This week Archbishop Victor Sanchez Espinoza of Puebla in Mexico City denounced those who “profit from poverty,” emphasizing the suffering that poverty causes.  He also called on society to “watch over the poor,” as “charity is the greatest act humanity can make.”

“Poverty is a situation that harms everyone, and all sectors should work and strive to combat it, including the State, the private sector and the Church. This phenomenon must be combated jointly,” the archbishop said.

Asked about the failure of social policies, Archbishop Sanchez Espinoza said he did not have all the facts about the extent of such failures but that “if these social programs have not been efficient, they need to be restructured.”