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Mission Statement: In the spirit of Christian love and justice, the Voice of the Poor Committee upholds Catholic values by researching, validating, documenting, advocating, and promulgating issues related to the condition of the poor and disenfranchised for the purpose of helping Vincentians to live their faith by acting knowledgeably and credibly as a unified body speaking with one voice for the purpose of building up the Kingdom of God.
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This doctrinal note on "the participation of Catholics in political life" is from the Congregation on the Doctrine of Faith. It is directed to the Bishops of the Catholic Church, to Catholic politicians and to all lay members of the faithful "called to participate in the political life of democratic societies."
In a press release from USCCB (11-14-07): "The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) today overwhelmingly approved a statement called Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility from the Catholic Bishops of the United States. (www.faithfulcitizenship.org ) The statement urges Catholics to be involved in public life and to use the values of their faith to shape their political choice. It was approved at the bishops’ general meeting in Baltimore, November 12-15." "The Faithful Citizenship statement concludes with a “call for a renewed kind of politics:
- Focused more on moral principles than on the latest polls;
- Focused more on the needs of the weak than on benefits for the strong;
- Focused more on the pursuit of the common good than on the demands of narrow interests."
Do's & Don'ts of Faithful Citizenship
DON'T: Endorse or oppose candidates, distribute partisan materials, use church (or SVDP) facilities for partisan groups or candidates, invite only some candidates, tell people how to vote.
DO: Share Catholic social teaching, address issues of justice and peace, conduct non-partisan voter symposiums, distribute unbiased materials
*Source: Catholic Charities USA. Parish Strategy for Legislative Advocacy. 2004 Catholic Charities USA, Appendix B.
Faithful Citizenship Notes (San Francisco Archdiocese
Workshop (April 3, 2008)
Joan Rosenhauer from US Conference of Catholic Bishops was the key presenter.
Following are notes.
What Faithful Citizenship is
NOT:
It is not
a new idea. Calling for just laws
that promote those on the margins of society is not new. Faithful
Citizenship is found in the Old Testament.
(Isaiah 10:1-3) Faithful
Citizenship is rooted in scripture; a part of our faith tradition.
(Catechism No. 1913-1915)
It is not
an attempt by the Church to get into partisan politics.
The Church does not endorse candidates and parties.
The Church must maintain the integrity of our teaching and cannot
become tied to someone else’s agenda.
Church helps to form consciences in accordance with God’s truth.
It is not
the UCSA (United Catholic States of
It is not
an attempt to create a religious voting block.
We have a moral responsibility to promote what is good.
Affirmation of Catholic Social Teaching
a)
The centrality of the Eucharist connects us to solidarity.
We are called to solidarity through the body of Christ in communion with
the world. (Mane Nobiscum Domine, No. 27)
Our call to charity is “…as essential to her (the Church) as the ministry
of the sacraments and the preaching of the Gospel.”
(Deus Caritas Est, Pope Benedict’s Encyclical) While disagreements happen
it is important to study what the Church says.
Faithful Citizenship involves: 1) studying sacred scripture and the
teachings of the Church, 2) carefully examining the facts and background
information, 3) prayerful reflection to discern the will of God.
(Faithful Citizenship No. 18)
The seven basic themes of the Church:
1.
Life and dignity of the human person
2.
Call to family, community, and participation
3.
Rights and responsibilities
4.
Option for the poor and vulnerable
5.
The dignity of work and the rights of workers
6.
Solidarity
7.
Care for God’s creation
b)
Avoid evil and do good. Some things are
intrinsically wrong that we can never support (abortion, euthanasia, cloning,
genocide, racism, etc). We have a
responsibility to promote what is good, to affirm the truths of our faith.
(Faithful Citizenship No. 29).
If we do not bring our religious values to the table then other values
will take priority
Call to Faithful Citizenship
a)
The role of the Church is to help to form consciences
in accordance with God’s truth
(described as the
voice of God in the human heart). The Church does not tell Catholics what to do or how to vote.
We have to make the moral choices.
(Catechism No. 1730)
b)
Our responsibility is to participate in the political process.
(Deus Caritas Est No. 13) Voting
is a moral duty. (Faithful Citizenship No. 34-37) It is one small part of being
politically active. Being a faithful
citizen does not begin and end in the voting booth.
We need to stay involved after the voting is over and be true to our
values. We need to be more Catholic
than we are Republican or Democrat.
We ought to shape the party (so it is in line with what we value) and not have
the party shape us. Catholics are not
single issue voters
Political activities guidelines released March 15, 2004 are "provided by the USCCB Office of General Counsel in order to assist (arch)dioceses, parishes, and other Catholic organizations (“Catholic organizations”) that are exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code ('IRC') in distinguishing activities that are permitted during election campaigns from activities that are prohibited." Found at: http://www.usccb.org/ogc/guidelines.shtml
Video in English or Spanish -- resource manual on Catholic social teaching http://www.usccb.org/comm/archives/2003/03-107.shtml and Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions. An order form is available at: http://www.usccb.org/faithfulcitizenship/order_form_rev.pdf
Robert P. Maloney, CM presents ten building-blocks upon which the Church's entire social teaching rests and says, "I want to encourage all the members of our Vincentian Family to communicate the Church's social teaching to others. This teaching should be very important for us who live in the Vincentian tradition. The Church's preferential option for the poor flows from it. The poor will surely benefit to the extent that we, and others, are deeply rooted in this 'essential part of Catholic faith." Found at: http://www.cm-ngo.net/TenFoundationalPrinciples.html
Justice
and Charity,
by Frank V. Manning
for the Voice of the Poor. Mr. Manning is Twinning Chair for the South Central
Region and Twinning Coordinator for the SVDP Diocesan Council of Fort Worth 100.92KB (103341 bytes)
Sometimes we think of charity and justice as two very different things. Since historically the Society of St. Vincent de Paul has primarily been concerned with works of charity, we might have a tendency to overlook how vital the demands of justice are to its mission. The following article, on the relationship between charity and justice presents, in a very abbreviated fashion, a few of the insights of Sacred Scripture, Theology and the Magisterium on the intimate link between justice and charity, reinforcing our basic Vincentian commitment not only to addressing the needs of the poor, but to seeking to attack the causes of their poverty as well.
Vincentian, Phil Schlosser, Seattle VOP, in his article, "What Home Visits are All About," (June 2004) reminds us of the importance of Vincentianism in action. The value of knowing the poor and not just advocating for the poor is the special gift of members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
Vincentian Spirituality, "unofficial" translations (French to English) by Sr. Mary Wedding, a Sister of Charity of Nazareth, with Sr. Elizabeth Charpy, DC of the Paris Province is found on famvin at:
"An Effective Way of Communicating St. Vincent, " looks at practical expressions of justice and charity expressed by Vincent de Paul and Louise de Marillac. The article covers eight topics beginning with God as the "source and model of all charity" and following with topics such as, "long term, well structured planning, ""lobbying to change an unjust system," and the "formation of others as a matter of justice."
Task Force on the 'Doctrinal Note... On the Participation of Catholics in Political Life, Bishop John Ricard, Monday, November 10, 2003.
Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee and Chairman of the Committee on International Policy - remarks about a proposal to study the issue of engaging Catholic politicians.
Two Feet of Social Action, graphic depicting charity (social service) and justice (social change).
The "Two Feet of Social Action" was created by Rev. Marvin A. Mottet, Sacred Heart Cathedral, Davenport, IA.
The presentation provides an invitation for
members to be a voice of the poor. Included is an overview of poverty
and the mission of the voice of the poor.
This presentation was given at the annual National SVdP
meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, Sept. 2003. Mr. Purdy shares this
presentation with the Voice of the Poor . The goal of the workshop:
"to make the connection between our call to be brother and sister to
each other and the great theological reflections and writings that help us
understand why and how we should help."
Mr. Claffey shares this presentation with the Voice of the
Poor.
Photos provided by Lou Wise, National Council, Co-chair of the
National Twinning Committee.To access SVDP on YouTube go to: YouTube.com/SVdPUSA.
The
Society and Poverty in America CD developed by De Paul University
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaM6gUHEF5s
The
Society's Response to (Hurricane) Katrina
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bgagk0JjnLc
St.
Vincent de Paul, St. Louis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-w7bKc05dg
Share
Your Love, Orange County, CA
http://www.svdpoc.org/html/welcome.htm
(Go to right column, click on "play video")
The following sampling of sites is for information purposes only. (Links to Internet sites contained in this website are not an endorsement of viewpoints, products or services on those sites.)
"St. Vincent de Paul Apostle of the poor" St. John's
University (with :music: "Into the Arms of St. Vincent" by Ray Sickinger) --
YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SXx8zf2qyM
"Tell Me Why"
video clip on St. Vincent de Paul (Declan Galbraith) --
YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vVJvMxUfqA
"When the Children Cry...Tell Me Why" (Declan Galbraith) -- YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9F31ScdYbK8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ds4ncD1dVdc
"The
Sending" -- YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3v1miWWnro
St.
Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous Medal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2pF5XhNSJk
The Vincentian Encyclopedia (famvin wiki) contains a section containing a list of more than 50 links to Vincentian YouTubes.
http://famvin.org/wiki/YouTubeA summary of news related to poverty issues around the world (from Google News) may be found under Poverty News.
"The Globe: One Family" was sent to the Voice of the Poor, Society of St. Vincent de Paul from Sun-Tae, Yoo a member of the Korean St. Vincent de Paul Society. Sun-Tae is a volunteer teacher at the Sunday School for the Physically and Mentally Challenged of Oryundong Catholic Church in Seoul. The group holds a meeting for the physically and mentally challenged once a month; Sunday School is taught once a week. "While serving at this organization, I've realized how important it is to put hope and courage in the hearts of the afflicted and to make people see them in a positive perspective, " says Sun-Tae.
The Globe: One Family
SUN-TAE, YOO
The
green mountains are running
Shoulder to shoulder as friends;
The broad continents open their hearts
And listen to the beat of warm life
In
the arms of the ocean.
We are the people of the globe
Living together in those all-embracing arms
North America, South America,
Africa, Oceania, Asia, Korea, Europe....
Even the Eskimos of the aurora-shining Arctic;
On big family full of love
United by the bank of life.
Sometimes,
black clouds are brought about
By the clashes of languages, religions, and races
And turn into a cruel whirlwind
To deprive the people completely
Of bright dreams; however,
We are warm-hearted, close neighbors
Who share joy and sorrow together,
Who
plant the trees of dreams again,
Who raise our hands to the sky,
Who embrace each other under the bright sun,
Who live under the same
Twinkling star-comforters.
O the global village!
We are one family,
Nourished by hope and dreaming of happiness.
We are the family of the global village
Filled with peace and love.
(back)
May the Holy Spirit pour into your hearts the light you need, to fill them with great ardor and render you faithful and devoted to the practice of these virtues. So that, for the glory of God, you have true sense of the value of your vocation and be motivated to such an extent that you will be able to persevere in it for the rest of our lives, serving the poor in a spirit of humility, of obedience, of suffering and of charity and that you be blessed in this work. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
St. Vincent de Paul
