The Brotherhood of Santa Caridad calls for intensifying solidarity at Christmas due to increased vulnerability in Castile-La Mancha

The nativity scene, made life-size and crocheted by 42 women from the Toledo Women’s Knitting Association, can be visited until January 5, every day from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 2 p.m. Educational centers and parishes that wish to make group visits can arrange them through the Cáritas Diocesana de Toledo by calling 925 22 46 00. Entrance benefits from a symbolic donation of 1 eurowhich also allows you to participate in the raffle of several lots of school supplies.

The nursery was blessed by José Luis Martín Fernández Marcote, episcopal delegate of the diocesan Caritas and the inauguration ceremony took place in the presence of the president of the surveyors’ associations, Javier Jiménez, the director of the diocesan Caritas, José Luis González, the secretary general of CaritasMonica Morenothe advisors for Culture and Economic Promotion and Employment, Ana Pérez And Juan Marinrespectively and the steward of the deceased of the Brotherhood of Santa CaridadFernando Redondo and the Mater Project manager, Therese Sanchez.

The president of the Official College of Surveyors, Technical Architects and Building Engineers of Toledo, Javier Jiménez, stood out during the inauguration “the deep human dimension of this crèche which combines creativity, tradition and solidarity”. “For our School, it is an honor to open, for another year, our doors to an initiative that demonstrates how social commitment can be woven, literally, with the hands and hearts of so many women,” she said.

For her part, the manager of the Mater project, Teresa Sánchez, thanked the School for this initiative, to the “Tejiendo Toledo” women’s association for “making things easier” and to Archbishop Francisco Cerro, “for allowing us to exhibit it in this exhibition hall.”

Foessa Report

Its opening comes in a context marked by the increase in social fragility in Castile-La Mancha, as indicated in the Foessa 2025 report.which places almost 30% of the population in a vulnerable situation and warns that one in six households faces serious difficulties in meeting basic needs such as food, housing or supplies.

In this context, the presence of the Brotherhood of Santa Caridad acquires a fully symbolic value. Founded in 1085 and considered the oldest brotherhood in Spain, “it maintains a mission that spans centuries and continues to focus on service to the poor, on helping as a moral duty and on a conception of charity directly linked to the Gospel.

Fernando Redondo underlines the need to strengthen gestures of commitment during these dates and recalls that “Christmas is always a call to God’s tendernessbut this year it is also an ethical emergency.” »Thousands of families in Castilla-La Mancha are going through situations of enormous fragility. The Foessa 2025 report reminds us that exclusion is not a statisticbut the face of specific people. This is why, from the Brotherhood of Santa Caridad, we invite all residents of Toledo to intensify their solidarity, because every gesture counts and every help transforms life,” says Redondo.

The steward of the deceased insists that the mission of the institution “remains alive to the extent that it remains close to those who suffer the most.” Let us remember that “Holy Charity was born to serve the poor, the forgotten, those who had no one to take care of them”. » So today, more than nine centuries later, this mission remains intact. This is why we are joining the Caritas Christmas campaign again, because charity is not a complement, but the deepest identity of the Church,” says Redondo.

“Creativity put at the service of the common good”

The Brotherhood emphasizes that the Christmas Campaign of the Caritas Diocesana of Toledo constitutes this year an opportunity to “mobilize citizens with concrete gestures” which can materialize through donations, food deliveries, economic collaboration with Caritas, responsible consumption and participation in solidarity initiatives that are developing in parishes, brotherhoods and Christian communities. The opening of the crèche at the College of Surveyors, indicates the institution, also strengthens the “value of associative work and creativity put at the service of the common good”, while showing Toledo’s ability to transform tradition into a true engine of hope.

The Brotherhood of Holy Charity concludes that Christmas cannot be reduced to a “one-off feeling” and that it must translate into a “sustained commitment to those who live in situations of suffering, exclusion or precariousness”. In this sense, Redondo affirms that the real reason for these dates is to “give life to charity and transform good wishes into actions that support and give dignity to the most vulnerable people. »

The steward of the deceased warns that the Foessa 2025 Report constitutes a reminder that society cannot ignore since it highlights that Inequalities are worsening, exclusion is intensifying and thousands of families are caught in an already structural spiral of poverty.. “This diagnosis calls upon public institutions, social entities, businesses, parishes, brotherhoods and citizens, and defends that the response must be common, courageous and persevering,” emphasizes Redondo, who recalls that “charity is love in action, active commitment and social justice, as well as a look capable of recognizing in each person the dignity they deserve.”

Finally, the steward of the deceased invites this Christmas to be a time of “true closeness, concrete generosity and shared hope” and concludes that only in this way “Christmas will be authentic, and only in this way will the light of the Crib truly illuminate those who most need to be embraced by the tenderness of God.”