The “common thread” among the celebrations, especially in 2020, the cardinal said, “is our common home in which the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor are one cry.”

Many parishes lack resources, having not received money in the collection basket because of suspended services.

The preferential option for the poor, which includes feeding the hungry and drawing close to the excluded, “is the key criterion of Christian authenticity,” Pope Francis said Aug. 19 during his weekly general audience.

George M. Anderson, S.J., who died on Aug. 4 at age 86, was for many years the conscience of America magazine, especially in his focus on and commitment to the poor.

"We see with increasing urgency the need for a state intelligently existing and dialoguing with the community to respond to the emergency produced by the pandemic," they said.

In this article from the Dec. 5, 1931, issue of America, J. Desmond Gleeson laments the economic devastation of the Great Depression, noting that it came about without warning.