Caritas in Veritate

Charity in Truth

Pope Benedict XVI

The third series of excerpts from Pope Benedict’s encyclical focuses on Morality in Economic Life:

“ The Church’s social doctrine has always maintained that justice must be applied to every phase of economic activity, because this is always concerned with man and his needs.” (37)

“I would like to remind everyone, especially governments engaged in boosting the world’s economic and social assets, that the primary capitol to be safeguarded and valued is man, the human person in his or her integrity. Man is the source, the focus and the aim of all economic and social life.” (25)

“The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly— not any ethics whatsoever, but and ethics which is people—centered.” (45)

“The poor are not to be considered a ‘burden’, but a resource, even from the purely economic point of view”. (35)

“The conviction that the economy must be autonomous, that it must be shielded from ’influences’ of a moral character, has led man to abuse the economic process in a thoroughly destructive way.” (34)

“The global market has stimulated...on the part of rich countries, a search for areas in which to outsource production at low cost...These processes have led to a downsizing of social security systems as the to be paid for seeking greater competitive advantage in the global market, with consequent grave danger for the rights of worker, for fundamental human rights.” (25)

“There is also increasing awareness of the need for greater social responsibility on the part of business...Business management cannot concern itself only with the interests of the proprietors, but must also assure responsibility for all the other stakeholders who contribute to the life of the business: the workers, the clients, the suppliers of various elements of production, the community of reference.” (40)

“It is good for people to realize that purchasing is always a moral— and not simply economic — act. Hence the consumer has a specific social responsibility.” (66)

Reflection Questions:

What moral principles does our faith insist should help guide economic life?

What are some moral responsibilities of workers, owners, managers, stockholders and consumers in economic life?

As a consumer how can my actions reflect the moral principles our faith about the dignity of workers?

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development

www.usccb.org

PSM Corner

 

Caritas in Veritate

Charity in Truth

Pope Benedict XVI

 

This is the fourth in a series of excerpts from his encyclical which focuses on the Unity of the Human Family and Global Solidarity.

 

•  “As society becomes ever more globalized, it makes us neighbors but does not make us brothers. Reason, by itself, is capable of grasping the equality between men and giving stability to their civic coexistence, but it cannot establish fraternity. This originates in a transcendent vocation from God the Father, who loved us first, teaching us through the Son what fraternal charity is.” (19)
• “The peoples themselves have the prime responsibility to work for their own development. But they will not bring this about in isolation.” (47)
• “Aid programs must increasingly acquire the characteristics of participation and completion from the grass roots. Indeed, the most valuable resources in countries receiving development aid are human resources: herein lies the real capital that needs to accumulate in order to guarantee a truly autonomous future for the poorest countries.” (58)
• “There are those who fear the effects of competition through the importation of products - normally agricultural products – from economically poor countries.  Nevertheless, it should be remembered that for such countries, the possibility of marketing their products is very often what guarantees their survival in both the short and long term. Just and equitable international trade in agricultural goods can be beneficial to everyone, both to suppliers and to customers.” (58)
• “Consumers should be continually educated regarding their daily role, which can be exercised with respect for moral principles without diminishing the intrinsic economic rationality of the act of purchasing… It can be helpful to promote new ways of marketing products from deprived areas of the world, so as to guarantee their producers a decent return.” (66)

 

• ‘Peace – building requires the constant interplay of diplomatic contacts, economic, technological and cultural exchanges, agreements on common projects, as well as joint strategies to curb the threat of military conflict and to root out the underlying causes of terrorism. Nevertheless, if such efforts are to have lasting effects, they must be based on values rooted in the truth of human life.” (72)

 

Reflection Questions:

            “As society becomes ever more globalized, it makes us neighbors but does not make us brothers.” What does our faith teach us about becoming one human family?

            The Holy Father argues that trade can reduce poverty, but sometimes it doesn’t? Why is this so?

            Why does buying “fair trade” products guarantee their producers a decent return?

Visit Catholic Relief Services website catalog and buy “fair trade” products.

 

            www.usccb.org

Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caritas in Veritate

Charity in Truth

Pope Benedict XVI

 

The second series of excerpts from Pope Benedict’s encyclical focuses on Human Rights and Duties:

 

“The right to food, like the right to water, has an important place within the pursuit of other rights, beginning with the fundamental right to life.” (27)

“In many cases, poverty results from a violation of the dignity of human work, either because work opportunities are limited (through unemployment or underemployment), or because a low value is put on work and the rights that flow from it, especially the right to a just wage and to the personal security of the worker and his or her family.” (63)

“A link is often been noted between claims to a “right to excess”, and even to transgression and vice, within affluent societies, and the lack of food, drinkable water, basic instruction and elementary health care in areas of the underdeveloped world and on the outskirts of large metropolitan centers. The link consists in this: individual rights, when detached from a framework of duties which grants them their full meaning, can run wild, leading to an escalation of demands which is effectively unlimited and indiscriminate.” (43)

 

Reflection Questions:

Why is the right to life considered the most” fundamental” of all rights?

How is the right to life related to other basic rights, like the rights to food and shelter?

 

“The reality of human solidarity, which is a benefit for us, also imposes a duty. Many people today would claim that they owe nothing to anyone, except to themselves. They are concerned only with their rights, and they often have great difficulty in taking responsibility for their own and other people’s integral development.” (43)

“The more we strive to secure a common good corresponding to the real needs of our neighbors, the more effectively we love them. Every Christian is called to practice charity, in a manner corresponding to his vocation.” (7)

 

Reflection Questions:

What is a duty and how is it related to the rights we possess as human beings?

What does it mean to have a duty to “secure a common good”?

How can you fulfill your Christian duty, to practice charity by working toward the common good?

 

 

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

www.usccb.org

 

 

Pope Benedict’s newest encyclical was written to address the current economic crisis and deals with moral aspects of economic life, poverty and development, human rights and duties, environmental responsibility, and other moral and economic issues.

This is the first in a series of quotes from Caritas in Veritate dealing with “Charity, Justice and the Common Good.”
“Charity is at the heart of the Church’s social doctrine. Every responsibility and every commitment spelt out by that doctrine is derived from charity which, according to the teaching of Jesus, is the synthesis of the entire Law.” (Mt.22:33-40) (2)
“If we love others with charity, then first of all we are just towards them. Not only is justice not extraneous to charity, not only is it not an alternative or parallel path to charity: justice is inseparable from charity, and intrinsic to it. Justice is the primary  way of charity...an integral part of love “in deed and in truth (1 Jn 3:18). On the one hand, charity demands justice… on the other hand, charity transcends justice and completes it in the logic of giving and forgiving.” (6)
“Feed the hungry” (Mt 25: 35,37,42) is an ethical imperative for the universal Church, as she responds to the teachings of her Founder, the Lord Jesus, concerning solidarity and the sharing of goods. Moreover, the elimination of world hunger has also, in the global era, become a requirement for safeguarding the peace and stability of the planet. Hunger is not so much dependent on lack of material things as on shortage of social resources, the most important of which are institutional . What is missing, is a network of economic institutions capable of guaranteeing regular access to sufficient food and water for nutritional needs, and also capable of addressing the primary needs and necessities ensuing from genuine food crises, whether due to natural causes or political irresponsibility, nationally and internationally… eliminating the structural causes that give rise to it and promoting the agricultural development of poorer countries. (27)
“Economic activity cannot solve all social problems through the simple application of commercial logic. This needs to be directed towards the pursuit of the common good, for which the political community must take responsibility. It must be borne in mind that grave imbalances are produced when economic action, conceived merely as an engine for wealth creation, is detached from political action, conceived as a means for pursuing justice through redistribution.” (36)
“Human beings legitimately exercise a responsible stewardship over nature, in order to protect it, to enjoy its fruits and to cultivate it in new ways, with the assistance of advanced technologies, so that it can worthily accommodate and feed the world’s population. On this earth there is room for everyone: here the entire human family must find the resources to live with dignity, through the help of nature itself-God’s gift to his children-and through hard work and creativity. At the same time we must recognize our grave duty to hand the earth on to future generations in such a condition that they too can worthily inhabit it and continue to cultivate it. This means being committed to making joint decisions...aimed at strengthening that covenant between human beings and the environment...mirror the creative love of God, from whom we come and journey towards.” (5)

June  PSM Financial Report

 

The Black Bag collection and the monthly tithe to Parish Social Ministry before disbursements to various PSM accounts amounted to $ 2,916.21.

 

The PSM office financially assisted in June:

3 families with rent totaling $175.00

1 parishioner totaling $200.00

1 family with gas totaling $50.00

12 families with electric including 2 parishioners totaling $754.73

3 people with gasoline vouchers totaling $60.00

135 families were served in the PSM Pantry

Copprome Orphanage $500.00 donation from a PSM discretionary account for SJV Honduras mission trip.

 

Your generosity to assist the poor and needy in our parish and surrounding community is such a gift from God. Your weekly in-kind donations to the various food pantries and the PSM household pantry is appreciated as the need is increasing as more families are suffering from unemployment and underemployment each month.

 

Please continue to live out your baptismal call to take care of the poor and vulnerable. If every household each week would donate 1-2 items for our PSM Pantry our shelves would be full . The barrels are located in the Narthex.

 

Items needed:

Shampoo/conditioner

Bar soap

Deodorant

Laundry detergent (29 load size)

Fabric softener sheets

Baby wash

Baby powder

Baby shampoo

Paper towels

Toothpaste

Liquid cleaning products

 

Food Pantry at RR Serving Center and St. Vincent de Paul

Need:

Rice, beans, spaghetti

Canned meat (tuna, chicken)

Spaghetti sauce

Canned fruit and vegetables

Cereals

 

Remember the black bag collection is next weekend to assist the poor in our community.

 

“For I was hungry you gave me food...I was naked, you clothed me...I was a stranger, you welcomed me...whatever you did for one of these least… you did for me.” Matthew 25: 31-46

 

 

SJV Honduras Mission Trip

 

The mission trip to Honduras by 10 of our parishioners was truly a gift from God to each one of us.

 

There were quite a few trips to different areas of El Progresso where agencies take care of the abandoned children from impoverished families. We also went into the community and visited with some families that are part of the community outreach of the Copprome Orphanage.

 

Copprome: An orphanage run by The Sisters of Notre Dame that takes in children as young as 3 years of age until the age of 22 and pays for their schooling in the public school system, tutoring after school, until they graduate from a trade school or the university  so they can be self-sufficient.

 

Hogar Suyapa: A children’s home founded by the El Progresso parish of Our Lady of Mercy. All the children there are put there by the Family Court so they can have a safe environment.

 

Nutrition Center: The parish of Las Mercedes opened this nutrition center to care for children who are suffering from severe malnutrition. These children stay at the center until they are fully recovered which is usually 4 to 6 months.

 

Mt. Olive: A homeless community that lives by the river, bathe and wash clothes in the river. The children there don’t go to school as they can’t afford the $50 to send them each year.

 

“ My purpose for going to Honduras was to get closer to God. Christ’s teachings and the Church have always said that the poor are special to God. I think that is one way to get to know God better-by being among his poor children. I found Honduras poor but not unhappy. I saw weak housing, roads and water but overlooked all that and saw people very much like anyone in our local parish. I went on this trip not to feel sorry for those who have much less than any of us, but rather simply just to be with these people, be myself, and give everyone the respect they deserve.

I know that America has needy children that need our love and attention as well, but the Catholic Church is worldwide and God cares about all the world’s people. It’s just a matter of offering what one can and is willing to give and letting God do the rest.”

Chuck Freese

 

“Honduras was an experience that still fills my thoughts. So much poverty, yet so much hope for the children who are blessed enough to be supported. The children in the orphanages are well loved and education is instilled in each of them as critical to their future. You should have seen their faces when they put on the new clothes and shoes that SJV so graciously donated to them… At Mt. Olives, the series of shacks built on the river levee, we found children whose families had lost everything, which for some must have been an incredible shock. We met a little girl who said ‘I am 11. I can speak some English.’   I left there with a desire to return and a commitment to help the children. I see how I waste my time, talent and treasure on things not important in God’s eyes.”

Steve Macy