Caritas Internationalis | International Mandate in the Postwar Years
International Mandate in the Postwar Years
World War II cut short the activities of Caritas Catholica, although most of the relief organizations that composed its membership were able to continue operations. The war years also saw the creation of a number of new national organizations, such as the Secretariado Nacional de Caridad, created in Spain in 1942, and Catholic Relief Services, formed in the United States in 1943. The immediate postwar period saw the emergence of a number of new nationally sanctioned relief organizations, such as the Secours Catholique, formed in France in 1946, and Secours Internationale de Caritas Catholica, formed in Belgium in 1948.
Caritas Catholica had to wait until 1947 until the Vatican gave its approval for the reformation of the organization. Caritas organized two conferences in Lucerne that year, to coordinate the massive relief effort needed in the face of the war's devastation. In order to formalize the conference's task of overseeing a now-global relief effort, the Vatican endowed Caritas with its endorsement as its official relief representative in its international capacity. This meant also that Caritas became the Vatican's official relief and development aid organization in contact with the United Nations.
In 1950, the Vatican sponsored a study week under the guidance of Vatican Secretariat of State Msgr Montini, the future Pope Paul VI, to discuss the concerns of coordinating international relief and aid services among Catholic organizations. Once again, the meeting was attended by delegates from 22 countries. The result of the meeting was the decision to establish a central internationally focused organization for the Church's relief efforts.
By the end of 1951, the structure for the new organization was in place, and in December 1951, the new Caritas held its first general assembly. The founding members of Caritas included Germany, Austria, Belgium, the United States, Canada, Switzerland, The Netherlands, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain, Denmark, and Portugal.
The creation of a single, centralized coordinating organization launched the start of Caritas's global expansion. Over the next decade, new Caritas member operations were either established or added throughout the world—by the beginning of the 21st century, the conference boasted operations in more than 200 countries and territories throughout the world. To underscore its extensive geographic reach, Caritas adopted the new name of Caritas Internationalis in 1957.