Social Justice Committee Update

Last July, we introduced the Social Justice Committee to the parish in this bulletin. The committee was formed as a response to the call from U.S. Catholic Bishops for every Catholic to understand and act on the social teachings of the Church.

Many in our group were not aware of the richness and depth of Catholic Social Teaching as a guide for our actions. The Archdiocese Office for Social Justice was a great help to us in building a background and increasing our understanding so we could begin to act. A major step for us was to gain insight on the differences between charity, with its focus on alleviating human suffering, and social justice, which directly addresses the causes of the suffering. Our exposure to teachers, social justice efforts in other parishes, and humanitarian aid organizations helped us to grow together as a group in our first year.

During our second year, we identified four areas related to Catholic Social Teaching that will become our focus. These ministries are driven both by historical parish efforts, such as feeding the hungry, and by the availability of leadership and experience in our committee and in the parish.

In 2010-11 you will be able to learn more about each of the areas we will emphasize: 

• October, 2010- Prison Ministry
• November, 2010- Feeding the Hungry
• January, 2011- Respect Life
• February 2011- Homelessness

During these months, we will schedule events that will fulfill our mission statement:  We will raise awareness of Catholic Social Teaching in our Parish and community and provide opportunities for those who wish to put that teaching into action.

In the coming year our committee will continue to deepen our commitment to further study of Catholic Social Teaching. We are also organizing a retreat for prayer and reflection that will be open to any interested parishioner.

An added benefit of our work is that it results in collaboration with other churches and organizations. Several current examples are- St. Stephen’s Human Services (Homelessness), University Life Care Center (Respect Life), Loaves and Fishes (Feeding the Hungry) and Hennepin County Workhouse (Prison Ministry). In addition, we participated in a retreat Saint Olaf Church organized last year. This collaboration with other churches and organizations is a natural result of all of our actions related to social justice.

We are grateful to Father Froehle and to the members of the Pastoral Council for their support and for the opportunity to deepen our commitment to social justice. I also want to thank the members of our committee for their work- Charlie Dahl, Jerry Fleischaker, Carole Froehle, Tom Hernandez, Victoria Johnson, Gina Munnelly, Dave Nordan, Joe O’Donnell, and Deacon Mike Wurdock.

Anyone who has questions or an interest in Catholic Social Teaching is welcome to contact us through the parish office.

Dale Herron, Social Justice Committee

Published in Bulletin: July 25th, 2010