pocock made 50 years ago to care for our brothers and sisters in Christ, something that we have been doing as a faith community for almost two centuries.