The Diocese calls for accompanying those suffering unwanted loneliness in October

Topics Diócesis de Málaga

The Diocese of Málaga invites participation in the activities of the Week against Unwanted Loneliness, promoted by the Order of Saint John of God together with other ecclesial and civil organizations during this month of October.

FJCG · Published on October 21, 2026 at 10:14

Image for the story: The Diocese calls for accompanying those suffering unwanted loneliness in October — Photo: Diócesis de Málaga

The Diocese of Málaga has issued a call to priests, religious and laypeople to be attentive to those who live alone and to detect situations of isolation in time. The invitation is part of the Week against Unwanted Loneliness, which the Order of San Juan de Dios is promoting during this month of October together with other ecclesial and civil organisations.

A silent poverty

According to the Diocese, unwanted loneliness is a form of silent poverty present both in the homes of the smallest villages and in the anonymous apartments of large urban centres. It affects older people who spend their days without anyone speaking their name, young people who, despite being connected through screens, feel isolated, and people in situations of vulnerability. The Diocese asks for awareness that many people cannot break the barriers of isolation by themselves and encourages approaching them with empathy. «We cannot get used to considering it normal that so many people live in loneliness,» it states in its message.

Small gestures of closeness

The parish Cáritas receive a concrete proposal: to accompany those who suffer unwanted loneliness with a call, a visit or an invitation to take part in some community activity. The Diocese stresses that great structures or extraordinary resources are not always needed, and that Christian love is often made concrete in small everyday gestures such as giving time, listening attentively and making the other feel that their life matters. The message quotes Pope Francis, who in the encyclical Fratelli tutti warned that «we are more alone than ever in this massified world that makes individual interests prevail and weakens the communal dimension of existence».

A pastoral of listening

The Diocese invites promoting a pastoral of listening, «outgoing», that helps to be attentive to those who live alone and to promote the necessary resources to prevent and accompany isolation. It asks that parishes be welcoming homes where no one feels strange or forgotten.

How to take part

The Diocese invites people to learn about and take part in the activities organised during this week of October. The parish Cáritas can join in by accompanying people who suffer unwanted loneliness through a call, a visit or an invitation to community activities.