Adoption
Burial Assistance
CCHD & CRS
Client Rights
Counseling
Family Life
Hispanic Services
Immigration Services
Justice & Peace Education
Public Policy
Marriage Preparation
Natural Family Planning
OEO/CSS (Murphy, NC)
Parish Social Ministry
Pregnancy Support
Refugee Resettlement
Respect Life
Youth Services

Parishes & Parishioners
Energized!

Switching on the Call to be Faithful Stewards of Creation, Switching Off Excess and Wasted Energy

Saturday, March 13, 9:30 am-4:30 pm
Doors open at 9 am

Our Lady of Consolation Church
Family Life Center
1235 Badger Ct, Charlotte, NC 28206


Informational Flyer and Registration Form
 For directions, scroll down parish information page.

Three plenary events are presented below
in order of appearance in schedule:

Mr. Daniel J. Misleh, Exec Dir,
Catholic Coalition on Climate Change
A Catholic Approach to the Care of Creatin & Climate Change

Rev. Martin A. Schratz, OFM Cap.
Pastor, Our Lady of Consolation Church
Reflections on the Franciscan
Spirituality of Creation Care

Staff from North Carolina Interfaith
Power & Light, a program of the
NC Council of Churches
Report of Findings of a Congregation Energy Efficiency Audit

Health Care Reform

What are the US Catholic Bishops Saying? 

Statement from NC's Catholic Bishops

Excerpts from Vatican Statements on Health Care



Visit
 
www.usccb.org/healthcare

Pope Benedict XVI's
World Day of Peace Message

The U.S. Bishops call upon Catholics to reflect upon Pope Benedict XVI's 2010 World Day of Peace Message, "If You Want to Cultivate Peace, Protect Creation" in which the Pope associates the need to protect creation as a condition to working toward peace in our world.  The full text of the Holy Father's message can be found on the website of the Vatican

In addition, resources associated with the Church's teaching on care of creation and the Holy Father's World Day of Peace message, can be found on a special USCCB web page
Pope Benedict XVI Releases His Third Encyclical

Pope Benedict XVI signed his third encyclical Caritas in Veritate on June 29, on the Solemnity of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has produced resources to help Catholic diocesan, parish, and other ministry leaders explore and promote the message of the Holy Father. These resources are available at www.usccb.org/jphd/caritasinveritate

  

Click here for more information on the Church's call to faithful citizenship and links to Catholic Voice NC (CVNC) and other Catholic organizations involved in public policy and legislative advocacy.  Recent CVNC alerts have focused on the following issues: Racial Justice Act, Sex Education Bill, School Violence Protection, Choose Life License Plate, Marriage Amendment, Conscience Protection, Freedom of Choice Act, and Health Care Reform.


Joseph T. Purello, Office Director
704-370-3225

Mary Jane Bruton
Diocesan Director, CCHD 
704-370-3234

704-370-3377 (fax)
1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203 

OEO Staff Contacts

 
justicepeace@charlottediocese.org

Resources

Compendium of the Social Doctrine
of the Church

Embryonic Stem Cell Research
In January 2007, Bishop Peter J. Jugis of Charlotte and Bishop Michael F. Burbridge of Raleigh sent a letter to all pastors in North Carolina urging them to acquaint their parishioners with the Catholic Church's teachings on stem-cell research, especially those aspects that violate the church's moral teaching. They have also provided three educational bulletin inserts: Introduction to the Ethics and
Science of Stem Cell Research
, Myths and Facts of Stem Cell Research, and A Call to Action.

Church Statements
on Environmental Justice

The Church Calls
for Immigration Reform
The five Catholic bishops of the Province of Atlanta, in a statement released in late November 2006, urge the Congressional representatives of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina to work for a "comprehensive reform of immigration law through civil dialogue, in the spirit of cooperation and love."  Read the statement in its entirety.

"Seeking Justice, Seeking Fairness, Promoting Life"
 
is a a resource on the Catholic Church's teaching on the death penalty and on the campaign for a moratorium on executions in North Carolina (Spring 2005).

Read May 3, 2005 letter  by Bishop Peter J. Jugis in support of the death penalty moratorium in NC. This letter was published in the May 6, 2005, issue of
The Catholic News and Herald.

And what does the Lord require of you,
but to act justly, to love mercifully,
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

     The Office of Justice and Peace supports Catholics in the Diocese of Charlotte as they put their faith into action on behalf of justice. The Office offers educational programs and resources to assist Catholics and parishes to address unjust social conditions and promote justice. 

     The Office of Justice and Peace is guided by, and gives voice to, the rich tradition and wisdom
Catholic Social Teaching (CST).  Through papal address and encyclicals, the statements of the US Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB), Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS), and the guidance of the Bishop of Charlotte on social and ethical issues, the Office promotes justice and peace with vitality and intellectual grounding. 

Sharing justice and peace resources and Catholic Social Teaching with the people of the diocese occurs through a wide range of venues such as: The Common Good newsletter (contact our office for the most recent edition); special events and workshops held regionally and at the individual parish; promotion of Catholic Voice NC (CVNC), the advocacy organization of the Bishops of Charlotte and Raleigh founded in July 2008; three grant programs; economic development initiatives in the far western Appalachian counties of North Carolina administered by the Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO); and the national collections and other activities of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS).

Office of Justice and Peace personnel in Charlotte include an office director and a program director for the diocesan CCHD Program.  Personnel at the Office of Economic Opportunity, Murphy include the OEO program director and the coordinator of the Far West Families First (FWFF) Program.  A part-time Marriage and Family Therapist from the CSS Western Regional Office is also located at the OEO.

In all of the activities and programs of the Office of Justice and Peace, the staff of the office receives valuable advice from the collective wisdom of dedicated members of the Office of Justice and Peace advisory committees (e.g., Justice and Peace Advisory Council, the Office of Economic Opportunity Advisory Board, and the diocesan committees for CRS and CCHD).

Click here for a one-page summary of the programs and activities of the Office of Justice and Peace.  

Please find below links to brochures for the Office of Justice and Peace and the Office of Economic Opportunity. 

Office of Justice and Peace brochure
Office of Economic Opportunity brochure

The following are the Office of Justice and peace programs and activities:
- Parish Social Ministry
- Public Policy and Legislative Work
- Catholic Campaign for Human Development
- Catholic Relief Services/Operation Rice Bowl
- Office of Economic Opportunity