Poverty

WORLD CHALLENGE. Poverty is a very complex problem that knows no borders and affects millions of people worldwide. Currently countries part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development have set a target of: "ending poverty in all its forms and dimensions" within 15 years.

It is worth mentioning that they have considered -based on the World Bank- that poverty is living below a $1.90 daily minimum wage. But it is necessary and urgent to remember that poverty is also not having medical care, not being able to go to school, and not having access to drinking water or cooking fuel.

According to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), 1,500 million people live in a multidimensional poverty situation, with overlapping deprivations in health, education and income.

So achieving this agenda goal means that poverty will be eradicated in all its dimensions worldwide by 2030. It also means that this generation will have to end global poverty and prevent the worst effects of climate change; because to opt for the defense of God's creation is to opt for the economically poorest in the world.

PRAYER. Give us, Lord a compassionate heart in order to offer a word of encouragement to those who despair.  Give us the strength and courage to strive for justice and peace.  Let us not forget that whatever we do to the least of our brothers and sisters, we do unto you.  Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Ecology

A JUST AGREEMENT. Catholic leaders from around the world made a joint appeal to the next UN conference (COP 21) on climate change to generate a "fair, binding and truly transformative" agreement.

The message consists of 10 points based on the encyclical "Laudato Si" by Pope Francisco.

"Believers or not, we agree today that the earth is essentially a shared heritage, the fruits of which are meant to benefit all," said Catholic leaders in the document to be delivered in the Paris Summit, to be held from 30 November to 11 December.

It is worth mentioning that this November 29, a day before the summit in Paris, the world’s largest march ever in relation to climate change is being organized.

Many have argued that individual change is essential to changing the system that is affecting the balance of the planet, which it is, but so is the role of the media and public pressure.  This can be achieved through the demonstrations and protests of millions of people.  
The places where you can join in the global march:
San Antonio:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1720355021532509/

Saint Louis:
https://secure.avaaz.org/en/event/globalclimatemarch/Peoples_Climate_March_StLouis_MO/?fjWcNjb 

YOUR IMPACT ON THE EARTH. Here are a few EASY things you can do to reduce your impact on the environment. Try one, two, or all. The idea is to start thinking about the way we consume and the environmental legacy that we are leaving for our future generations. So, start small and when you get the hang of it, try another step. These are just a few ways that each of us truly can make a difference in our world.

1.     Recycle – everything you can.

2.     Buy Recycled.

3.     When possible, choose items in glass jars/containers.

4.     End the siege of junk mail in your mailbox. 

5.     Walk or bike when possible.

6.     Take advantage of automating your salary deposits. 

7.     Buy organic. 

8.     Support local farmers.

9.     Opt for organic gardening measures when it comes to fertilizing and pest control.

10. Properly dispose of hazardous material. 

11. Here’s a bright idea: As your existing light bulbs burn out, replace with compact fluorescent.

A PRAYER FOR OUR EARTH.  All-powerful God, you are present in the whole universe

and in the smallest of your creatures. You embrace with your tenderness all that exists. Pour out upon us the power of your love, that we may protect life and beauty. Fill us with peace, that we may live as brothers and sisters, harming no one.

O God of the poor, help us to rescue the abandoned and forgotten of this earth, so precious in your eyes. Bring healing to our lives, that we may protect the world and not prey on it, that we may sow beauty, not pollution and destruction.

Touch the hearts of those who look only for gain at the expense of the poor and the earth. Teach us to discover the worth of each thing, to be filled with awe and contemplation, to recognize that we are profoundly united with every creature as we journey towards your infinite light.

We thank you for being with us each day. Encourage us, we pray, in our strugglefor justice, love and peace. Amen.

Immigration

CALL TO ACTION:  End Family Detention is a campaign that LCWR is promoting in the United States. This initiative invites you to participate by signing a letter or making a phone call to end the detention of migrant families. They urge Secretary Johnson to not appeal any part of Judge Dolly Gee’s order to close the family detention centers and immediately release the children and families being held there.  This detention of families is illegal and inhumane. Also, by signing the petition in this action you are requesting real alternatives to the asylum process be provided.

IN DEFENSE OF MIGRANTS. The XI Caravan of Central American Mothers looking for their disappeared children in transit in Mexico will take place from November 30 to December 18. 

"Our specialty is searching for the living.  The Caravan is a magical experience because 50 mothers from four different countries come in a truck and join with those in Mexico, and all join together with the same purpose: to learn the truth and find the missing children in order to find closure if they are dead, because the anguish of not knowing is worse than the certainty that they already died, "said Martha Sanchez Soler, an advocate for migrants.

And it is the determination and "abiding faith" which leads them to leave their land and their houses and, like their migrant children, journey to find the missing, which could bring about a reunion with at least six of those on whom they have evidence of their whereabouts.

PRAYER: Good and gracious God, we thank you for the gift of families. We are grateful for all of the joy and love that they bring into our lives, and we ask that you provide special protection for all families, particularly those who face hardships as they move in search of a better life. Show mercy to those who travel in danger, and lead them to a place of safety and peace. Comfort those who are alone and afraid because their families have been torn apart by violence and injustice. Open our hearts so that we may provide hospitality for all who come in search of refuge. Give us courage to welcome the stranger as Christ in our midst. Amen

Human Trafficking

SCHOLARSHIP AND SERVICE LEARNING. 

We congratulate Sr. Martha Ann Kirk, a professor of Religious Studies at the University of the Incarnate Word, who was recently granted a $3000 grant from the Lilly Fellows Program, for her proposal “Service Learning and Engaged Scholarship Considering the Mission of the Incarnate Word Founders to the Vulnerable.”  This grant will enable faith-based faculty conversations that can promote service learning and engaged scholarship on human trafficking.  This initiative will invite faculty members, especially those new to Incarnate Word, to involve their students in service learning that might contribute to systemic change in regard to this tremendous global problem. First, faculty will be invited to reflect on how their academic discipline – whether art, business, communication arts, criminal justice, economics, education, ethics, health care, history, literature, philosophy, psychology, sociology, theology, etc. – might relate to this challenge. Then faculty would strategize in regard to plans for teaching with service learning. How could students be more engaged in learning through research, advocacy, and service projects related to this? 

Thank you to Sr. Martha Ann for finding ways to incorporate the Congregation’s Corporate Stance against Human Trafficking into our educational institutions!  What a wonderful opportunity for all those at UIW to not only learn more, but also encourage students to take direct action to address the systemic change needed to end human trafficking. We encourage others to do the same; to search for opportunities for education and service learning in your own work spaces or mission sites!  And then share with us what you are doing so we can share it with others.  Working together and sharing our stories with one another we can spread hope and encouragement in living out our commitment to respond to Christ suffering in the world. 

PRAYER.  St. Josephine Bakhita, you were sold into slavery as a child and endured untold hardship and suffering. Once liberated from your physical enslavement, you found true redemption in your encounter with Christ and his Church. O St. Bakhita, assist all those who are trapped in a state of slavery; Intercede with God on their behalf so that they will be released from their chains of captivity. Those whom man enslaves, let God set free. Provide comfort to survivors of slavery and let them look to you as an example of hope and faith. Help all survivors find healing from their wounds. We ask for your prayers and intercessions for those enslaved among us. Amen

Healthcare Response to Human Trafficking

The IW Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation Committee, UIW, and Visitation House were co-sponsors with the Alamo Area Coalition Against Trafficking of a heart wrenching workshop on October 20, 2015, in the Skyroom at UIW about the growing crisis of human trafficking. Speakers shared story after story of those who have suffered.  Almost 300 health care professionals attended and learned about the identification, assessment, and the diagnosis of trafficking victims, as well as, legal issues and available community resources.

Healthcare providers are often the first to encounter trafficking victims. In becoming familiar with the signs and symptoms of trafficking, medical professionals can collaborate in  community-wide effort to eradicate this unthinkable crime targeted towards the invisible and vulnerable in our midst.

Some of the speakers were Former Senator Leticia Van de Putte; Kirsta Melton, Office of the Attorney General; Shelley Botello, Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital; Laurie Charles, Children’s Hospital of San Antonio. Sr. Martha Ann Kirk opened the conference explaining the IW Sisters’ corporate stance, the interfaith movement focusing on trafficking and the story of St. Josephine Bahkita. Then she invited all to join in prayer. Sr. Teresa Stanley and Sr. Margaret Mary Bright attended, and Visitation House hosted a display.