Project Compassion Launch 2026

Today we gather at Corpus Christi Church to begin something important — not simply a program or an appeal, but a journey of the heart.

Project Compassion always comes at the beginning of Lent, and that is no accident. Lent is a time when God invites us to look again at our lives, to turn outward, and to rediscover what truly matters.

This year the call is clear: Unite Against Poverty.

The Scriptures we have heard speak directly to this moment.

St John asks a very simple but confronting question:
If we have what we need, and we see someone in need, and yet do nothing — how can God’s love live in us?

And then he gives us the answer:
Let us love, not just in words, but in truth and in action.

In the Gospel, Jesus takes this even further. He tells us that when we feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, or care for the sick, we are not just helping someone in need.

We are serving him.

This is the heart of Project Compassion. It is not charity from a distance. It is solidarity. It is recognising that we belong to one human family, and that the suffering of any part of that family concerns us all.

The world today is deeply divided. Some live with abundance, while millions struggle for the basic necessities of life — food, clean water, education, health and safety.

At times, the problems can feel too big.

But Project Compassion reminds us of something powerful: when we act together, small actions become life-changing.

A coin placed in a box.
A fundraising effort at school.
A decision to care rather than to ignore.

When we unite, hope grows.

And this year, as representatives of schools, parishes and communities, you are being commissioned as ambassadors of that hope. You are being asked to carry the candle and the message back to your communities — to help others see that compassion is not just a feeling. It is something we do.

And there is something even deeper here.

The Gospel tells us that Christ is present in “the least of these.” That means that every act of generosity is also an encounter with him.

This Lent, then, Project Compassion is not only about helping others.

It is about becoming the people God is calling us to be.

People who see.
People who care.
People who act.

The world needs that witness more than ever.

So as you take the candles and the boxes back to your communities, remember what they represent.

They are signs of light in a divided world.
Signs of unity in a divided humanity.
Signs that together, we can help build God’s kingdom of justice, peace and love.

Let this Lent be a time when our hearts grow wider, our compassion grows stronger, and our actions help create a future where all can live with dignity.

Because when we unite against poverty, we do more than change lives.

We become the living compassion of Christ.

Most Rev. Anthony J. Ireland
Archbishop of Hobart
19 February, 2026