Cardinal Paulo Evaristo Arns The Archdiocese of Sao Paulo has offered their House of Prayer as a community centre for the city to lodge homeless persons who get the coronavirus (Covid-19).
Homeless communities throughout the country are among the most vulnerable to the virus, Church officials in Brazil said.
“The House of Prayer is already used for activities with the city’s homeless population,” said Fr Julio Renato Lancellotti, coordinator of the episcopal vicariate for the homeless.
“We have activities and courses and also provide meals, like breakfast. It is not a hospital, so it needs to be adapted, with beds, etc. but it is a viable place to put those who have nowhere to go.”
Church officials said the home would be able to accommodate up to 50 hospital beds.
The House of Prayer was built with money from the Niwano Peace Prize won by Cardinal Paulo Evaristo Arns, former archbishop of Sao Paulo.
The prize was awarded to Cardinal Arns for “his interfaith collaboration to promote development, conserve the environment and create a world of peace”.
Diseases
Many homeless have or have had tuberculosis and other diseases; many are elderly with no place to go.
On the street, according to Fr Lancellotti, it is difficult to ensure even basic hygiene, like washing hands, wearing clean clothes or having a clean place to sleep.
Fr Lancellotti, who has worked with the city’s homeless population for more than 40 years, said the homeless population in South America’s largest city has been vastly underestimated by authorities.
“Officially they say there are 24,000 living on the streets of Sao Paulo, but I believe that there are more than 30,000,” he said.