In Baltimore City there is a population of more than 3,000 men and women who live on our downtown streets every day and night 365 days a year.  Though some of that large number enter overnight shelters, many prefer to sleep outdoors. It is hard to imagine that there is this significant number of persons who actually live in this manner within our town which we affectionately refer to as "Charm City--USA." 

 We know that most of the non-profit outreach food programs feed the poor only during weekdays. So we have made it our mission at Saint Ignatius Parish to provide sustenance through our Loaves & Fishes (L&F) ministry on weekends. We consider it a priority for our people to support this ministry ecumenically on Saturday evenings and solely on our own on Sunday evenings. For us L&F is an intentional choice on our part to respond to the summons of Jesus to feed the hungry. (Matthew 25:31-45) We desire to walk in the footsteps of James the apostle who reminds us in his letter: "What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if a person claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save that person? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food? If one of you says to the person, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about the person's physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead."  (James 2:14-17)

Thus, conscious that the homeless deserve a nutritious meal, we try to provide a hardy home-made soup, meat sandwiches, hot chocolate and coffee, fresh fruits and candy snacks as the weekend menu. When the weather becomes colder, we provide gloves, hats, scarves, socks, underwear, even coats and blankets. Toiletries, too, are a favorite of the homeless.

Obviously, this ministry requires many hands each weekend to carry out its mission. There are buyers of food, chefs to make the soup, assistant kitchen aides who prepare the sandwiches, those who retrieve the fruit and clothes, people who load the van, those who drive the van, and those who serve the homeless directly. We are blessed with four teams of parishioners with each team being responsible for one Sunday a month. There is a fifth team, too, which steps in to serve when there is a fifth Sunday in the month.

Because we are always in need of more hands to carry out all the responsibilities each Sunday, we are inviting all our parishioners to consider becoming a member of one of the teams. It is easy to sign up for this ministry. Simply click on the video found below that describes L&F and email either Amy Petkovsek or Sue Cesare here, or at the close of the video.

Thank you for giving serious thought to joining this premiere ministry at our parish. Remember: God blesses in a special way those  who reach out to serve and care for the poor.

One of our phenomenal ministries needs you!

St. Ignatius Lectures 

By William Bole

It was one of the most glaring and brazen human-rights crimes of the late 20th century.

In the predawn hours of November 16, 1989, an elite battalion of El Salvador's military forced its way into the Jesuit residence at the University of Central America, or UCA. The university, led by its president, Father Ignacio Ellacuría, SJ, had become a stronghold of opposition to human rights abuses committed by the U.S.-backed military.

On that night, soldiers dragged five priests out of their beds and into a courtyard, made them lay facedown on the grass, and fired bullets into their heads. They went back inside and killed another Jesuit. Then, searching the residence further, they found a housekeeper and her teenage daughter crouching in the corner of a bedroom, holding each other. The gunmen shot them too.

Twenty-five years later, many are still waiting for justice in the case of the murdered Jesuits and women. None of the top military commanders who issued the orders to kill was ever prosecuted for the crimes. There is now, however, renewed interest in bringing them to trial. Ramping up the pressure are global human rights groups and Spain, which claims jurisdiction in the case because five of the six Jesuit victims were Spaniards. CONTINUE ARTICLE AT JESUIT.ORG