We are a very generous community when it comes to assisting those in need through donations to our Thrift Shop, the Mustard Seed Meals, St. Gerard’s in Haiti, Veterans, our annual Mission Speaker each summer, serving meals at Trinity Episcopal and more. The response of those interested in providing emergency shelter for the homeless (47 parishioners) has been tremendous. We as a community have a desire to live the Gospel.
I think as a Catholic Community we can deepen and grow that desire to “Make a Difference!” Just as we entered Stephen Ministry with tiny steps of educating Care Givers, and watched that ministry grow so well, I am seeking 12 “disciples” to journey together in educating for JustFaith ministry here at Sacred Heart. It is a commitment; three people have responded to the call, and I am hoping that we have nine others who will hear and answer the call to compassion.
JustFaith is a small group process that invites participants to explore the Gospel call to compassion and justice. The team would journey for 2.5 hours a week for 8 weeks three times. Here is what we will cover:
Phase One: Journey to Compassion, gently challenges participants to live out the Scriptures command to care for the poor among us. This examines root causes of poverty, particularly emphasizing the interplay between poverty and environmental degradation, and guides participants in discerning how to most faithfully and effectively respond.
Phase Two: Journey to Justice, awakens participants to the realities of racial and economic inequalities in the U.S., with the ultimate goal of introducing new creative choices for a more just and faith-filled life as individuals and as a faith community. Through its focus on the U.S. criminal justice system and income inequality, Phase Two challenges participants to revisit how our faith informs our responsibility to each other.
Phase Three: Journey to Peace, addresses nonviolence in the contexts of war, civic inequality, and even personal relationships, exposing participants to both economic nonviolence and nonviolence toward creation.
Do you want to live more simply and compassionately? Want to build a more just and peaceful world? Want to build a world where poverty and injustice no longer exist? If your answer is yes to any of thee questions, let me know and we can talk more about the journey.