Message from the President of CADIS on the occasion of the Celebration of Camillian Martyrs of Charity - 25 May 2025

Dear friends, sisters, brothers and supporters of CADIS,

On May 25, we will celebrate, with deep emotion and gratitude, the commemoration of the Camillian Martyrs of Charity, the living memory of those religious who, animated by the spirit of our founder St. Camillus de Lellis, gave their lives in generous and tireless service to the sick and suffering, even at the risk of their own health and safety. Their testimony continues to challenge and inspire us in our daily journey of charity.

From 16 to 24 May, we invite you to join us spiritually in the Novena of the Martyrs of Charity: a time of prayer, reflection and renewed commitment, during which we will remember each of these brothers who embodied the Camillian charism to the full, transforming compassion into concrete action.

This year, our commemoration takes on an even deeper significance because it is set in the context of the 10th anniversary of our CADIS Foundation. The theme that guides us - 'A Decade of Compassion and Empowerment: From Crisis Response to Building Resilient Communities’ - helps us to read the memory of our martyrs not only as a tribute to the past, but also as a prophetic thrust towards the future.

In these ten years, CADIS has worked in the most vulnerable contexts of the world, addressing humanitarian emergencies and accompanying communities in the difficult but necessary process of healing, rebuilding and resilience. We have learnt that true compassion is not limited to immediate aid, but is expressed in the willingness to stay, to listen, to walk with those who suffer, promoting paths of personal and collective emancipation.

The Camillian Martyrs of Charity are, for us, a concrete example of this style of presence: not solitary heroes, but faithful brothers, capable of remaining close to the last even when everything invites us to flee. Their legacy calls us today to renew our commitment to human dignity and integral health, especially where crises seem to extinguish all hope.

As we prepare for the 25th of May celebration, I invite you to join us not only in prayer, but also with an open heart to the mission entrusted to us: to be signs of compassion that transforms, witnesses of a charity that saves, builders of communities that resist, heal and renew.

With gratitude and hope,

Br José Ignacio Santaolalla Sáez, MI
President CADIS International