Catholics nationwide are being called upon to keep the Catholic Relief Services Collection in mind as they set aside their charitable contributions for March.

“Bring hope to those who do not know how they will survive, who feel alone and no longer believe that anyone cares about them,” Chairman for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on National Collections Bishop James Wall, who heads up the Diocese of Gallup, said in a release. “Although you cannot see the recipients, God does. When you give to this collection you become His instruments of love and mercy.” 

Donations for the Catholic Relief Services Collection will be solicited in many dioceses on March 18 and 19 to aid those who are suffering around the world. The collection may be taken on a different day in certain dioceses, the USCCB said.

The collection finances initiatives for various ministries besides Catholic Relief. These ancillary beneficiaries include the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, the Department of Migration and Refugee Services of the USCCB for the resettlement of refugees, the Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church of the USCCB, which supports the spread of the Gospel and ministry efforts for immigrants and migrant populations in the U.S., as well as many others, according to the USCCB.

The money goes to a diverse set of causes. The bishops’ group listed a few of the objectives that benefited from the 2021 collection. Those included: the resettling of more than 75,000 Afghan refugees in the U.S. with the help of the USCCB's Department of Migration and Refugee Services, bringing Congolese religious leaders to Washington to discuss measures that can bring peace in an effort to end the war, which has claimed 6 million lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the USCCB's Department of International Justice and Peace, and an International Freedom Summit that the USCCB's Department of International Justice and Peace co-sponsored that brought human rights champions from around the world to Washington. 

“Whenever you give, your offering is multiplied by thousands of Catholics, bringing Christ’s love through rescue and relief activities to the most vulnerable and marginalized people on earth,” Wall said.