An invitation to join the "Circle of Protection"

Many thanks to Carol Ann Jokerst for sending in this timely information.

HUNGERFAST.org
fasting and prayer to protect vulunerable people

Three times nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, Ambassador Tony P. Hall is a leading advocate for hunger relief programs and improving human rights conditions in the world.

In 1993 Hall went on a water only fast that lasted 22 days to protest the lack of conscience of the U.S. Congress towards hungry people.

Faced with an even worse situation today with 50 million hungry Americans, 17 million of them children, Hall once again began an open-ended fast which started on March 28.  The 3 central themes for this fast are:
*  to remind people about the status of the most vulunerable, here and abroad.
*  to focus public attention on the proposed budget cuts and the terrible effects these would have on vulnerable people.
*  to form a circle of protection:  to invite each of us to join in prayer and fasting to form a spiritual circle of protection around those who would be most hurt by the cuts.

Click here to read Tony Hall's statement of why he is fasting.
Click here to consider the invitation to join the "Circle of Protection," i.e. to choose a way to join Tony Hall in an act of personal sacrifice from now until Easter Sunday, April 24, 2011.
Click here to see the list of partners in this project.

Why our seafood choices matter

Lent is a time when we often eat fish, at least on Fridays.  By being informed and making wise choices, we can help protect our fisheries and the health of the ocean.

What are the four fish we should never eat?  Click here to find out.
Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch provides a pocket guide by geographic regions in the U.S. listing best choices of fish, good alternatives, and fish to avoid.  There is also a national U.S. guide in english and in spanish as well as a southwest regional guide in spanish.

Ciudad de México en grave situación con el agua

Gracias a Maru Noguez para el envío de este artículo sobre la situación del agua en el D.F.
La Ciudad de México tendrá graves problemas en el futuro con el suministro de agua, si no se ahorra el 60 por ciento del vital líquido utilizado a diario, dijeron autoridades del Distrito Federal.

Haga clic aquí para leer el artículo de www.ecoportal.net.

Un sitio web recomendado y un artículo

Gracias a Lucha Aguilar por esta información.

Centro de Estudios Ecumenicos (CEE): 

"Sembrando esperpanza, tejiendo unidad por la vida"

Su sitio web:  http://www.estudiosecumenicos.org/

El artículo: Haga clic aquí para ver el artículo en el boletín de CEE, Hojas al viento:

"Raúl Vera López, la voz de una Iglesia de los Pobres"

 por Francisco Gómez Maza

Some good reading: From gardening to climate change to Earth Day

AlterNet:  "Garden as if your life depended on it, because it does"  by Ellen LaConte    

Sojourners:  A main focus of the April, 2011 issue is climate change.  Two of the articles posted are:
 "For God So Loved the Dirt"  by Norman Wirzba
"Climate Change: Just the Facts" by Bill McKibben
 
NCR:  Celebrating Earth Day in your parish by Carol Meyer