Tuesday, November 30, 2010

More funding needed for children with HIV on World AIDS Day

AIDS medication has transformed the lives of adults with HIV in Nigeria. If only it was child friendly too.

29 November 2010
http://www.caritas.org/newsroom/press_releases/PressRelease29_11_10.html

This World AIDS Day on 1 December, Caritas is urging governments and pharmaceutical companies to invest more in HIV prevention and care for children and reducing mother-to-child transmission.

“We need to give children with HIV the chance to live,” said Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga, President of Caritas Internationalis. “Caritas asks governments and drug companies to support better and earlier testing and treatment for these children. This is a life or death situation.”

Caritas says many children and women are still being left behind in the fight against AIDS, despite welcome advances in HIV testing and treatment.

The UNAIDS Global Report for 2010 says 2.5 million children are living with HIV. The report says 90 percent of HIV-positive children live in Africa but only 26 percent of them are receiving life-saving treatment. Fifty percent of untreated children with HIV die before their second birthday.

Caritas launched the “HAART for Children” campaign in 2009. HAART stands for Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Treatment. The campaign says cheaper and more sophisticated HIV and TB testing tools and “child-friendly” medicines are required in poor countries.

Child-friendly medicines are manufactured in specially adapted dosages and formulations. They should include fixed-dose combinations of anti-retroviral medications to avoid under- or over-dosing.

These medicines are available at low-cost in many parts of the world, but mothers often avoid testing because they fear stigma and discrimination. Ninety percent of HIV-infected infants are born to mothers who were never tested and never received medicines to prevent transmission.

Caritas member organisations have been active in the HAART for Children campaign. Caritas Australia is mounting an electronic post-card campaign to encourage further research and development on paediatric medicines. Caritas Austria handed over 21,000 signatures collected by young people to the Austrian government in an effort to increase HIV funding for poor countries. Caritas India is working with students to monitor and report on the situation of HIV-positive children in local communities.

Caritas staff met pharmaceutical companies at a Round Table on Paediatric HIV in Geneva, Switzerland in September. Caritas Internationalis Special Advisor on HIV and Aids, Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo told the meeting that where inexpensive child friendly medications have become available, HIV-positive children returned to school and thrive.

During 2011, the Caritas will focus on advocacy for lower prices with an expanded range of HIV medications; on making accurate paediatric HIV and TB testing tools available at local clinics, rather than concentrating them in urban centres; and on promoting greater access to prevention of mother-to-child transmission programmes.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of November 28, 2010

Catholic Charities. Providing Help. Creating Hope.

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: Rooted in the Mission of the Diocese of Youngstown "to minister to the people in the six counties of northeastern Ohio . . .(and) to the world community", we are called to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Working to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality

WHAT WE DO: Organizing Love. "As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community" (Deus Caritas Est, par. 20)


On Sunday (First Sunday of Advent http://www.usccb.org/nab/112810.shtml) we read in the Gospel of Matthew about Jesus' warning that the time is at hand. He calls his disciples out of their sleep and urges them to stay awake. We then hear in the reading from the Prophet Isaiah that all will stream toward the Mountain of the Lord, where swords will be turned into ploughshares, wherein the Kingdom of God will be fulfilled. This first Sunday of Advent reminds us that the Kingdom of God is now at hand as we prepare to celebrate the feast of the Incarnation.

In Catholic Charities http://www.ccdoy.org , we help people find peace and comfort. They know that when they come to our offices, that we will find someway to help them find a solution to their issues or problems. We may not be able to give them everything they want, but our staff works diligently to seek ways to help fulfill their needs. As we enter into this season of Advent, awaiting the coming of the Lord, we share that joy and hope with each person we encounter, and find new joy through every encounter since we never know what angels we may be entertaining.


Reflection from Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical, Caritas in Veritate

"Today the subject of development is also closely related to the duties arising from our relationship to the natural environment. The environment is God's gift to everyone, and in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations and towards humanity as a whole. When nature, including the human being, is viewed as the result of mere chance or evolutionary determinism, our sense of responsibility wanes. In nature, the believer recognizes the wonderful result of God's creative activity, which we may use responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs, material or otherwise, while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. If this vision is lost, we end up either considering nature an untouchable taboo or, on the contrary, abusing it. Neither attitude is consonant with the Christian vision of nature as the fruit of God's creation."(par. 48a)



http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20090629_caritas-in-veritate_en.htm



Some important date(s) this week:
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/ByDate.aspx


WEDNESDAY December 1. World AIDS Day. http://worldaidsday.crs.org/ Worldwide the Catholic Church provides care for one out of every four people living with HIV.



SHARING HOPE IN HARD ECONOMIC TIMES.

FAIR TRADE: Christmas Time Gift Sharing
As the Christmas season for gift giving approaches, consider using your purchasing power to support social justice by buying fair traded goods. Visit Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade website for ideas and links to shopping.http://www.crsfairtrade.org/

Your prayers are always welcome. Did you know that our Catholic Charities agencies average about 75 calls for help each day? The average time it takes for a staff member to assist a client needing help with food, utilities, rent/mortgage, and prescriptions ranges from 45 to 60 minutes. Please pray for Catholic Charities’ staff who provide quality, compassionate service in the name of the Church to address basic human needs.




PAPAL INTENTIONS:

NOVEMBER 2010
Drug Addicts and Victims of Every Form of Dependence
General: That victims of drugs or of other dependence may, thanks to the support of the Christian community, find in the power of our Saving God strength for a radical life-change.

The Continent-wide Mission in Latin America
Missionary: That the Churches of Latin America may move ahead with the continent-wide mission proposed by their bishops, making it part of the universal missionary task of the People of God.

DECEMBER 2010
The Experience of Personal Suffering as a Help to Others who Suffer
General: That our personal experience of suffering may be an occasion for better understanding the situation of unease and pain which is the lot of many people who are alone, sick or aged, and stir us all to give them generous help.

Opening Our Doors to Christ
Missionary: That the peoples of the earth may open their doors to Christ and to His Gospel of peace, brotherhood and justice.

Corporal Works of Mercy: The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead



Note: Please consider joining our
FACEBOOK CAUSE http://apps.facebook.com/causes/106889
FACEBOOK GROUP http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=461833870606
FACEBOOK FAN
TWITTER account, CCDOY, http://twitter.com/CCDOY
for current updates and calls to action that we can all use.

See our website at www.catholiccharitiesyoungstown.org for links to the our ministries and services.
For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at: http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com/

Sunday, November 21, 2010

MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of November 21, 2010

Catholic Charities. Providing Help. Creating Hope.

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: Rooted in the Mission of the Diocese of Youngstown "to minister to the people in the six counties of northeastern Ohio . . .(and) to the world community", we are called to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Working to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality

WHAT WE DO: Organizing Love. "As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community" (Deus Caritas Est, par. 20)


On Sunday (The Solemnity of Christ the King, Cycle C, http://www.usccb.org/nab/112110.shtml ) we read in the Gospel of Luke about Jesus' encounter with the two thieves hanging beside him during his crucifixion. One thief mocks Jesus; the other defends Jesus to his compatriot, reminding him that they have sinned, and recognizing that Jesus' kingdom differs from the kingdoms of this world. This is a feast day celebrating the last Sunday of Ordinary time; it is the feast of Christ the King. Here we witness Jesus modeling the life of a real king: a humble servant, forgiving and loving to the very end.

In Catholic Charities http://www.ccdoy.org , we must witness to this type of Kingdom and Lord, as one who serves and loves unconditionally. We must help build that Kingdom of God that Jesus came to proclaim and to establish. His Kingdom is one of forgiveness, welcome, hope and love. These are the characteristics of Catholic Charities as we welcome each person made in God's image and likeness. We too are willing to be there to serve and help others as they strive to live a dignified life.



Reflection from Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical, Caritas in Veritate

"International cooperation requires people who can be part of the process of economic and human development through the solidarity of their presence, supervision, training and respect. From this standpoint, international organizations might question the actual effectiveness of their bureaucratic and administrative machinery, which is often excessively costly. At times it happens that those who receive aid become subordinate to the aid-givers, and the poor serve to perpetuate expensive bureaucracies which consume an excessively high percentage of funds intended for development. Hence it is to be hoped that all international agencies and non-governmental organizations will commit themselves to complete transparency, informing donors and the public of the percentage of their income allocated to programmes of cooperation, the actual content of those programmes and, finally, the detailed expenditure of the institution itself."(par. 47b)



http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20090629_caritas-in-veritate_en.htm



Some important date(s) this week:
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/ByDate.aspx




SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 27. Vigil for All Nascent Human Life, http://www.usccb.org/prolife/papalvigil/index.shtml Cathedral of St. Columba, 4:00 pm. Join the universal Church in welcoming in the new Liturgical Year, with a Vigil Service led by Bishop George V. Murry, SJ.



SHARING HOPE IN HARD ECONOMIC TIMES.

FAIR TRADE: Christmas Time Gift Sharing
As the Christmas season for gift giving approaches, consider using your purchasing power to support social justice by buying fair traded goods. Visit Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade website for ideas and links to shopping.http://www.crsfairtrade.org/


Thanksgiving....
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, Catholic Charities thanks all of those who support the Annual Bishop’s Appeal for Catholic Charities and Church, particularly during these difficult economic times. May God bless His faithful servants who struggle to provide for their own families, and their neighbors in need. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.



PAPAL INTENTIONS: NOVEMBER 2010

Drug Addicts and Victims of Every Form of Dependence
General: That victims of drugs or of other dependence may, thanks to the support of the Christian community, find in the power of our Saving God strength for a radical life-change.

The Continent-wide Mission in Latin America
Missionary: That the Churches of Latin America may move ahead with the continent-wide mission proposed by their bishops, making it part of the universal missionary task of the People of God.


Corporal Works of Mercy: The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead



Note: Please consider joining our
FACEBOOK CAUSE http://apps.facebook.com/causes/106889
FACEBOOK GROUP http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=461833870606
FACEBOOK FAN
TWITTER account, CCDOY, http://twitter.com/CCDOY
for current updates and calls to action that we can all use.

See our website at www.catholiccharitiesyoungstown.org for links to the our ministries and services.
For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at: http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com/

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Prelate Calls for Equitable, Human Health Care

Conference Applies "Caritas in Veritate" to Medical Industry

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 17, 2010 ( Zenit.org ).- Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski is underlining the need for human health care for all, following the principles outlined in "Caritas in Veritate."

The president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry said in a press conference Monday that "the present inequalities in health care call for undertaking courageous action without delay."

The press conference was called to present an international conference, which begins Thursday in Rome, on the topic "For Equitable and Human Health Care in the Light of the Encyclical 'Caritas in Veritate.'"

This two-day academic event will include the participation of Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Benedict XVI's secretary of state; Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino, former president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace; and current president of this dicastery, Cardinal Peter Turkson.

Archbishop Zimowski said that it is increasingly difficult to reconcile "economic, scientific and technical progress with the persistent inequality of access to health services, which is a fundamental human right."

He also lamented the "continuous inequalities between the health systems of rich countries and those of developing countries and, worse still, of those called underdeveloped."

The prelate pointed out how even in rich countries there are also "great differences in access to health care."

"Many poor people and immigrants do not have access to medicine and other technologies to save lives, because of so-called inaccessible or scarce existing health infrastructures in the respective nations," he continued.

Archbishop Zimowski announced that this conference, guided by the lines in "Caritas in Veritate" dedicated to health, "will examine among other things, the basic prospects for a more human and equitable promotion of health."

Person-centered

Domenico Adruni, a professor of gynecology and obstetrics, said that the conference is an attempt "to put man and the patient again at the center of our interest."

In this way, he said, we will become aware that "something is missing in the more advanced nations as well as in the less fortunate ones," though he clarified that the latter "perhaps are more fortunate from the human point of view, and always call for greater attention."

Adruni will take part in the conference's round table on equitable and human health care.

Franciscan Father Maurizio Faggioni, docent of bioethics in Rome's Alphonsian Academy, said that the conference aims to show the topic of health as "a natural human right, founded on the person, his dignity, and looking at the other."

Monsignor Jean-Marie Mpendawatu, undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry, presented some statistics on the topic: "Whereas in Italy births assisted by qualified health personnel reach 99%, in Ethiopia, 6% of pregnant women have this possibility, in Uganda 42% and in Laos 20%.

Archbishop Zimowski expressed the hope that this conference "will throw light on the way to improve access to the equality so desired of basic health care and that it be, at the same time, respectful of the inalienable dignity of man."

Sunday, November 14, 2010

MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of November 14, 2010

Catholic Charities. Providing Help. Creating Hope.

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: Rooted in the Mission of the Diocese of Youngstown "to minister to the people in the six counties of northeastern Ohio . . .(and) to the world community", we are called to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Working to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality

WHAT WE DO: Organizing Love. "As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community" (Deus Caritas Est, par. 20)


On Sunday (33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C, http://www.usccb.org/nab/111410.shtml ) we read in the Gospel of Luke about Jesus' discussion of the end of times. He notes that we are not to fear though we may see terrible signs and more importantly, families may be torn apart because of him. Rather we are to be persistent and know that Jesus will give us the words we will need in our testimony for our faith. We are to be signs of hope since we know, like the prophet Malachi, that God's healing rays will shine upon those who have faith and hope.

In Catholic Charities http://www.ccdoy.org , we are called to be people of hope. We give hope to a newcomer looking to normalize their lives; we give hope to a young family seeking support with their newborn; we give hope to a person in prisoner by our visit; we give hope by just listening to someone in need seeking advice; we give hope by being a presence of hospitality and welcome. That is one sign that Catholic Charities offers abundantly: hope.



Reflection from Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical, Caritas in Veritate

"The strengthening of different types of businesses, especially those capable of viewing profit as a means for achieving the goal of a more humane market and society, must also be pursued in those countries that are excluded or marginalized from the influential circles of the global economy. In these countries it is very important to move ahead with projects based on subsidiarity, suitably planned and managed, aimed at affirming rights yet also providing for the assumption of corresponding responsibilities. In development programmes, the principle of the centrality of the human person, as the subject primarily responsible for development, must be preserved. The principal concern must be to improve the actual living conditions of the people in a given region, thus enabling them to carry out those duties which their poverty does not presently allow them to fulfil. Social concern must never be an abstract attitude. Development programmes, if they are to be adapted to individual situations, need to be flexible; and the people who benefit from them ought to be directly involved in their planning and implementation. The criteria to be applied should aspire towards incremental development in a context of solidarity — with careful monitoring of results — inasmuch as there are no universally valid solutions. Much depends on the way programmes are managed in practice. 'The peoples themselves have the prime responsibility to work for their own development. But they will not bring this about in isolation'. These words of Paul VI are all the more timely nowadays, as our world becomes progressively more integrated. The dynamics of inclusion are hardly automatic. Solutions need to be carefully designed to correspond to people's concrete lives, based on a prudential evaluation of each situation. Alongside macro-projects, there is a place for micro-projects, and above all there is need for the active mobilization of all the subjects of civil society, both juridical and physical persons."(par. 47a)



http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20090629_caritas-in-veritate_en.htm



Some important date(s) this week:
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/ByDate.aspx


WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 17. St. Elizabeth of Hungary (1207-1231) In her short life Elizabeth manifested such great love for the poor and suffering that she has become the patroness of Catholic charities and of the Secular Franciscan Order. The daughter of the King of Hungary, Elizabeth chose a life of penance and asceticism when a life of leisure and luxury could easily have been hers. This choice endeared her in the hearts of the common people throughout Europe.
At the age of 14 Elizabeth was married to Louis of Thuringia (a German principality), whom she deeply loved; she bore three children. Under the spiritual direction of a Franciscan friar, she led a life of prayer, sacrifice and service to the poor and sick. Seeking to become one with the poor, she wore simple clothing. Daily she would take bread to hundreds of the poorest in the land, who came to her gate.
After six years of marriage, her husband died in the Crusades, and she was grief-stricken. Her husband’s family looked upon her as squandering the royal purse, and mistreated her, finally throwing her out of the palace. The return of her husband’s allies from the Crusades resulted in her being reinstated, since her son was legal heir to the throne.
In 1228 Elizabeth joined the Secular Franciscan Order, spending the remaining few years of her life caring for the poor in a hospital which she founded in honor of St. Francis. Elizabeth’s health declined, and she died before her 24th birthday in 1231. Her great popularity resulted in her canonization four years later.



SHARING HOPE IN HARD ECONOMIC TIMES.

FAIR TRADE: Christmas Time Gift Sharing
As the Christmas season for gift giving approaches, consider using your purchasing power to support social justice by buying fair traded goods. Visit Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade website for ideas and links to shopping.http://www.crsfairtrade.org/

November is National Adoption Month, a time set aside each year to raise awareness about the adoption of children and youth from foster care. There are hundreds of children waiting for loving parents and families right here in the Diocese of Youngstown. Are you willing to open your heart and your home to a child? If so, contact Catholic Charities Regional Agency at 330-744-3320.



PAPAL INTENTIONS: NOVEMBER 2010

Drug Addicts and Victims of Every Form of Dependence
General: That victims of drugs or of other dependence may, thanks to the support of the Christian community, find in the power of our Saving God strength for a radical life-change.

The Continent-wide Mission in Latin America
Missionary: That the Churches of Latin America may move ahead with the continent-wide mission proposed by their bishops, making it part of the universal missionary task of the People of God.


Corporal Works of Mercy: The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead



Note: Please consider joining our
FACEBOOK CAUSE http://apps.facebook.com/causes/106889
FACEBOOK GROUP http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=461833870606
FACEBOOK FAN
TWITTER account, CCDOY, http://twitter.com/CCDOY
for current updates and calls to action that we can all use.

See our website at www.catholiccharitiesyoungstown.org for links to the our ministries and services.
For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at: http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com/

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Pope Encourages G-20 Summit to Resolve Crisis

Stresses Goal of Authentic Human Development
VATICAN CITY, NOV. 10, 2010 ( Zenit.org ).- Benedict XVI is urging the Group of 20 world leaders to find lasting, sustainable and just solutions to the global economic crisis.
The Pope stated this in a message sent to Korean President Lee Myung-bak on the occasion of the two-day G-20 summit, which begins Thursday in Seoul, South Korea.

The Pontiff acknowledged that this 6th summit "seeks solutions to quite complex questions, on which the future of upcoming generations depends and which therefore require the cooperation of the entire international community."

This cooperation, he said, is "based on the acknowledgement -- which is shared and agreed by all peoples -- of the primary and central value of human dignity, the final objective of the choices themselves."

"The Catholic Church, in accordance with its specific nature, regards itself as involved and shares the concerns of the leaders who will take part in the Seoul Summit," the Holy Father said.

He continued, "I therefore encourage you to tackle the numerous serious problems facing you -- and which, in a sense, face every human person today -- bearing in mind the deeper reasons for the economic and financial crisis and giving due consideration to the consequences of the measures adopted to overcome the crisis itself, and to seek lasting, sustainable and just solutions."

"In doing so," Benedict XVI affirmed, "it is my hope that there will be a keen awareness that the solutions adopted, as such, will work only if, in the final analysis, they are aimed at reaching the same goal: the authentic and integral development of man."

"The world's attention focuses on you," he stated, "and it expects that appropriate solutions will be adopted to overcome the crisis, with common agreements which will not favor some countries at the expense of others."

The Pope asserted, "It is decisive for the very future of humanity to show the world and history that today, thanks also to this crisis, man has matured to the point of being able to recognize that civilizations and cultures, like economic, social and political systems, can and must converge in a shared vision of human dignity, which respects the laws and requirements placed in it by God the Creator."

He added that "the G-20 will respond to the expectations placed in it and grant real success to future generations, if taking into consideration the various and sometimes contrasting problems afflicting the peoples of the earth, it is able to set out the characteristics of the universal common good and demonstrate its willingness to cooperate in order to attain it."

--- --- ---

On ZENIT's Web page:

Full text: http://zenit.org/article-30918?l=english

Saturday, November 6, 2010

MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of November 7, 2010

Catholic Charities. Providing Help. Creating Hope.

VISION: Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

MISSION: Rooted in the Mission of the Diocese of Youngstown "to minister to the people in the six counties of northeastern Ohio . . .(and) to the world community", we are called to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same.

GOALS: Catholic Charities is devoted to helping meet basic human needs, strengthening families, building communities and empowering low-income people. Working to reduce poverty in half by 2020.

KEY VALUE: Hospitality

WHAT WE DO: Organizing Love. "As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community" (Deus Caritas Est, par. 20)


On Sunday (32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C, http://www.usccb.org/nab/110710.shtml) we read in the Gospel of Luke about Jesus' discussion about the nature of the end times. He promises us resurrection from the dead. He reminds us that God is the God of the living. Like St. Paul, we remain confident that God is faithful and that he will strengthen and guard us from the evil one.

In Catholic Charities http://www.ccdoy.org, we too live that hope and faithfulness. We know that people confront much pain, anxiety, fear, and hurt. By coming to Catholic Charities, persons in need are looking for immediate help, but are also seeking a deeper sense of hope in the future. By being Church, we in Catholic Charities provide the help that is immediately needed but as importantly, if not more importantly, we offer hope. That theological virtue -- hope -- along with faith and love, make Catholic Charities a unique agency to those in need.



Reflection from Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical, Caritas in Veritate

" When we consider the issues involved in the relationship between business and ethics, as well as the evolution currently taking place in methods of production, it would appear that the traditionally valid distinction between profit-based companies and non-profit organizations can no longer do full justice to reality, or offer practical direction for the future. In recent decades a broad intermediate area has emerged between the two types of enterprise. It is made up of traditional companies which nonetheless subscribe to social aid agreements in support of underdeveloped countries, charitable foundations associated with individual companies, groups of companies oriented towards social welfare, and the diversified world of the so-called 'civil economy' and the 'economy of communion'. This is not merely a matter of a 'third sector', but of a broad new composite reality embracing the private and public spheres, one which does not exclude profit, but instead considers it a means for achieving human and social ends. Whether such companies distribute dividends or not, whether their juridical structure corresponds to one or other of the established forms, becomes secondary in relation to their willingness to view profit as a means of achieving the goal of a more humane market and society. It is to be hoped that these new kinds of enterprise will succeed in finding a suitable juridical and fiscal structure in every country. Without prejudice to the importance and the economic and social benefits of the more traditional forms of business, they steer the system towards a clearer and more complete assumption of duties on the part of economic subjects. And not only that. The very plurality of institutional forms of business gives rise to a market which is not only more civilized but also more competitive."(par. 46)



http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/encyclicals/documents/hf_ben-xvi_enc_20090629_caritas-in-veritate_en.htm



Some important date(s) this week:
http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/ByDate.aspx


SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13. St. Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917) was the first United States citizen to be canonized. Her deep trust in the loving care of her God gave her the strength to be a valiant woman doing the work of Christ.
Refused admission to the religious order which had educated her to be a teacher, she began charitable work at the House of Providence Orphanage in Cadogno, Italy. In September 1877, she made her vows there and took the religious habit.
When the bishop closed the orphanage in 1880, he named Frances prioress of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Seven young women from the orphanage joined with her.
Since her early childhood in Italy, Frances had wanted to be a missionary in China but, at the urging of Pope Leo XIII, Frances went west instead of east. She traveled with six sisters to New York City to work with the thousands of Italian immigrants living there.
She found disappointment and difficulties with every step. When she arrived in New York City, the house intended to be her first orphanage in the United States was not available. The archbishop advised her to return to Italy. But Frances, truly a valiant woman, departed from the archbishop’s residence all the more determined to establish that orphanage. And she did.
In 35 years Frances Xavier Cabrini founded 67 institutions dedicated to caring for the poor, the abandoned, the uneducated and the sick. Seeing great need among Italian immigrants who were losing their faith, she organized schools and adult education classes.
As a child, she was always frightened of water, unable to overcome her fear of drowning. Yet, despite this fear, she traveled across the Atlantic Ocean more than 30 times. She died of malaria in her own Columbus Hospital in Chicago.



SHARING HOPE IN HARD ECONOMIC TIMES.

FAIR TRADE: Christmas Time Gift Sharing
As the Christmas season for gift giving approaches, consider using your purchasing power to support social justice by buying fair traded goods. Visit Catholic Relief Services Fair Trade website for ideas and links to shopping.http://www.crsfairtrade.org/

Share your story. Catholic Charities relies on “angels like you” to help us serve others in Jesus’ name throughout the Diocese of Youngstown. Are you a long time supporter of Catholic Charities? If so, send us an email at charities@youngstowndiocese.org and tell us why you donate your time, talent and/or treasure to Catholic Charities. Your comments may be featured on our website or in an upcoming publication.



PAPAL INTENTIONS: NOVEMBER 2010

Drug Addicts and Victims of Every Form of Dependence
General: That victims of drugs or of other dependence may, thanks to the support of the Christian community, find in the power of our Saving God strength for a radical life-change.

The Continent-wide Mission in Latin America
Missionary: That the Churches of Latin America may move ahead with the continent-wide mission proposed by their bishops, making it part of the universal missionary task of the People of God.


Corporal Works of Mercy: The seven practices of charity toward our neighbor
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit those in prison
Bury the dead



Note: Please consider joining our
FACEBOOK CAUSE http://apps.facebook.com/causes/106889
FACEBOOK GROUP http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=461833870606
FACEBOOK FAN
TWITTER account, CCDOY, http://twitter.com/CCDOY
for current updates and calls to action that we can all use.

See our website at www.catholiccharitiesyoungstown.org for links to the our ministries and services.
For more information on Catholic Social Doctrine and its connection to our ministries, visit my blog at: http://corbinchurchthinking.blogspot.com/

Thursday, November 4, 2010

URGENT NEED TO EDUCATE LAITY IN CHURCH SOCIAL DOCTRINE

VATICAN CITY, 4 NOV 2010 (VIS) - The Pope has sent a Message to Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, to mark that body's plenary assembly which is currently benign held in Rome. The assembly is focusing on how the Encyclical "Caritas in veritate" has been received in various communities.



"Only with charity, supported by hope and illuminated by the light of faith and reason, is it possible to achieve the goals of the integral liberation of man and universal justice", the Holy Father writes.



Referring to the "fundamental problems affecting the destiny of peoples and of world institutions, as well as of the human family", which are examined in "Caritas in veritate", Benedict XVI points out that social and national inequalities "have by no means disappeared. ... Co-ordination among States - which is often inadequate because, rather than aiming to achieve solidarity, it aims only at a balance of power - leaves the field open to renewed inequalities, to the danger of the predominance of economic and financial groups which dictate - and intend to continue to do so - the political agenda at the expense of the universal common good".



The Holy Father stresses the urgent need "for commitment to educating Catholic laity in Church social doctrine". Lay Catholics "must undertake to promote the correct ordering of social life, while respecting the legitimate autonomy of worldly institutions".



"A profound understanding of the social doctrine of the Church is of fundamental importance, in harmony with all her theological heritage and strongly rooted in affirming the transcendent dignity of man, in defending human life from conception to natural death and in religious freedom. ... It is necessary to prepare lay people capable of dedicating themselves to the common good, especially in complex environments such as the world of politics".



The Pope concludes his Message by expressing the hope that the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace may continue "to prepare fresh 'aggiornamenti' of Church social doctrine". In order to globalise this doctrine, he writes, "it may be appropriate to create centres and institutions for its study, dissemination and implementation throughout the world".



"In collaboration with others, seek more effective ways to transmit the contents of social doctrine, not only in the traditional itineraries of Christian formation and education of all kinds and at all levels, but also in the great centres where world thought is forged - such as the organs of the lay press, universities and economic and social study centres - which in recent times have come into being in every corner of the earth".

MESS/ VIS 20101104 (450)