We are now on Facebook

We have started a Facebook page for the St. Michael Parish Social Concerns Ministry to make it easier for us to share late breaking news, and allow you to more easily share with us.

http://www.facebook.com/StMichaelParishSocialConcernsMinistry

God bless you all as we move into Holy Week.

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, March 25, 2012

Seek good and not evil, that you may live; then truly will the LORD, the God of hosts, be with you as you claim! Hate evil and love good… -- Amos 5:14-15

Training for English Language Tutors: Saturday, April 21. 
St. Michael parish has partnered with the Livermore Public Library’s excellent and popular program to help adult parishioners improve their English skills.  If you speak English, you have all the skills you need to tutor a fellow St. Michael parishioner.  By helping an adult become fluent in English, you will equip them to prosper in our society.  The time commitment is about two hours per week.  You do NOT have to be bilingual.  Interested?  Call Joanne Angvick, 443-1422.

The Stations of the Cross Around the World with Catholic Relief Services (CRS). 

Station 7 Jesus falls the second time.  Schools in Vietnam often lack resources to serve students with disabilities. As a result, these students are often unable to reach their potential, and they fall beneath the cross of poverty.  CRS supports inclusive education for people with disabilities in schools and vocational colleges around the country.   

Catholic Social Teaching: Dignity of the Human Person.  All humanity has been made in the image of God. Through our actions we must express that each person is precious and that the lives and welfare of all people are priorities. – Courtesy of CRS, http://tinyurl.com/Stations2012

Open Heart Kitchen 
http://www.openheartkitchen.org, 925-580-1619 
Go to them for help, or volunteer with them to help others.  Schedule: Weekday hot meals: Monday (Crosswinds Church, Dublin), Tuesday & Wednesday (Asbury United Methodist), Thursday (Vineyard Christian Fellowship), Friday (Trinity Lutheran, Pleasanton).  Senior hot meals: Ridgeview Commons Senior Center, Pleasanton.  Weekend box lunch for children.

Senior Support Program of the Tri-Valley 
http://www.ssptv.org, (925) 931 – 5379 
Go to them for help, or volunteer to help others.  Provide case management, family caregiver support, alcohol/drug program, friendly visits, transportation, exercise and nutrition program, health screening.

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.

The hungry he has filled with good things; the rich he has sent away empty. -- Luke 1:55

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, March 18, 2012

Keep your tongue from evil, your lips from speaking lies.  Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.  – Psalm 34

Operation Rice Bowl in 37th Year

(http://orb.crs.org)
The ORB website is full of activities for the whole family.  Recipes from around the world raise awareness of other cultures (e.g., salad from Madagascar, vegetable rolls from Vietnam, bean dish from El Salvador).  Videos help us learn from other American Catholics doing ORB activities and learn about people around the world (e.g., India, Zambia, Vietnam).  Catholic Relief Services is your outreach to the world.

The Stations of the Cross Around the World with Catholic Relief Services. 
Station 6 Veronica wipes the face of Jesus.  There are more than 1 billion people around the world who regularly suffer from hunger and malnutrition.  Most are women and children.  We are one human family, regardless of our differences.  Answering the call to love our neighbors will promote a culture of respect and lead to peace in our communities around the world. – Courtesy of CRS, http://tinyurl.com/Stations2012

Bread for the World Urges: Write to Congress. 
Bread for the World is a collective Christian voice urging our nation’s decision makers to end hunger at home and abroad. By changing policies, programs and conditions that allow hunger and poverty to persist, they provide help and opportunity far beyond the communities where we live.  To easily send an email to Congress, go to http://www.bread.org and click “Write to Congress” on the right side of webpage.  Call your Congresspersons at 202-224-3121.

Unemployment Benefits Expiring? Call 2-1-1. 
If your unemployment benefits are set to expire, call 211 to find financial counseling and assistance, child care, job training, food and discounted utility programs.  Translators are available.  Also visit http://211bayarea.org, and for Alameda County: http://www.edenir.org

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.

You shall not wrong any widow or orphan. If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry.  – Exodus 22:20

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, March 11, 2012

The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, stronghold in times of trouble. – Psalm 9

Priests for Life Call for Your Prayers for Life. 
Fr. Frank Pavone (www.priestsforlife.org) says: "Abortion will end when local communities say it will end -- no sooner, and no later. We have the power to stop abortion, even while it remains legal. Now is the time to mobilize, sustained by prayer. Women and men who have lost children to abortion need to hear the witness of others who have experienced that pain and have found healing. 40 Days for Life is an opportunity for a local community to hear that witness. "  To learn how you can participate in 40 Days for Life in the Bay Area, go to: http://40daysforlife.com/sanfrancisco/

US Bishops Campaign: Justice for Immigrants. 
In advocating on behalf of migrants, immigrants, and refugees, it is important to understand that the Catholic position is based on Catholic social teaching, which is derived from the Gospels and the words of Christ; statements and encyclicals of the Popes; and statements and pastoral letters of bishops. Understanding these teachings, which support the U.S. bishops’ public policy positions on immigration, is helpful in understanding and defending these positions.  Read more at: http://tinyurl.com/JusticeTeaching

The Stations of the Cross Around the World with Catholic Relief Services (CRS).
Station 5 Simon helps Jesus carry the cross.  Since 1943 Catholic Relief Services has helped carry the cross for our brothers and sisters in need by providing assistance with housing, water systems, health services, agriculture, and response to emergencies.

Catholic social teaching: SOLIDARITY. 
We are one human family, regardless of our differences. Answering the call to love our neighbors will promote a culture of respect and lead to peace in our communities around the world. – Courtesy of CRS, http://tinyurl.com/Stations2012

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.

Tell them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous, ready to share,  thus accumulating as treasure a good foundation for the future, so as to win the life that is true life. --1Timothy 6