Social Concerns Column for Sunday, December 2, 2012

Catholic social teaching proclaims that we are our brothers' and sisters' keepers, wherever they live. -- Catholic Charities Office for Social Justice, http://www.osjspm.org/

Thank You to St. Michael Parish for Supporting Livermore Homeless Refuge!  
We are so grateful to St. Michael Parishioners for the sleeping bags and thermal undergarments which they donated to the Livermore Homeless Refuge in November.  The sleeping bags and garments make a big difference on these increasingly cold and wet nights when our Refuge guests are sleeping on the floor in a vacant room in a Livermore church hall.  Our volunteers staff the Refuge through the night so that our city's homeless are not out under a bridge or bush or in a car.  Our guests express great gratitude for the kindness shown to them, "the least of these our brothers", as Jesus said.  God bless your continued gracious generosity.

Donations Welcome for Livermore Homeless Refuge.  
It is not too late to donate supplies: We still need thermal undergarments (men's and women's) and sleeping bags.  We will come pick up your donations: Call Bob and Donna McKenzie, 925-443-7389 or 925-895-4167.  If you would like to make a monetary contribution, please send your tax deductible donations via checks made out to Robert McKenzie, 2497 Pyramid St., Livermore, 94550; please include a return address so that we can mail you a receipt for your taxes.  For more information, visit: www.livermorehomelessrefuge.org

St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry.  
Thank you for continuing to bring food to the boxes at the entrances to the church.  These groceries are distributed every week to the hungry of Livermore.  Want to help more?  Contact: Rich Mueller, 925-373-7472, richmca@hotmail.com

Tri-Valley Hotline 211: Help for the Needy.  
Dial for help with food, housing, employment, health care, child care, elder care.  Translators are available.  Please help spread the word about this valuable resource from United Way of the East Bay.   Learn more at: http://www.211california.org/

Is this not, rather, the fast that I choose: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; setting free the oppressed, breaking off every yoke?  Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry, bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house; clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own flesh? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. – Isaiah 58:6-8 

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, November 25, 2012

"What does the Lord require of you, but to do justice, to love kindness and walk humbly with your God." (Micah 6:8)

Catholic Relief Services Has a Blog (http://crs-blog.org).  
This blog is a fast and easy way to learn what the Church is doing to fight global poverty.  Because CRS volunteers are always on the ground in developing countries and preparing for disasters, their response is fast and efficient.

Catholic Social Teaching: Option for the Poor and Vulnerable.  
"A basic moral test of society is how it treats its most vulnerable members. The poor have the most urgent moral claim on the conscience of the nation.  The option for the poor ... arises from the radical command to love one's neighbor as one's self.  The option for the poor is an essential part of society's effort to achieve the common good. A healthy community can be achieved only if its members give special attention to those with special needs, to those who are poor and on the margins of society."  -- Catholic Charities Office for Social Justice, http://www.osjspm.org/

Thank You St. Michael for Your Generosity to Livermore Homeless Refuge.  
We are so grateful for your donations of sleeping bags and thermal undergarments last weekend.  You are literally saving lives during these cold Autumn nights.  If you missed the drive, you can always make a donation of supplies at the rectory, or for pick-up call Bob and Donna McKenzie, 925-443-7389 or 925-895-4167.  For more information, visit: www.livermorehomelessrefuge.org

Open Heart Kitchen Welcomes Your Donations and Helping Hand.  
Volunteers serve thousands every week here in the Tri-Valley.  Register as a volunteer or donate online at: http://www.openheartkitchen.org

St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry Welcomes Canned Food.  
Your donations of food to the boxes at the entrances to the church go directly to the hungry of Livermore.

Tri-Valley Hotline 211: Help for the Needy.  
Dial for help with food, housing, employment, health care, child care, elder care.  Translators are available.   http://www.211california.org/

“The environment is God's gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole.” -- Pope Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate (48)

Social Concerns Column for Sunday, November 18, 2012

Then the King shall say to those who will be on his right: ‘Come, you blessed of my Father. Possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in; naked, and you covered me; sick, and you visited me; I was in prison, and you came to me.’  -- Matthew 11:34-36 

Open Heart Kitchen Welcomes Your Donations and Helping Hand.  

The Kitchen needs many willing hands to chop veggies, ladle soup, clean up: they serve thousands every week here in the Tri-Valley.  Register as a volunteer or donate online at: http://www.openheartkitchen.org

St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry.  

Thank you for continuing to bring food to the boxes at the entrances to the church for the hungry of Livermore.  Want to help more?  Contact: Rich Mueller, 925-373-7472, richmca@hotmail.com

Tri-Valley Hotline 211: Help for the Needy.  

Dial for help with food, housing, employment, health care, child care, elder care.  Translators are available.  Please help spread the word about this valuable resource from United Way of the East Bay.  180,000 people are helped each year through this hotline.

Food for Thought on the Ethics of Eating.  

We serve the common good by eating what is good for the earth and good for farmers and workers. Eating is a moral act.  Why?  The ethics of eating is about food choices. We can choose foods that are grown in ways that are good for the earth so that soil and water quality remain optimum for years to come.  We can choose foods that are grown for the good of the farmers with fair compensation for their labor, and with protection of their health and safety.  So eat what is good to grow and grow what is good to eat: that is the ethics of eating!  -- from the National Catholic Rural Life Conference (http://www.ncrlc.com)

How Do I Buy Ethical Food?  

Start with local farmers' markets and Fair Trade coffee, tea and chocolate.  The Livermore Year Round Sunday Farmer's Market runs Sundays from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM in the parking lot of the historic Southern Pacific Train Depot at L St. and Railroad Ave.  The Pleasanton Farmers' Market is Saturday morning, 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, Main & W. Angela Street.  All Livermore grocery stores carry products with the Fair Trade label on the package, from Ben and Jerry's chocolate ice creams to coffee and tea. 

Social Concerns Column for November 11, 2012

Then the King shall say to those who will be on his right: ‘Come, you blessed of my Father. Possess the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry, and you gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took me in; naked, and you covered me; sick, and you visited me; I was in prison, and you came to me.’  -- Matthew 11:34-36 

Open Heart Kitchen Welcomes Your Donations and Helping Hand.  
OHK needs many willing hands to chop veggies, ladle soup, clean up: they serve thousands every week here in the Tri-Valley.  Please call the Operations Director at 925-580-6793 to be assigned to a time slot with an existing team. You have a variety of choices for day of the week, and number of times per month to serve.  Your financial support is also welcome!  Register as a volunteer or donate online at: http://www.openheartkitchen.org

St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry.  
Thank you for continuing to bring food to the boxes at the entrances to the church.  These groceries are distributed every week to the hungry of Livermore.  Want to help more?  Contact: Rich Mueller, 925-373-7472, richmca@hotmail.com

Tri-Valley Hotline 211: Help for the Needy.  
Dial for help with food, housing, employment, health care, child care, elder care, finding unemployment benefits and so much more.  Translators are available.  Please help spread the word about this valuable resource from United Way of the East Bay.  180,000 people are helped each year through this hotline.  This hotline covers many counties of California.
http://211bayarea.org/

Catholic Relief Services Fights Global Poverty.  
CRS is the international outreach arm of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, representing all of us in the fight against global poverty.  As a prominent participant in U.S. government international food aid programs, CRS uses food aid, also known as P.L. 480 Title II food aid, to provide food to people who are hungry during emergencies such as wars and natural disasters and for long-term development projects in education, health and agriculture.  The CRS webpage features Action Alerts for legislation, monthly webinars on current issues, and more!  Learn how you can participate at: http://crs.org

He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets prisoners free, the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous. --Psalm 146:7

Prayer for victims of Hurricane Sandy from Catholic Relief Services

God of Mercy,

You who created the universe and ordered it through a simple command, we humbly come to you today as your beloved children. We pray for those affected by Hurricane Sandy in the Caribbean and Northeastern United States. Grant us the faith and perseverance to trust in you and seek first your Kingdom.

Above all, may this natural disaster serve as a reminder of the frailty of our lives and our interdependence. May we stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters affected by Hurricane Sandy in the U.S. and the Caribbean, and may our day to day living always reflect our responsibility towards the poor and humanity as a whole.

We pray, through your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, One God, forever and ever.
Amen. 

Find additional petitions from Catholic Relief Services at this link:
http://donate.crs.org/site/DocServer/Final_Hurricane_Sandy_Prayer_v2.pdf?docID=8603

Help Victims of Hurricane Sandy Through CRS and Catholic Charities USA

Follow this link to make a donation to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy.  Catholic Charities USA is helping people in the United States while Catholic Relief Services is helping people in Haiti and other islands hit hard.  Thanks!

http://usccb.org/catholic-giving/opportunities-for-giving/helping-victims-of-hurricane-sandy.cfm

Social Concerns Column for November 4, 2012

Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. --Psalm 82:3 

Tri-Valley Hotline 211: Help for the Needy.  
Dial for help with food, housing, employment, health care, child care, elder care.  Translators are available.  Please help spread the word about this valuable resource from United Way of the East Bay.

Bishops Urge Catholic Laity to Vote Faithfully.
 “The voices and votes of lay Catholics are needed to shape a society with greater respect for human life, economic and environmental justice, cultural diversity and global solidarity.”  – Everyday Christianity: To Hunger and Thirst for Justice, http://tinyurl.com/HungerThirstJustice

Catholic Bishops Speak Out On Ballot Propositions:
 Read their positions and their reasoning based on the Bible and the writings of modern popes at www.cacatholic.org

Why California Bishops Urge YES on Prop 34 to End Death Penalty:
The Roman Catholic Bishops of the United States have re-affirmed their commitment to their Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty.

• Over 100 current and former criminal justice professionals have signed the Prop 34 law enforcement letter opposing the death penalty.
• Over 700 victim family members belong to California Crime Victims for Alternatives to the Death Penalty and support Prop 34.
• A Florida study showed that the murder rate went up after an execution, proving that it is not a deterrent to murder.
• An execution creates another set of victims - the family of the person executed.
• Studies have shown that executions have a detrimental effect on prison staff.
• The death penalty is simply revenge.

Read more at California Bishops' website at: http://tinyurl.com/TopTenProLife

California Bishops Support Prop 35 - Human Trafficking Initiative.  
Bishop Wilkerson says: “Human trafficking, which involves the enslaving of individuals in order to use them for financial gain, is an intolerable affront to human dignity." Read more at: www.cacatholic.org