Maria “Chin” Nobleza (right) speaks to master of ceremonies Portia Young during the annual Archbishop’s Reception for Catholic Relief Services on Sept. 9 at the Wisconsin Club in Milwaukee. Nobleza is the head of programming for CRS in the Philippines. (Photo by Greta Taxis)

The Gospel of Matthew 25:35-36 reads: “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.”

If each sentiment is taken in isolation, none make much sense — hence the disciples’ confusion when Christ spoke these words 2,000 years ago.

But put together, those words make a difference. Together, they take the shape of a mandate for every person who would call himself a follower of Jesus Christ.

The theme of the annual Archbishop’s Reception for Catholic Relief Services, held Monday, Sept. 9, at the Wisconsin Club in Milwaukee, was “Together, We Can Make a Difference.” The event is an annual opportunity for supporters of CRS to showcase the work of the organization and spread its message of hope, service and the dignity of all people.

It’s a message that has never been more imperative, said Archbishop Jerome E. Listecki in his remarks that evening.

“The need (for relief) is now more prevalent today than it has ever been,” said the archbishop, referring to ongoing humanitarian crises in Ukraine, Gaza, South Sudan and elsewhere.

“This is a fraught time within our world,” acknowledged Portia Young, who returned for the third year as the reception’s master of ceremonies. “In Ukraine, there are nearly 20 million people that require humanitarian assistance. Right now (in) Gaza, 90 percent of the population has been displaced and 96 percent of them are facing crisis levels of hunger.”

But amidst the darkness of these crises, said Young, CRS is “the beacon that is there.”

CRS was founded during World War II by the United States bishops to aid refugees, migrants and survivors of the devastation of that conflict. Today, the organization has a presence in 121 countries around the world and works with 1,735 global partners to impact the lives of more than 200 million individuals through programs that focus on agriculture, emergency response, health, water and sanitation, education and more.

Bringing the perspective of CRS workers who minister directly to those people in need were the evening’s keynote speakers, Maria “Chin” Nobleza and Geraldine Carolan.

Nobleza is the head of programming for Catholic Relief Services in the Philippines, overseeing all CRS projects in the country. Since 2012, she has held several different positions with CRS, leading programs on agriculture, livelihoods, disaster risk reduction, youth programming and emergency response.

Carolan, a resident of Peachtree City, Georgia, is a longtime supporter of CRS, having served on the CRS Foundation board of directors previously and currently as the vice chair of the CRS governing board.

The Philippines, said Nobleza, is a “land of smiles, of hospitality” whose people have had to be resilient in the face of persistent natural disasters. It was in 2013 that Typhoon Haiyan devastated the country, claiming the lives of 6,000 and impacting the lives of 14 million people.

Nobleza had only been on the job for six months at that time. “The day after the typhoon hit, myself and some of the colleagues in CRS and the Catholic Church partners went into the field. It was very, very challenging field work, to reach the landslide-affected areas. We passed through a lot of debris … then on the side, we could see dead bodies, people walking and crying, looking for their families.”

It made her realize this was the work she was being called to do. “Immediately after that, 48 hours after, we were able to provide support to these families, provide them with temporary shelters, food, hygiene kits and the like,” she said. “And we stayed in this community for the next three years just to rebuild, for them to recover … fast forward eight years, we experienced the same super-typhoon.”

But because of the work that had been done, including the building of houses more resistant to the impact of natural disasters, only 400 lives were lost in 2021’s Typhoon Rai.

“But still the need is great,” said Nobleza.

Carolan shared a similar scenario that she experienced on a tour with CRS in earthquake-affected Nepal several years ago.

Despite great amounts of international aid money coming in from various organizations, “still some people were left behind” in the country

“And as you can imagine, most of the people that were left behind … were marginalized (populations),” said Carolan. “They were older people, they were people who didn’t have technology, so they could sign up for some of these programs. And so, CRS went in with the local partners and started designing homes that would prove to be earthquake resistant.”

The CRS model was so effective the Nepalese government adopted and replicated it elsewhere in the country, said Carolan.

Just like the words of Matthew 25:35, in isolation, these examples are beautiful stories — shining examples, even, of effective humanitarian efforts.

But together, they become something different. Together, they take the shape of hope for a war-torn, broken world where so many of God’s children represent the naked, hungry, disenfranchised Christ of Matthew 25:35.

“All of us should take heed when we hear … ‘When you did for the least of my brothers and sisters, you did it for me,’” said Archbishop Listecki. “That’s a mandate … and our charity is required to go beyond the bounds of our provincialism. Certainly, we need to recognize those brothers and sisters (in our communities) who have need. But we can’t stop at that. That cannot be the parameters of our generosity or the parameters of what is required from us. We live in a world, and we are all children of God and our Lord Jesus Christ.”

To learn more about the work being done by Catholic Relief Services in areas in need all over the world, visit crs.org.