MONDAY MORNING MISSION MEDITATION for the week of May 13, 2012

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) 





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On Sunday, (Sixth Sunday of Easter (http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/051312.cfm) we read from the Gospel of John about Jesus’ discourse about love.  We clearly know that Jesus’ mission of healing and compassion is rooted in the love of God; He shows us that this love is lived out daily in our inter-actions with each other and our neighbors -- both far and near.  The Good News of Jesus reveals how the Father loved each of us first; we in turn are called to live that love rooted in God.

In Catholic Charities http://www.ccdoy.org , we organize that love in the name of the Church.  We bring that love of God through our many services that provide service, advocate for those without a voice, and through our working with others to do the same.  As Catholic Charities we help the baptized to live out their calling to love God and love our neighbor.  What great work!  To share the love of God each day with each person we encounter.


Reflection from Church Documents and Official Statements

Bishops Reiterate Priorities To Protect Poor, Promote The Common Good In Letter To House

May 8, 2012
WASHINGTON—Congress should assess every budget decision by how it reflects the shared responsibility of the government and other institutions to protect human life and dignity, especially of the poor and vulnerable, said the bishop who chairs the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in a May 8 letter to the House of Representatives.

“The Catholic bishops of the United States recognize the serious deficits our country faces, and we acknowledge that Congress must make difficult decisions about how to allocate burdens and sacrifices and balance resources and needs,” wrote Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, California, as the House prepared to vote on a reconciliation package for the 2013 budget.“However, deficit reduction and fiscal responsibility efforts must protect and not undermine the needs of poor and vulnerable people. The proposed cuts to programs in the budget reconciliation fail this basic moral test.”

Bishop Blaire singled out an “unfair” proposal to change the Child Tax Credit to exclude children of immigrant families, “the large majority of whom are American citizens,” proposed cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps) that would affect all poor families and be “a direct threat to their human dignity,” and the cutting of the Social Services Block Grant, “an important source of funding for programs throughout the country” that serve “the homeless, the elderly, people with disabilities, children living in poverty, and abuse victims.”

The full text of Bishop Blaire’s letter is available online: www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/federal-budget/upload/reconciliation-letter-to-house-2012-05-08.pdf



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

See website for biographies of Saints and Blessed celebrated this week.

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For Daily Readings  http://www.usccb.org/calendar/index.cfm?showLit=1&action=month

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HAPPY MOTHERS’ DAY TO ALL!

TUESDAY MAY 15:  Anniversary of the establishment of the Diocese of Youngstown in 1943.

TUESDAY MAY 15:  Anniversary of the publication of Pope Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum  http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/leo_xiii/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_15051891_rerum-novarum_en.html

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TUESDAY MAY 15.   St. Isidore the Farmer

(1070-1130)  Isidore has become the patron of farmers and rural communities. In particular he is the patron of Madrid, Spain, and of the United States National Rural Life Conference.

When he was barely old enough to wield a hoe, Isidore entered the service of John de Vergas, a wealthy landowner from Madrid, and worked faithfully on his estate outside the city for the rest of his life. He married a young woman as simple and upright as himself who also became a saint—Maria de la Cabeza. They had one son, who died as a child.

Isidore had deep religious instincts. He rose early in the morning to go to church and spent many a holiday devoutly visiting the churches of Madrid and surrounding areas. All day long, as he walked behind the plow, he communed with God. His devotion, one might say, became a problem, for his fellow workers sometimes complained that he often showed up late because of lingering in church too long.

He was known for his love of the poor, and there are accounts of Isidore’s supplying them miraculously with food. He had a great concern for the proper treatment of animals.

He died May 15, 1130, and was declared a saint in 1622 with Ignatius of Loyola, Francis Xavier, Teresa of Avila and Philip Neri. Together, the group is known in Spain as “the five saints.”

CHARITIES NEWSBYTES

Read Bishop Murry’s Pastoral Letter on Poverty.  http://doy.org/files/Scroller/PastoralPoverty.pdf

  Ask yourself as you deepen your faith during these 50 days of Easter : Who Is My Neighbor?  How can I help?  

Catholic Charities Social Action office is sponsoring a class in Christian Moral Living for the Office of Religious Education Formation program.  The class is on Crime, Justice and the Death Penalty.  This class meets every Tuesday from April 24 til June 12 from 7 to 9m at the Ursuline Educational Center in Canfield.  Contact Joe Miles jmiles@youngstowndiocese.org for more information.

 PAPAL INTENTIONS:   

May 2012

   

    General Intention: The Family. That initiatives which defend and uphold the role of the family may be promoted within society. .

   

    Missionary Intention: Mary, Guide of Missionaries. That Mary, Queen of the World and Star of Evangelization, may accompany all missionaries in proclaiming her Son Jesus. 

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 https://www.facebook.com/pages/Catholic-Charities-Diocese-of-Youngstown/138817639487339
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/