NEWS & VIEWS
from a CATHOLIC perspective

      UBERABA, Brazil (CWNews.com) - The Archdiocese of Uberaba in southern Brazil decided this week to donate a large urban property to help sixty homeless families.

      Archbishop Aloisio Roque Oppermann signed an agreement with a Brazilian construction company, the homeless families, and representatives from the local government, according to which the archdiocese will provide the land while the city council will help the families with low-rate loans to pay for the construction of the new neighborhood.

      The archdiocese has donated an urban property of 260,000 square feet, located in the a densely populated area, which is valued at "several hundred thousand dollars," according to a city council spokesman. Archbishop Oppermann said the families have agreed to build a "model community" with several common facilities, including a chapel, a health care center, a soccer field, a community hall, and offices for the neighborhood council.

      One of the new owners said to the press that "we are very happy with this gift and we really appreciate what our Catholic Church is doing for us. Our pastors understand our sufferings and try to help us spiritually and materially too." Officials in Uberaba said the Church's decision "has helped defuse a social problem," since the families were recently displaced from public property where they tried to build a shantytown.