A leading Catholic philanthropic organization, FADICA — Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities — has released a report citing some of the most innovative and successful programs around the world helping to confront the global refugee crisis.
We are pleased and proud to report that one of CNEWA’s programs — the Mother of Mercy Clinic, run by the Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena and CNEWA in Zerqa, Jordan — was cited.
As we described the clinic’s work in ONE magazine several years ago:
Established in 1982, Mother of Mercy Clinic offers a wide range of general heath care services to thousands of patients…regardless of creed or origin. The clinic, however, specializes in prenatal and postnatal care, giving priority to needy mothers and their infants.
As the clinic’s head doctor, Dr. Ghabeish has treated mothers and infants for years. “People like to come here because they know they will get quality service, that they will be treated in a clean environment run by good administrators,” said the 59-year-old doctor, a Palestinian refugee.
Though only 20 miles northeast of Amman — the increasingly cosmopolitan capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan — Zerqa struggles with a multitude of problems: escalating crime rates, insufficient housing, inadequate infrastructure, pollution and poverty.
…“Zerqa’s Christians provide essential social services, such as education, health care, job training and social assistance,” added Ra’ed Bahou, CNEWA’s regional director for Jordan and Iraq. “Christians may be a tiny minority, but their reach is significant.”
FADICA partnered with the Center for Social Innovation at Boston College to put together the report, which identified 64 “innovative and solutions-oriented Catholic ministries globally that are accompanying and aiding refugees and migrants.”
The report went on to describe the “social innovation” of this and other successful programs:
Through the Catholic Social Innovation initiative, FADICA has identified Catholic models, approaches and organizations that are responding to the global refugee crisis by putting their faith into action and harnessing innovation.
Catholic social innovation is not new; Catholic priests, brothers, sisters and lay people have been doing this work for centuries, but often under the radar. This study attempts to change that by spotlighting Catholic innovators and innovations. It also illustrates how Catholic social teaching (sometimes called ones of the church’s “best kept secrets”) informs and inspires innovation in Catholic ministries and organizations.
You can read more in the full report at FADICA’s website.
For more on the work of the Dominican Sisters in Jordan, read Finding Sanctuary in Jordan, Overwhelming Mercy and Mothering Mercy In ONE magazine.
We are grateful to FADICA for recognizing the vital and invaluable work of the Dominican Sisters — and we are grateful, especially, to our donors who have made this sort of work possible and successful.
Want to learn how to support these and other programs in Jordan? Visit this page.