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CALENDAR
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DECEMBER
December 22
"Evening of Prayer & Togetherness" organized by Muslim & Christian women of Hope & Faith
St. Patrick-St. Anthony
7 pm
JANUARy
January 9. 9-12 pm
"Gather Together"
Human Trafficking Event at First Assembly of God in Waterbury
APRIL
April 9th
Spring Laudato Si Workshop
April 20
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Join Our List
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| From the Director |
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During this Year of Mercy, as we talk about doors being opened, and walking through doors, it is only fitting that I share with you a new door that has been opened to us.
Effective March 1, 2016, the physical location of our office will be the Archdiocesan Center of St. Thomas Seminary in Bloomfield. There are a variety of positives and negatives about such a move, both real and symbolic. We are going into the move with a genuine open heart and look forward to the new possibilities it will bring us as we are physically located with other diocesan offices. The move will not impact our mission and vision. We will continue to serve the people of the archdiocese, from Milford to Enfield. Although our roots as an office are in New Haven, we have always been "on the road" meeting with people and helping parishes; that will not change.
The move is providing us with the impetus to clear our out offices and sort through years of history. Our physical footprint - and carbon footprint - will be smaller than that at 81 Saltonstall. As a result we have many books, office supplies, and miscellaneous items to give away. We invite you to stop by the office during business hours, 8:30-4:30 to say hello and browse through our items.
Advent Blessings,
Lynn Campbell, Executive Director
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Catholic Campaign for Human Development
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"True mercy, the mercy God gives to us and teaches us, demands justice, it demands that the poor find the way to be poor no longer," Pope Francis 9/10/13.
Thank you for your contributions to the collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD)! Your generous gifts will help CCHD break the cycle of poverty in the United States through better education, improved housing, and economic development. Through CCHD we help people help themselves out of poverty. A 2015 list of funded groups within the Archdiocese can be found here.
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| Associates for Justice - Last opportunity to give............ | |
Thank you for your support!
Through the generous support of an annual gift, our Associates for Justice allow us to advance Catholic social teaching by educating and preparing parishes to work for social justice. The gifts especially benefit our expanded efforts of outreach to the growing Catholic Hispanic community and to youth and young adults. This year we were able to reach thousands of immigrants with programming on new laws which impact their lives. We were also able to provide hundreds of youth and young adults with formation and practical applications of Catholic Social Teaching.
Associates for Justice are invited each year to our annual dinner and awards event, and are asked to nominate recipients of the Bishop Joseph F. Donnelly memorial Awards. If you are not yet an Associate for Justice, becoming an Associate is easy. Simply follow the directions on our on-line giving site.Let's work together to create a more just society!
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Human Trafficking Awareness Event
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'Gather Together' - Saturday, January 9, from 9-12 pm, at the First Assembly of God in Waterbury, sponsored by The Underground CT, an interdenominational organization working to engage our churches in prayer and action against Human Trafficking in CT. Similar to the workshop we organized in Rocky Hill, this event features several expert speakers to present with a focus on our in-state response to this injustice.
Thank you for your support in continuing to stand against trafficking in CT. For information please see the Event Flyer on our website or you can email them.
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| Call on Congress to support the EITC and CTC | |
CCUSA urges supporters to write to their representatives in Congress to not only reauthorize the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) but also to improve them and make them permanent so that millions of hard-working, low-income families continue to be lifted out of poverty.
The EITC is a refundable federal income tax credit for low-income working individuals and families. It is designed to supplement the wages of low-income workers so that a full-time, low-income worker with a family is lifted above the poverty line. Last year, the EITC lifted 6.7 million people out of poverty.
The CTC is a partially-refundable tax credit designed to help families with the cost of raising children. As with the EITC, the CTC is aimed to encourage work and is the largest tax provision benefiting families with children. The CTC is estimated to have protected 3 million people from falling into poverty, including 1.6 million children.
Together the EITC and CTC bridge the critical gap between the failures of the economy and the needs of families. Approximately eight million children will be pushed into (or deeper into) poverty and many dual-income families will once again face a marriage penalty, if the improvements are allowed to expire.
CCUSA joined with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops earlier this year to urge Congress to make the temporary improvements to the EITC and refundable Child Tax Credit permanent while making further improvement to the EITC. The letter can be found here.
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| Alternative Gift Giving and Green America's Pledge | |
Yes, it is mid-December, but we know some of you are still looking for gift ideas! When it comes to gift giving, it's hard enough to find the "right" gift for someone. If you want add in Catholic Social Teaching principles, it may seem to only further complicate the holiday season. Here are some easy tips to keep in mind:
1) Think fair trade
2) Buy from local artisans
3) Make, bake, create handmade gifts
Green America has put out a pledge, asking people to support local, green, handmade and homegrown businesses: Less Tinsel...More Joy!
"I pledge to consume less and spend wisely this holiday season. When I do make holiday purchases, I pledge to shift 20% or more of my spending away from cookie-cutter consumerism and one-use waste; and towards local, green, Fair Trade, handmade and homegrown businesses that produce sustainable goods for people and the planet.Together, if all American households shift just 20% of our holiday spending to green purchases, we could steer nearly $117.2 billion toward green jobs and the green economy. That's billions toward businesses that build community... billions toward recycling, composting, and reuse... billions toward reduced energy use... billions toward fair supply chains that protect workers and stop sweatshop abuses.It's my way of telling big-box stores and greedy CEOs it's time to start investing in a clean energy future, paying fair wages, valuing local communities, and protecting the planet we all share!"- Green America
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| January is Poverty Awareness Month | |
"I want a Church which is poor and for the poor." - Pope Francis, The Joy of the Gospel
(Evangelii Gaudium)
During Poverty Awareness Month, join the U.S. Bishops, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development and the Catholic Community in the United States in taking up Pope Francis' challenge to live in solidarity with the poor!
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| National Migration Week: January 3-9, 2016 | |
Sow Love and Peace, not Fear
In his Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, Pope Francis states: "The Church stands at the side of all who work to defend each person's right to live with dignity, first and foremost by exercising the right not to emigrate and to contribute to the development of one's country of origin. This process should include, from the outset, the need to assist the countries which migrants and refugees leave. This will demonstrate that solidarity, cooperation, international interdependence and the equitable distribution of the earth's goods are essential for more decisive efforts, especially in areas where migration movements begin, to eliminate those imbalances which lead people, individually or collectively, to abandon their own natural and cultural environment. In any case, it is necessary to avert, if possible at the earliest stages, the flight of refugees and departures as a result of poverty, violence and persecution." Pope Francis goes on to say "Public opinion also needs to be correctly formed, not least to prevent unwarranted fears and speculations detrimental to migrants." Catholic Relief Services shares this message: "In the wake of these terrorist attacks, some have called for turning away those fleeing the civil war and persecution by ISIS in Syria who seek refuge in Europe and the United States. Here are five reasons why we should instead increase support for these refugees, as well as welcome them and work for peace." National Migration Week is January 3-9, 2016. National Migration Week 2016 picks up on the theme of welcome and, in doing so, calls on each of us to welcome the stranger among us. The Year of Mercy is an opportune time to share this message and sow love not fear. Resources to educate and celebrate World Migrant Week are available here.
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| JustFaith | |
A new door is being opened to an extraordinary year -a year of turning our minds, our hearts, and our lives around. JustFaith Ministries invites you to try something new, surprising, and extraordinary. JustFaith Ministries offers wonderful opportunities for small groups of people to explore the Year of Mercy. It has been our experience that there is nothing more powerful than a JustFaith program to kindle the heart. The GoodNews People Program is especially inspiring for parishes looking to build their community in the Year of Mercy.
In 2016, JustFaith is offering three new pathways to introduce and re-introduce faithful people to their unique work and mission. Visit their website to learn more about these exciting possibilities.
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| Year of Mercy Resources | |
To live mercy, we must rediscover both the spiritual works of mercy and the corporal works of mercy. We will be offering "Living Mercy in the Year of Mercy" handouts on the Corporal Works of Mercy. Designed for parish bulletins or for discussion starters for parish meetings, the handouts use the "Pray, Learn, Act" format. The first in the series, "Feed the Hungry", is already posted to our website. Check back soon for the complete set!
As part of the Jubilee Year of Mercy celebration parishes will be encouraged to gather in small Lenten Mercy Groups for reflection, prayer and conversation around the parables of mercy. The Pastoral Department for Small Christian Communities will be offering a special resource, Mercy Quest, to be offered to parishioners for use during Lent. Reach them by email or by phone at 860-242-5573 ext. 7450. The archdiocesan website has a prominent section on its Homepage where a calendar of activities and celebrations will be updated throughout the year. Beyond these websites, you may find updates here and here.
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| The True Strength of the Most Vulnerable | |
We recently celebrated Thanksgiving Day at Saint Augustine parish in Hartford. The Hispanic Parish Social Ministry leaders from the parish gathered to celebrate several important moments. We prayed and ate together. Rev. Jose Mercado blessed the food and welcomed all of us.
More than 65 parishioners were blessed, not only by eating together the day before Thanksgiving, but by being blessed in receiving the Lord's strength to fortify their leadership gifts in order to accomplish an important social justice mission; advocate for their rights and dignity.
Sixty-one undocumented parishioners celebrated the importance of having their Driver's Licenses. Allowing them to be able to drive legally and safe. More importantly, they will be protected from deportation, avoiding family separation.
Even though sheep are timid creatures, sheep are full of fear. Yet how like sheep our immigrant families are. Christ is there with us. He is our strength. "I have the strength for everything through Him who empowers me" Philippians 4:13
The Lord reminds us in thanksgiving; "bless the God of all, who has done wondrous things on earth; who fosters people's growth from their mother's womb, and fashions them according to his will! May he grant you joy of heart and may peace abide among you; May his goodness toward us endure in Israel to deliver us in our days." (USCCB)
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Resources for the New Encyclical Laudato Sí
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8 Page Study Guide from the Sisters of Loretto
The following study guide is divided into 7 sections, the 6 chapters of the Encyclical are followed by a final discussion on how to live the teaching. A meeting template for group discussions is included. You might want to meet in one large group or divide into smaller groups; you could meet on 6 separate occasions or you could meet less frequently and combine chapters. Click here for the pdf.
19 Page Pauline Press Study GuidePope Francis addresses his encyclical Laudato Sí to all the people of the world. This guide can be used either for individual study or for group discussion of this important document. The guideincludes a summary of each chapter of the encyclical, along with study questions and some reflections for prayer. Click here for the pdf.
CRS and Ave Maria Webinar
In this webinar Ted Miles, Youth and Education Relationship Manager at Catholic Relief Services, highlights some of the core themes of the Holy Father's recent encyclical in light of the environmental challenges faced by the world's most vulnerable people. Explore the collection of resources offered by Catholic Relief Services and others that aid in fostering dialogue and faith-filled engagement with young people on this core issue of our time. Watch it here.
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