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September 2008
J/P Alert is the newsletter of the Justice and Peace office of CMSM. It is intended to inform and stimulate discussion and involvement among the members. Its contents do not necessarily represent official positions of CMSM.
An American Catholic Tradition
[Excerpts from the U.S. Catholic Bishops' Labor Day Statement, issued by Most Reverend William F. Murphy, Bishop of Rockville Centre, Chairman, Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. The full statement is available at www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/labor_day_2008.pdf .]
September 1, 2008
A Nation Blessed
We are a nation blessed with extraordinary natural and human resources.… Creativity and initiative are as much essential elements of our lives today as they have been in the past. This freedom of creative initiative and energy needs to be tempered by a deep sense of responsibility for one another, for our planet, and for the future. The more we exercise self control in our possession and use of the goods of this earth, sharing with others opportunities as well as products, the less need we will have for the kinds of regulatory laws that become necessary when economic privateers and profit seeking pirates take over whole areas of our economy.
We are a nation committed to both economic freedom and economic justice. But that cannot mean freedom for me and justice for me alone. The classic linking of the human person with the common good teaches us that we have to use our freedom and creativity not just for ourselves and those we care for. It must extend to all those who are affected by our actions and by society's goals. That means everybody in today's globalized world.
A Globalized World
All these challenges and questions are framed in a new light with new dimensions in this age of globalization. The world of work is different than in years past. Finance, production, trade, and labor are no longer local, regional, or national entities, but global. Of itself globalization is a neutral fact. It depends on who takes advantage of the current global economy and how it is put to use.… Here, two interrelated principles of Catholic Social Teaching come into play. The principle of subsidiarity champions the freedom of initiative that allows everyone scope and opportunity to be creative and productive and reap the benefits of hard work and energy. When taken to the extreme, it can become exploitive of others. Yet joined to the principle of solidarity, subsidiarity and all its creative impulses become harnessed to an end that includes the makers of a vibrant economy. This links their work into a set of relationships bringing new opportunities to one another across political and social divisions and especially across the great divide between rich and poor. Let interdependence become the "solidarity" of neighbor to neighbor in such a way that the subsidiarity of free creativity builds up and offers new possibilities for all neighbors, especially the poor and the vulnerable. The Church continues to echo the call of Pope John Paul II to "globalize solidarity."
Labor Day and Politics
An informed conscience asks first what is right and true. An informed conscience examines the candidates and the issues from the perspective of human life and dignity, the true good of every human person, the true good of society, the common good of us all in our nation and in this world.
What can I add to that? Never forget that human life is the supreme good in this world. Never forget that human dignity is not an expendable commodity but belongs to everyone without exception. Every day we are pro-life. Every day we are champions of human dignity. Our voices and our votes should shape society by bringing these inalienable truths into every particular proposal and program, every particular candidate's projects and plans. The Bishops' statement Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship makes both links and distinctions between the fundamental duty to oppose what is intrinsically evil (i.e., the destruction of unborn life) and the obligation to pursue the common good (i.e., defending the rights of workers and pursuing greater economic justice). I urge you to review and reflect on this challenging call to be salt, light, and leaven in this election year and beyond.
A Catholic Framework
The bishops of the United States reflect this teaching as they outline key elements of a just economy in Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship. These basics need to be part of the national discussion as we choose leaders and develop policies for the future:
The economy must serve people, not the other way around. Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God's creation. Employers contribute to the common good through the services or products they provide and by creating jobs that uphold the dignity and rights of workers—to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to adequate benefits and security in their old age, to the choice of whether to organize and join unions, to the opportunity for legal status for immigrant workers, to private property, and to economic initiative. Workers also have responsibilities—to provide a fair day's work for a fair day's pay, to treat employers and co-workers with respect, and to carry out their work in ways that contribute to the common good. Workers, employers, and unions should not only advance their own interests, but also work together to advance economic justice and the well-being of all. (#52)
Overcoming Poverty
Poverty has many faces. And they are the faces of our brothers and sisters here in our own country and around the world. Whether I am in remote corners of Africa or the streets of Lawrence, Massachusetts, I am convinced that when we face up to the needs of these our brothers and sisters, the challenge of overcoming poverty brings the Catholic community together. The Catholic Church is committed to making her contribution to alleviating the pain of poverty at every level: internationally, nationally, and especially locally through the magnificent endeavors of priests, religious, and laity in our parishes. Things may be tough for an awful lot of us today. But no matter how difficult it might be for you or me, I believe each of us can name someone we know who is carrying a greater burden. I can hear Msgr. Higgins telling us "Don't forget the other guy," especially the person with less. That person has hopes and dreams, too. That person comes from a family and belongs to our human family. That person has dignity because all of us are created in the image of God.
[Excerpts from an address given to the National Migration Conference, Washington, DC, by Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, Archbishop of Los Angeles July 28, 2008. The complete text is available at www.the-tidings.com/2008/080108/immigtext.htm ]
As many of you know from your work, we and the immigrants we serve are facing enforcement raids, state and local enforcement actions, heightened border enforcement and the construction of a border wall, as well as lengthy stays in detention—all at great human and financial cost. These enforcement policies have led, in many cases, to the separation of families, the harassment and profiling of United States citizens and legal residents, the expanded use of detention against those who are not a flight risk or a danger and, tragically, deaths in the United States desert.
We have also seen attempts to stifle the Church's mission through proposals to criminalize those who strive to serve the basic human needs of migrants. A human being's worth is defined by their God-given dignity, not by what papers they carry.
The act of migration is at its heart a hopeful act, an act that a better life, more befitting of human dignity, is possible for the migrant and his or her family. It is hopeful in the sense that migrants, in giving of themselves to others, are becoming who God calls them to be. Most migrants are self-sacrificing people whose commitment to values like faith, family, and work can help evangelize a culture and individuals who do not always treat them as fully human.
The word "hope" resonates among us gathered this week and provides us a guiding light in our ongoing journey with the migrant. The Conference theme, "Renewing Hope, Seeking Justice," appropriately sets the tone for our gathering. The landmark pastoral letter of the U.S. and Mexican Bishops, Strangers No Longer: Together on the Journey of Hope, offers us a framework for fulfilling the hope of immigrants and their families. Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has reminded us—both in his encyclical Spe Salvi ("Saved by Hope") and in the theme of his recent apostolic visit to our country, "Christ our Hope"—that hope is central to the life of the Church.
In order for hope to be fully realized, however, we must have faith—faith in God but also faith in our own best efforts. As the Holy Father points out at the beginning of his encyclical, hope is faith; faith is hope. Despite the attacks on our position and on those we serve, we must not lose faith as to the rightness of our cause and of our service to our immigrant brothers and sisters. The Church must remain a prophetic voice in an increasingly hostile wilderness, defending her mandate, given by Christ, to welcome the stranger.
This is why the theme of the National Migration Conference 2008—"Renewing Hope, Seeking Justice"—captures so well what we must focus upon in our gathering. It incorporates the action needed, "seeking justice," to realize our renewed hope of changing our immigration system and the lives of millions of our fellow human beings and generations to come.
But how do we do that, you ask? What must the Church—what must you and I—do to change the current situation for the better?
Let me offer a few suggestions:
First, we must speak clearly and often to the migrants and refugees who are in our midst or who are coming to our country: you can count on the Roman Catholic Church to stand with you and to walk with you on your journey to legal status in the United States…
Second, we must hold accountable those who are asking for our votes this November. We must insist that they outline a humane plan for reform of our immigration laws, that they refrain from demagoguery and anti-immigrant rhetoric, and that they educate the voters on the need to repair a broken system.
Third, we must change attitudes toward migrants through ongoing education.
Fourth, we must continue to provide pastoral care and social services, including legal assistance, to migrants and their families.
Fifth, we must work toward the reform of laws impacting migrants, immigrants, and refugees.
Finally, we ourselves must not lose hope. It may be helpful here to recall the basic, fundamental "structure of hope." …. At times it is easy to forget that—even as we work and not merely wish—what we hope for lies in God's hands. It can only come to us as a gift.
We can achieve these goals with faith in God, our ultimate hope, by giving witness to Christ who welcomed the stranger, whether the lame, the blind, the hungry, the thirsty, or the Samaritan woman. In Spe Salvi, the Holy Father reminds us: "So on one hand, our actions engender hope for us and others; but at the same time, it is the great hope based upon God's promises that gives us courage and directs our action in good times and bad" (no. 35).
I will leave you with the words of Pope Benedict XVI, this time given during his apostolic visit to the United States in April. He spoke these words to the U.S. Bishops, but he also was speaking to the entire country. They reaffirm the importance of your work and how the Church must remain in solidarity with the migrant. They also speak to the spirit of America, our great country, a land that is and always will remain a land of immigrants:
Brother bishops, I want to encourage you and your communities to continue to welcome the immigrants who join your ranks today, to share their joys and hopes, to support them in their sorrow and trials, and to help them flourish in their new home. This, indeed, is what your fellow countrymen have done for generations. From the beginning, they have opened their doors to the tired, the poor, the 'huddled masses yearning to breathe free.' These are the people who America has made her own.
Confident in our cause and with hope as our guardian and faith our constant companion, we will soon win justice for all of our brothers and sisters. May God bless you and keep you strong.
Migration and Refugee Services, USCCB and
The Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.
Present an Award of Special Recognition to
St. Bridget's Roman Catholic Church, Postville, Iowa
For heroic services to the residents
of Postville Iowa, following the May 12, Immigration Enforcement Action.
"I was a stranger and you welcomed me." (Mt. 25: 35)
[Remarks of Sister Mary McCauley following the reception of the Award at the 2008 National Migration Conference.]
I only wish that all of the people in Postville who were affected by the largest immigration raid in our American History, as well as all the wonderful people who have offered their presence, support, counsel and financial assistance could be here with me. For it is in their name that I accept this award.
- I accept it in the name of the 389 people who were detained on May 12.
- I accept it in honor of the 42 women and 3 men who walk the streets of Postville with ankle bracelets while their faces speak of fear and anguish.
- I accept it in honor of the children who pray daily, "Please bring my daddy home."
- I accept in honor of Pedro, who on a day or two after the raid said to me: "Sister Mary, I am so sad. I am sad because they have taken away my mother."
- I accept it in honor of all who risked their lives in coming from Mexico or Guatemala. Their situation in their home country was such that they knew they could not wait the fifteen to twenty years required to obtain appropriate documentation. Their families needed food and they needed to work.
- I accept this award in the name of all who joined us on Sunday, July 27 for our Prayer and Walk that called for Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Family Unity, Just Labor Practices and No More Raids. The presence of 1500+ people standing in solidarity with our Hispanic brothers and sisters was a powerful witness.
- At the conclusion of each one of our Scripture verses we prayed: "Give us Courage…Give us Hope…Give us Love!"
We prayed that our legislators would have the courage to bring the issue of immigration to the table. We prayed that our Hispanic brothers and sisters would never lose hope in the American Dream and that we as Americans would continue to offer hospitality to those in need. And finally we prayed that all might be filled with love, a love so powerful and so inclusive that it would bring about justice!
'Environment
of Hostility' Blamed for Rise in Attacks on Homeless
By
Daniel Horner
[Reprinted with permission from Street Sense, July 23-Aug. 5, 2008]
Violent attacks against homeless people in the U.S. increased significantly in 2007, with the number of lethal attacks jumping by 40% from the previous year's figure, according to a recently issued report by two groups that advocate for the homeless.
Fatal attacks jumped from 20 in 2006 to 28 in 2007, while the total number of violent incidents increased from 142 to 160 - a rise of 13% - according to the study "Hate, Violence, and Death on Main Street USA: A Report on Hate Crimes and Violence Against People Experiencing Homelessness 2007."
Factors ranging from local laws that criminalize homelessness to a current fad for "bum-bashing" videos "send a message to society that homeless people are not human [and] do not deserve respect," said Tulin Ozdeger, the civil rights director for the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty. The law center prepared the report along with· the National Coalition for the Homeless.
Local laws that restrict public sleeping, sitting, storing property or asking for money create an "environment of hostility" against homeless people and send the message that "attacks against them will not be taken seriously," she said.
The two groups have not done a full "scientific analysis," but
Ozdeger sees a correlation between such laws and attacks.
Florida, whose 31 violent anti-homeless incidents topped the 2007 list, has a number of localities that have passed anti-homeless measures.
Another factor in the continued prevalence of violence against homeless people is "bum bashing" videos, according to the study. Over 6.8 million copies of such videos have been sold and teenagers have imitated the videos "by recording themselves beating up homeless individuals just for the fun of it," the report said.
Retail sales of the videos have slowed down, but that success has been offset by the rise of YouTube, where such videos are popular, Ozdeger said.
After Florida, the states with the largest numbers of incidents· were California (22), Nevada (14) and Ohio (13). But Nevada's population of 2.5 million is far less than California's 36.5 million, Florida's 18 million and Ohio's 11.5 million.
Locally, the report did not cite any 2007 incidents in D.C. or Virginia. Maryland had one, in Baltimore.
But Ozdeger cautioned that the figures may well be low. The report draws its data primarily from media reports, since victims of the attacks often don't report the attacks to law-enforcement authorities, she said.
David Pirtle, who said he was the victim of several attacks when he was homeless, confirmed that point. Pirtle, who now lives in Southeast, said in a July 14 interview that he did not report the attacks to the police. On the basis of his experiences and those of his homeless friends, the "best case scenario" is that "the police don't do anything," he said.
When he was homeless, he lived in several cites across the country, he said. The worst attack was in New York City in 2004, he said. A "couple of guys" beat him with an aluminum bat or wide pipe, he said.
He said he suffered a chipped tooth and probably cracked ribs. But rather than going to the police or seeking medical assistance, he "just found a spot to curl up for a few days to recuperate," he said.
His assailants did not appear to be homeless men or criminals, he said. They were "nicely dressed," and appeared to be college age, he said.
Of the people accused and convicted of violence against the homeless in 2007, 86% were 25 and under, with many saying they committed the crimes for the "thrill" or "fun" of it, the report said.
Pirtle said he had "never been attacked by anyone other than young kids who are intoxicated and bored."
According to the report, some of the attacks seem to be motivated by "bias against the victims because they are homeless." For that reason, the study asserts that attacks against the homeless should be tallied as hate crimes.
Brian Levin of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University-San Bernardino said that failing to count attacks against the homeless as hate crimes "denies the rightful communal condemnation of this prevalent, but often invisible form of violent prejudice."
There were 187 fatal attacks on homeless individuals from 1999 through 2006, according to the report. For that same period, FBI statistics show 85 homicides classified as hate crimes, the report said.
The report does include some examples of efforts to help raise public awareness about the causes of homelessness and the needs of homeless people.
For example, Florida's Miami-Dade County public school district's curriculum for all grades includes lesson plans relating to homelessness. For Pre-K and kindergarten, the goal is to "give children an understanding of the needs that we all have to be comfortable and comforted," according to a section of the curriculum quoted in the report.
There was also a Florida-wide public education project, initiated by NCH in conjunction with AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers, the report said.
Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (USCCB)
www.usccb.org/faithfulcitizenship/FCStatement.pdf
U.S. Elections 2008: Loving our neighbor in a shrinking
world (Maryknoll)
www.maryknollogc.org/2008elections/election%20guide%2020081.pdf
Platform for the Common Good
www.votethecommongood.com/
Responding to the Call: A Candidate Chart for Conscientious Catholics (Network) www.networklobby.org/NEP%20ElectionChart%20WEB.pdf
USCMA
Annual Mission Conference
Mission: A Journey of Hope
Mission:
A Journey of Hope celebrates the US Church's
100 years of responding to the challenges of Sapienti consilio to send
missioners throughout the world!
Mission: A Journey of Hope is a journey not simply based on human optimism but in a faithful God who continues to call us to mission … a journey of hope that women and men committed to mission have taken all throughout history, a journey of hope that missioners in the 21st century are continually asked to witness in the midst of the challenges of mission in a truly global context.
Our 2008 USCMA Mission Conference takes place in the historic Baltimore area, which this year celebrates the 200th year of becoming the first Archdiocese in the nation.
Keynote Speakers
MICHAEL AMALADOSS, SJ
DIANNE BERGANT, CSA
Panel Speakers
ARTURO AGUILAR, SSC DR. JOSEFINA CHIRINO
FLOTILDA LAPE, ICM JEANNIE RITTER
Dialogue Sessions
REVERSE MISSION: BUILDING BRIDGES OF HOPE
DR. JOSEFINA CHIRINO & JEANNIE RITTER
What messages do today's missioners need to bring to our own US
culture? In what ways do our journeys as missioners witness to hope in
a new global reality?
CHURCH MISSIONARY ACTIVITIES TODAY:
IMPLICATIONS FOR DIOCESE AND PARISH PROGRAMS
DR. MICHAEL GABLE & MICHAEL HAASL
Where do we find mission creativity and vitality in parishes and in diocesan
programs? How does such creativity bring a new experience of hope for
people in the pews? How do we support and promote such creativity and
vitality?
SPE SALVI: IMPLICATIONS FOR MISSION
MICHAEL AMALADOSS, SJ
What are the implications of Benedict XVI's encyclical on Hope
for mission in today's new globalized context?
MISSION USA: GIVING VOICE
TO THOSE MISSIONED TO THE U.S.
FLOTILDA LAPE, ICM & JOHN HURLEY, CSP
What are missioners sent to the US (home missioners and international
missioners) telling us about the new global mission context of the U.S.?
How do their mission journeys engender hope?
RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES:
NEW ROLES IN BUILDING GLOBAL COMMUNITIES OF HOPE
KATHY SCHMITTGENS, SSND & PAUL LININGER,
OFM
How can religious communities use their global network to promote solidarity
and hope? How does the multi-cultural, multi-lingual composition of today's
religious communities inspire hope in today's new globalized context
of mission?
THE FUTURE OF MISSION
ENGAGING THE NEXT GENERATION FOR MISSION
SUZANNE MOORE, MM & ARTURO AGUILAR, SSC
Who is the next generation of missioners? What inspires the next generation
to go to mission? How do we support them in their journey of hope?
MISSION EARTH: CHANGING
THE CLIMATE ON GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE
JOAN MUMAW, IHM & MAURICE LANGE, OMI
How do the stories of the missioners bring creativity and hope to the
issue of global climate change? How do we put a human face on the issues
of global climate change? How does our creativity or lack thereof in
addressing the issuesb of global climate change affect the lives of the
poor?
REGISTRATION FEE: (Includes meals, breaks, materials)
USCMA Member $299 ($315 after Sept. 23)
non USCMA Member $315 ($335 after Sept. 23)
non USCMA Member plus one year
USCMA membership $355 ($375 after Sept. 23)
PLEASE CONTACT Holiday Inn
BWI Airport Conference Center DIRECTLY for Hotel Accommodation: 1-800-810- 0271. Ask for special rate
for US Catholic Mission Assoc
(group code-CMA)
For more information call us at 202-832-3112
Or e-mail us at meetings@uscatholicmission.org
Visit our website at www.uscatholicmission.org
Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.
How
can the Justice and Peace Office help you get involved?
T. Michael McNulty, SJ, editor
mmcnulty@cmsm.org
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Tel: 301-588-4030
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