Social Concerns Column for Sunday, December 25, 2011, The Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ

The LORD loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love. --Psalm 33:5

Catholic World Day of Peace, January 1st.  

Catholic teaching promotes peace as a positive, action-oriented concept. In the words of Pope John Paul II, "Peace is not just the absence of war. It involves mutual respect and confidence between peoples and nations. It involves collaboration and binding agreements.”  There is a close relationship in Catholic teaching between peace and justice. Peace is the fruit of justice and is dependent upon right order among human beings.  -- Catholic Charities Office for Social Justice, http://www.osjspm.org/page.aspx?pid=491

Read more quotes on peace at: http://www.osjspm.org/admin/document.doc?id=22

What is “charity” and what is “justice” for a practicing Catholic?  

Msgr. Marvin Mottet, Diocese of Davenport, explains it this way: It takes two feet to walk and to keep our balance: one “justice,” the other “charity.” One foot is focused on institutional change, the other on direct service.

Without both feet, we lose balance. When I served on the National Committee of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, I saw an application from Bread for the World: they weren’t passing out food baskets or running soup kitchens, but working for institutional change—addressing public policies that could relieve hunger and poverty. I said, “This is what we are all about.”

If we use only the first foot (direct service), we could make matters worse by fostering dependency. If we use only the second foot (institutional change), we might become too far removed from the realities of the situation.  A true Christian lifestyle requires of us that we live in solidarity with those in need and come to their assistance in emergencies. We cannot isolate ourselves.

Direct service can provide us with the data needed for institutional changes. It is sometimes classified as “charity.” Institutional change is “working for justice.” There can be no love without justice. If we really love, we will work to change structures, systems, laws, and policies that are harmful to people.

Read the full article at: http://tinyurl.com/charity-justice


Would you like to pursue a social justice project? 
The St. Michael Parish Social Concerns Ministry would like to help you to help others!  Call Joanne, 443-1422, or keep reading this column every Sunday.  Every week our goal is to provide you opportunities for both feet: direct service and institutional change.

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, December 18, 2011

Jesus was a migrant: the flight to Egypt

Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. --Isaiah 32:16

US Bishops to Hold Conference on Immigration in January.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Justice for Immigrants Campaign will host a national conference, “A 50-State Issue: A Focus on State and Local Immigration Initiatives,” on January 11-13, 2012, in Salt Lake City, Utah. Participants will look at state and local immigration issues across the country, and discuss methods for opposing enforcement initiatives and supporting comprehensive immigration reform.  Visit http://www.cvent.com/d/wcqmsm, or contact Tony Cube (acube@usccb.org).

Christmas Tree Recycling. 
By recycling your tree, you are caring for God’s Creation and living out one of the themes of Church Social Teaching.  Instructions for recycling your Christmas tree are in your mailbox in Livermore Sanitation’s newsletter.  Please be sure to strip off all tinsel and ornaments.  Miss the free tree pick up?  Then simply chop up your live tree and place in your green recycling bin.  Sorry, artificial trees cannot be recycled.  Learn more at: http://www.livermoresanitation.com, 925-449-7300.

Catholic Social Teaching: Call to Family, Community, and Participation. 
The human person is social as well as sacred.  Our Catholic tradition teaches that human beings grow and achieve fulfillment in community.  The family is the central social institution.  Family life needs to be supported by other institutions and governments. Excessive individualism, competition, and greed mitigate against community and the common good.  We believe people have a right and a duty to participate in society, seeking together the common good and well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable.  -- Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, U.S. Bishops, 1998.

Catholic Social Teaching Resources:
Learn more from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (http://tinyurl.com/BishopsSocialTeaching) and the Vatican (http://tinyurl.com/CatholicSocialTeaching).

Would you like to pursue a social justice project?
The St. Michael Parish Social Concerns Ministry would like to help you to help others!  Call Joanne Angvick, 443-1422.

He leads the humble in justice, and He teaches the humble His way. --Psalm 25:9

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, December 11, 2011

Hate evil, love good, and establish justice in the courts. --Amos 5:15

Call 2-1-1 for Help in Alameda County. 

2-1-1 is a free, non-emergency, confidential, 3-digit phone number and service that provides easy access to housing information and critical health and human services 24 hours a day.  2-1-1 is available in 140 languages!  For more information visit: http://www.211alamedacounty.org

¿NECESITA AYUDA?
http://www.211alamedacounty.org/2-1-1-languages.html
2-1-1 provee información GRATIS - por teléfono - in Español, sobre viviendas, salud y servicios sociales disponibles en el condado de Alameda.

Catholic Social Teaching: Care for God’s Creation. 

Care for the earth is not just an Earth Day slogan, it is a requirement of our faith. We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation.  -- Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, U.S. Bishops, 1998.  Learn more from the US Bishops (http://tinyurl.com/BishopsSocialTeaching) and the Vatican (http://tinyurl.com/CatholicSocialTeaching).

Holiday Waste Reduction Tips from California: A Season for Giving, Not for Discarding. 

The State of California asks you to help make this a green Christmas with many practical tips.  For example: (1) Give a gift card and eliminate fancy wrapping paper. (2) Send an e-card instead of a paper card.  (3) Check your tire pressure before going to visit grandma.  (4) Repurpose old holiday cards into gift tags, bookmarks, decorations; tie a ribbon through a hole in the top of the card for a fun tree decoration.  (5) Buy local and reduce your carbon footprint.  (6) Buy rechargeable batteries. And more and more!  Visit: http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/PublicEd/Holidays

“God destined the earth and all it contains for all people and nations so that all created things would be shared fairly by all humankind under the guidance of justice tempered by charity.”  -- The Church in the Modern World, #69

Would you like to pursue a social justice project? 
The St. Michael Parish Social Concerns Ministry would like to help you to help others!  We recently attended a respect life, restorative justice and social justice workshop at the Cathedral of Christ the Light and have many resources for you.  Call Joanne, 443-1422.

"So I will come near to you for judgment. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive aliens of justice, but do not fear me," says the LORD Almighty. --Malachi 3:5

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, December 4, 2011

Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you. --Deuteronomy 16:20

The Parish and Good Works.  
A parish is . . . the place where all the faithful can be gathered together for the Sunday celebration of the Eucharist. The parish initiates the Christian people into the ordinary expression of the liturgical life: it gathers them together in this celebration; it teaches Christ's saving doctrine; it practices the charity of the Lord in good works and brotherly love.  -- #2179 Catechism of the Catholic Church

New Website to Help Uninsured in Alameda County
http://achealthcare.org
This website is an information resource for uninsured Alameda County residents seeking free or low-cost health care.  Please help spread the word.  The website also has links to other services, such as child care, domestic violence, emergency housing and senior services.


Catholic Social Teaching: Care for God’s Creation.  
All of creation is a gift from God and should be respected as such.  We show our respect by the way we care for the earth as stewards of all that has been entrusted to us.  We need to examine how our excessive consumerism and poor environmental practices are exploiting the earth and take measures to correct our destructive patterns.  -- Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, U.S. Bishops, 1998. 

Learn more from the US Bishops (http://tinyurl.com/BishopsSocialTeaching) and the Vatican (http://tinyurl.com/CatholicSocialTeaching).

Holiday Waste Reduction Tips from California: Buy Gifts Made from Recycled Materials.  

The State of California showcases innovative recycled-content gift items made from California waste.  These items are very attractive: jewelry, chess sets, furniture, picture frames, tote bags, angels, bird houses and more!  Learn more at: http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/PublicEd/Holidays

Would you like to pursue a social justice project? 
The St. Michael Parish Social Concerns Ministry would like to help you to help others!  Call Joanne, 443-1422.

The LORD loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love. --Psalm 33:5