The Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and Caritas Internationalis joined forces this week to address the impact of an “unjust global system” that makes rich nations wealthier at the expense of poorer nations.

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The two Catholic organizations hosted an online “town hall” event on Wednesday titled “Pilgrims of Hope: Jubilee Inspiration for Action on Debt, Climate, and Development” to raise awareness of Pope Francis’ and Pope Leo XIV’s visions for dismantling economic structures impoverishing both people and the planet.  

Guest panelist Sister Alessandra Smerilli, an economist and secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, insisted that the “commercial imbalance” between global north and global south nations is a two-pronged issue that should not be ignored by the Church and wider society.

“The poorest countries are paying twice,” Smerilli said at the May 28 webinar. “Through debt obligations and again through environmental degradation and loss of futures.”

“Addressing debt and sustainability is not just a financial issue [but] it has a moral, spiritual imperative,” she added. “The Catholic Church has long been engaged in this mission since the Jubilee Year of 2000 to today’s Jubilee of Hope.”

More than 200 people attended the virtual meeting, which brought together Vatican officials, international economic experts, religious leaders, and civil society representatives to discuss potential solutions to the debt crisis affecting 3.3 billion people living in developing nations.

During the hourlong online meeting, Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, said the Church’s holy year dedicated to hope is an opportunity for global solidarity to support the world’s poor.

“The concept of ‘jubilee’ is deeply rooted in Scripture as a time of restoration when debts are forgiven and relationships are reconciled,” Caccia explained. “In our time, this tradition speaks directly to the lived experience of millions across the globe.”

More than 50 nations are currently in or at high risk of bankruptcy and around half of the world’s population are living in countries where debt payments exceed spending on services such as health care and education, the Holy See representative highlighted during the Wednesday meeting.    

Describing the current debt crisis as a “profound failure of our global economic system,” Caccia expressed hope for a “renewed vision of multilateralism” at the United Nations’ upcoming fourth International Conference on Financing for Development to take place from June 30 to July 5 in Seville, Spain.

“No one is exempted from striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable,” Caccia said, quoting Pope Leo’s May 16 speech to diplomats accredited to the Holy See.

“Together we can turn the jubilee vision of hope into a tangible action, ensuring that no one is left behind,” he shared with webinar participants.

To open the 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope, Pope Francis made a plea in his papal bull Spes Non Confundit for more affluent nations to “forgive the debts of countries that will never be able to repay them.”

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This article was originally published by CNA.