EUROPE/SPAIN-Despite the economic crisis the number of people assisted by the Church has increased, especially in the healthcare field

Madrid (Agenzia Fides) - The Vice President for Economic Affairs of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Fernando Giménez Barriocanal, said that "despite the economic crisis", the number of people assisted by the Catholic Church in Spain has increased by 31, 8 percent in 2009, reaching more than 3.6 million people, 881,613 more than last year. The 2009 activity report stated that there are a total of 4,862 health centers of the Church, for a total of 3,646,332 people assisted during that period. "Clearly when there is economic crisis, people know where to go", Barriocanal added talking to the local press, and stressed that "the Church presents herself as the first network of health care for the citizens in Spain".
In detail, it specified that the NGO Manos Unidas and Caritas invested 271.5 billion euros, 41.5 and 230 million respectively, in the care of the people in need, with over one thousand projects in 58 countries. He also highlighted the work of the 17,000 Spanish missionaries who are scattered around the world, including some 12,000 who do their work of evangelization in Latin America. In any case, "we cannot forget that this work of charity and charitable institutions of the Church is a direct consequence of the liturgical and pastoral action".
As indicated in Barriocanal’s presentation, "the priests (18,825), religious men (54 890) and pastoral operators(over 70,000) have spent more than 43 million hours for others". Regarding the activities of the Church, the Vice President for Economic Affairs of the Spanish Episcopal Conference said that while the assessment in economic terms of the Church's contribution to society is "a complex mission," the effort at the pastoral, educational, cultural and social level, "implies a saving of billions of euros to the public coffer." (EC) (Agenzia Fides 17/06/2011)