Transfigure Us in Peace!

Santa Maria de la Paz

The patronness of the Santa Maria de La Paz Catholic Church in Santa Fe, NM. The bulto is by artist Feliz Lopez and portrays Mary as a young woman, her face and manner serene, holding a dove and offering the olive branch of peace.

Today on the Feast of the Transfiguration, we mourn over the global transformation that took place in 1945 when the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan and on Nagasaki three days later.

From our U.S. Bishops -- to reflect on and pray about:

"We oppose the continued readiness of the United States to use nuclear weapons, especially against non-nuclear threats, and the potential development of new weapons for this purpose. . . Our nation should lead in the challenging task of envisioning a future rooted in peace, with new global structures of mediation and conflictresolution, and with a world order that has moved beyond nuclear weapons."

U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Statement on New Nuclear Treaty and U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy, 2002

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Today is Mandela Day!

With an amazing legacy of pursuing justice and promoting reconciliation, Nelson Mandela continues to work tirelessly to promote peace and human dignity.

Today -- in honor of Nelson Mandela's birthday, we celebrate each indiviudal's ability to make an imprint.

Read about the day at this link: mandeladay.com

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TONIGHT May 6th - An Evening with Jack Jezreel of JustFaith

"The Call to Transform Our Hearts and the World"

You may have heard about JustFaith, come tonight to learn more!

Jack Jezreel, popular national speaker and justice educator, holds a Master of Divinity degree from Notre Dame, spent six years in a Catholic Worker Community, and has been involved with parish-based justice ministry for 25 years. He is the author of JustFaith and serves as Executive Director of JustFaith Ministries. He received the prestigious Harry Fagan Award in 2006 for his contribution to the achievement of the Catholic vision of social justice. He is married and has three daughters. Jack has been in Tucson for our JustFaith introduction. We have grown in JustFaith and welcome Jack back!

We are called to be compassionate as our God is compassionate (Luke 6:36), but what does the compassion of Christ look like in the modern world? How do I become a more compassionate person? Are you interested in embarking on a spiritual journey into compassion? The vision of the Gospels and Catholic social teaching speaks to life-giving choices on behalf of a world that struggles to survive.

Don’t miss this opportunity to explore some new possibilities for your life, your parish, your heart!

Comments aboutJustFaith from Tucson participants:

* Our JustFaith grads have become a solid foundation for social ministry by meeting and praying and learning together and bydrawing others into their various ministries. – Most Holy Trinity pastor

* I am now living a more simple life – giving more, buying less, and trying to get more connected with my brothers and sisters. JustFaith is a life-changing experience. – Our Mother of Sorrows parishioner

WHEN: Wednesday, May 6, 2009

WHERE: Our Mother of Sorrows Parish, 1800 South Kolb Rd., Tucson, AZ

For all JustFaith Grads and present students:
Dinner with Jack in the OMOS Parish Activity Center (PAC)– 5:30 p.m.
More info: Jean Fedigan: jfedigan@cox.net or leave message for Jean: 520-747-1321

For all JustFaith Grads, Students and ALL NEW to JustFaith:

An evening with Jack in the Parish Hall with Closing Prayer at 9 p.m.
More info: Janet Towner: janett@diocesetucson.org or leave message: 520-838-2544

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World Fair Trade Day: This Saturday May 9th, 2009

Catholic Relief Services to Mark World Fair Trade Day

Catholics are invited to Take a ‘Fair Trade Break’ and Break World Record!

In celebration of World Fair Trade Day on May 9, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), a national sponsor of the day, invites Catholics throughout the U.S. to join workplaces, churches, schools, businesses and neighbors and hold a Fair Trade Break to surpass last year's World's Largest Fair Trade ‘Break’ record.

With a goal of 55,000 total participants on and around Saturday, May 9, CRS is rallying Catholics and Fair Trade enthusiasts to hold events like Fair Trade coffee breaks, food tastings, talks, music concerts and fashion shows to promote an ethical alternative to conventional shopping that ensures that producers get a fair price for their products.

“During today’s tough economic times, it is more important than ever to have our shopping habits reflect our values,” says Jacqueline DeCarlo, CRS’ Senior Program Advisor for Fair Trade. “The poor suffer the most during economic downturns, and ‘solidarity shopping’ can directly impact the lives of farming families and craft associations – often led by women.”

Hundreds of thousands of people across the U.S. and in over 80 countries will promote Fair Trade by holding a Fair Trade Break and campaign for trade justice together with farmers and artisans in developing countries. In the U.S., World Fair Trade Day is coordinated by the Fair Trade Resource Network and highlights the benefits of Fair Trade and the support needed on a grassroots level.

The recent entry of mainstream companies into the Fair Trade marketplace demonstrates that consumer demand for socially responsible and sustainable products influences corporate decisions. Yet, it is vital to continue to support Fair Trade companies and organizations that are fully committed to small-scale producers and believe in long-term partnerships based on dialogue, transparency and respect.

CRS’ Fair Trade program has grown from two retail partners in 2004 to 16 today, including coffee, chocolate and handcraft retailers. All of these companies help Catholic schools, parishes, and households shop responsibly for the benefit of disadvantaged producers. To find CRS partners dedicated to Fair Trade, visit http://crsfairtrade.org/.

“U.S. Catholics can feel gratified that they are helping to build a market that has been growing at double-digit rates in recent years,” DeCarlo says. “World Fair Trade Day is becoming a rallying point for these groups to spread the word about Fair Trade to the larger community.”

To join the movement and mark World Fair Trade Day, Catholics can:

¨ Hold a Fair Trade coffee break at their parish or schools
¨ Join the CRS Fair Trade Network
¨ Buy Fair Trade items or give a Fair Trade gift for Mother’s Day
¨ Host a Fair Trade fair
¨ Become a CRS Fair Trade fan on Facebook

To find a World Fair Trade Day event near you, visit http://www.fairtraderesource.org/link-up/events-calendar/.


Catholic Relief Services is the international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. The agency provides assistance to people in more than 100 countries and territories based on need, regardless of race, nationality or creed. For more information, please visit www.crs.org or www.crsespanol.org.

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Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Words of wisdom from
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
that are timeless,
yet fresh with new meaning
on the eve of this Inauguration Day:

Now let me suggest first that
if we are to have peace on earth,
our loyalties must become ecumenical
rather than sectional.

Our loyalties must transcend
our race,
our tribe,
our class,
and our nation;
and this means
we must develop a world perspective.

No individual can live alone;
no nation can live alone,
and as long as we try,
the more we are going to have war in this world.

Now the judgment of God is upon us,
and we must either learn
to live together as brothers and sisters
or we are all going to perish together as fools.

-from Dr. King's Christmas Sermon on Peace 1967

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Take action: Save Darfur Campaign & the USCCB

The USCCB is collaborating with the Save Darfur Campaign to urge President-elect Barack Obama give priority to ending the violence in Darfur when he takes office. As you may know about 300,000 people have died, 2 million are displaced from their homes, and hundreds of thousands go hungry every day. As Catholics we must work to protect human life and promote human dignity whenever they are threatened.

President-elect Barack Obama has pledged "unstinting resolve" to promote peace and security for Darfur and all of Sudan. Catholics around the U.S. can urge the President to end the tragedy in Darfur by completing electronic messages, which will be delivered on inauguration day, January 20, 2009.

USCCB is working with Save Darfur and other organizations to collect one million electronic postcards urging the president to follow through on this promise. Sign the electronic postcard now to ensure that Darfur is a day one priority for the president.

Background about the situation in Darfur can be accessed at: www.usccb.org/sdwp/international/callafrica/sudan.shtml.

SOURCE: Steve Hilbert, Policy Advisor, Africa and Global Development, Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

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This is National Migration Week: Jan 4-10

"Renewing Hope, Seeking Justice"

is the theme of this year's
NATIONAL MIGRATION WEEK
going on now from January 4-10.

According to the USCCB's Migration & Refugee Services website: "the observance began over 25 years ago by the bishops to be a moment for Catholics to take stock of the wide diversity of the Church and the ministries serving them. "

This week would also be a good time to visit Justice for Immigrants , which is the Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform. The website is rich with resources -- check it out if you haven't been there in awhile: http://www.justiceforimmigrants.org/

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Our Lady of Perpetual Help - Patroness of Haiti

Our Mother of Perpetual Help
Pray for us & the People of Haiti!

Today on the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, we remember the people of Haiti in our prayers, outreach and generosity.

Learn more about Haiti by visiting the website of The Haiti Project sponsored by Our Mother of Sorrows Parish in Tucson: http://www.omoshaiti.org/

Following is the story of how Our Lady or Perpetual Help became the beloved Patroness of the Haitian people, as told by Joan Martin, Haiti Minister from Our Mother of Sorrows Parish (OMOS). Joan lives and ministers in the Diocese of Port-de-Paix, Haiti. See MAP for location.

"On Monday, Feb. 5, 2007, all of Haiti celebrated a special Mass as a thank you and a re-consecration of the country to Notre Dame du Perpetuel Secours--Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

Fr. Nicolas explained the history at the Mass for the sisters that morning. In about 1861, a disease called veret began to spread in Haiti. I am not sure of the name in English, but Fr. Nico said it was like leprosy--bumps, then holes in the skin, and very contagious. There was no treatment; the doctors and hospitals could do nothing. People began to die by the hundreds, then by the thousands. Every household was affected by the epidemic. There were so many deaths that funerals could not be held. Every town had a mass grave for the victims. ( For those of you who have visited PdPaix, the mass grave was where the airport runway is now.). The estimate was that about 200,000 people died.

In 1882, in desperation, one of the bishops in Port-au-Prince took a picture of Notre Dame du Perpetuel Secours up the mountain, blessed the country in all directions and asked for help.

The epidemic began to recede, and eventually stopped. The country celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving, and Haiti was consecrated to Notre Dame. The year 2007, marked the 125th Anniversary of the consecration. So the bishops decided to re-consecrate the country, to say thank you, and to ask for help with the current crises in the country. At noon, all the churches were supposed to ring their bells in celebration."


This is one of many entries from Notes, Photos, & Reflections from Joan, which can be found online at the OMOS Haiti Project Website. Here you can find more of her stories and photos about day-to-day life in the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Joan's notes are informative, touching and often heart-rending.

Today would be a fitting date to spend some time in prayer and soldiarity with the people of Haiti and those who minister to them!

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Annual International AIDS Candlelight Memorial - Sunday May 18

The International AIDS Candlelight Memorial
Sunday May 18th

GLOBALLY: The International AIDS Candlelight Memorial, a program of the Global Health Council, is among the world’s oldest movements by civil society for HIV/AIDS remembrance, awareness and community action. Started in 1983, the historic Candlelight Memorial takes place every third Sunday in May and is led by some 1,200 volunteer Candlelight Coordinators in 119 countries who host vigils for their communities.

LOCALLY: "Never Give Up, Never Forget" is the theme for the 25th annual worldwide event presented locally by the Southern Arizona AIDS Foundation and other groups. Individuals will share music, song, dance and reflections.

When: Memorial starts at 6 p.m. Sunday. The candle lighting will begin around 7:30 p.m. (dusk).

Where: Himmel Park, 1000 N. Tucson Blvd.

As we confront HIV/AIDS, we participate in the healing mission of Jesus. Read about the continuing challenges this epidemic presents to the world, and learn about the Catholic Church’s response to those affected by the disease in this Catholic Update article titled: AIDS and the Consistent Ethic of Life by Kenneth R. Overberg, S.J.

Feeling called to do more? Learn more about how you can get involved locally in "a compassionate interfaith response to HIV/AIDS" by visiting TIHAN -- The Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network at http://www.tihan.org/

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Celebrate World Fair Trade Day -- Saturday May 10th

World Fair Trade Day 2008

Have you been enjoying Just Coffee /Cafe' Justo? How about Divine Chocolate?

Saturday May 10th is WORLD FAIR TRADE DAY -- a day to celebrate the global movment that supports these and other fair trade products promoted in our Diocese and by Catholic Relief Services.

Things to do for World Fair Trade Day:

-- Read about this year's theme "FAIR TRADE + Ecology" at the World Fair Trade Day website.


-- Visit the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Fair Trade Blog

-- Learn more about Just Coffee/Cafe' Justo -- our "local" border area Fair Trade+ enterprise which got started in 2002 when small-scale coffee farmers in Chiapas bought a coffee roaster in Agua Prieta with a loan from Frontera de Cristo, a bi-national border ministry of the Presbyterian Church. Learn how Cafe' Justo creates one positive solution to the migration issue. Meet the people (growers and directors) behind the coffee in Salvador Urbina, Chiapas and Agua Prieta, Sonora.

-- Read a Fair Trade Overview and learn how to identify and find Fair Trade Certified products at the Fair Trade Certified website.


-- Browse A Greater Gift (on online catalogue promoted by CRS) to find hundreds of fair trade gifts and products (including Divine Chocolate!).


-- Reflect on how supporting FAIR TRADE is one way of promoting the Catholic Social Teaching principles of : The Dignity of Work & the Rights of Workers, Solidarity, and Care for God's Creation.

-- Pray for, support, and join with -- all those engaged in transforming our world by promoting justice and peace through FAIR TRADE.

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Catholic Home Missions Sunday

This weekend we are asked to contribute to
the Catholic Home Missions Appeal.

From the USCCB Catholic Home Missions Website:

What Are the Home Missions?

"Home Missions” is the name for dioceses and parishes in America, in its territories and former territories, which cannot provide basic pastoral services to Catholics without outside help. By “basic pastoral services” we mean Mass and sacraments; religious education; ministry training for priests, deacons, religious sisters and lay people; and subsidizing poor parishes.

For many decades, the Church in the United States has sent missionaries overseas to serve the people of Latin America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. The Home Missions are dioceses and parishes here in America that need the same kind of support.

Where Are the Home Missions?

Surprisingly, the Catholic Church is poorly established in many parts of our country, especially Appalachia, the South, the Southwest along the Mexican border, the Rocky Mountain States, Alaska, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and remote island chains like the Marshalls and the Carolines in the Pacific. Generally speaking, the home missions are everywhere Catholics are few and the Church is fragile.

Click HERE for an interactive map of home missions in the U.S.

This LINK describes the home mission needs right here in the Diocese of Tucson -- and includes a photo gallery.

Find out more about the USCCB's Catholic Home Missions effort at:

http://www.usccb.org/hm/

Included on the website are links to maps, videos, a scrapbook, newsletters, and the program's annual report.

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Feast of St. George - Pray for Interfaith Relations

This icon of St. George comes from:
Icons-Interfaith, a blog dedicated to Christian Icons,
but likewise to Icons from other traditions:
http://icons-interfaith.blogspot.com/

St. George is venerated by those of many different faiths:

"There is a tradition in the Holy Land of Christians and Muslim going to an Eastern Orthodox shrine for St. George at Beith Jala, Jews also attending the site in the belief that the prophet Elijah was buried there."
Source: Wikipedia

In a world torn apart by violence, misunderstandings, and suspicions -- too often promulgated in the name of religion -- perhaps the banner of this interfaith saint can lead us toward the elusive goal of peace and reconciliation among the world's religions.

For more on St. George, see The Catholic Encyclopedia

"The Line in the Sand" to be performed here TONIGHT!

Some of you may have seen the moving performance of the drama "The Line in the Sand" by Fr. Joe Rodrigues and members of Most Holy Trinity Parish at the Southwest Liturgy Conference in January.

"The Line in the Sand" will be presented again TONIGHT (April 13th) at Our Mother of Sorrows Parish, 1800 S. Kolb @ 7:30 pm. A free will offering will be taken.

From the Catholic Relief Services webpage about this drama project:

The Line in the Sand uses the power of theater to tell the personal stories of people affected by U.S./Mexico border migration. Through an hour-long collection of monologues and photos, audiences are exposed to a variety of points of view on this complex and critical issue. The Line in the Sand is sponsored by Catholic Relief Services, and hopes to advance the cause of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops-supported "Justice for Immigrants" campaign. Working with CRS' Mexico office, the group conducted interviews with migrants, ranchers, Mexican and U.S. government officials, diocesan staff, and others. The Line in the Sand dramatically shares the stories of those they met.

For Southern Arizonans, the script is especially moving because it addresses issues unfolding at our own doorstep. One of the characters in the script is based on interviews with Our Mother of Sorrows' parishioner Barbara Padilla.

If you see this post in time to get to the performance tonight, don't miss this opportunity!

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April 7th is World Health Day

World Health Day, on 7 April, marks the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO) and is an opportunity to draw worldwide attention to a subject of major importance to global health each year.

In 2008, World Health Day focuses on the need to protect health from the adverse effects of climate change.

The WHO website reminds us that "the health impacts of climate change will hit the poor hardest":

The physical effects of climate change will vary in different geographical locations. The human health impacts from climate change are further modified by such conditions as level of development, poverty and education, public health infrastructure, land use practices and political structure. Initially, developing countries will be hit the hardest. Countries with high levels of poverty and malnutrition, weak health infrastructures and/or political unrest will be the least able to cope.

This theme of the vulnerability of the poor to the effects of climate change is echoed in the USCCB's statement on: Global Climate Change: A Plea for Dialogue, Prudence, and the Common Good. As Earth Day approaches, why not read (or re-read) and reflect on this important document from our U.S. Bishops?

See also this earlier post.

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Take Action: Bipartisan Global AIDS Bill

Following is some hopeful news for World Health Day -- plus a "call to action" to move an important Global AIDS bill forward.

From Catholic Relief Services Take Action website in the Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty:

House of Representatives Passes Bipartisan Global AIDS Bill -- Senate to Consider the AIDS Bill Next

UPDATE: Thanks to your efforts and those of many advocates around the country, the House this week passed H.R. 5501, the Tom Lantos and Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008, the bill that reauthorizes the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Rep. Christopher Smith (R-NJ) highlighted the major contributions of faith-based organizations in efforts to address the pandemic and specifically mentioned Catholic Relief Services' 250 programs in 52 countries as an example. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS) praise the bipartisan consensus that led to significant improvements in the bill that passed.


TAKE ACTION NOW! Check here to find out if your Representative supported the Global AIDS bill, H.R. 5501, which reauthorizes the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEFPAR). Please let those who supported the bill know that you appreciate the spirit of bipartisan consensus that led to significant improvements in the bill. Visit the CRS Action Center to send a message now.


WHY IS PEPFAR IMPORTANT? Because of PEPFAR, CRS has saved more than 100,000 lives through antiretroviral treatment and provides HIV care and support services for another 250,000 HIV positive people. Men and women who were on the brink of death are now leading normal lives, caring for their children and contributing to their communities because they are on antiretroviral therapy. More than 60,000 orphaned children are being cared for, going to school and embracing a bright future. Nearly 350,000 youth have been educated about risky behaviors and how abstinence-until-marriage and mutual fidelity within marriage is the most effective way to prevent HIV infections. Visit the CRS website for more information about PEPFAR.


WHAT DOES PEPFAR HAVE TO DO WITH MY FAITH? Our faith tradition as Catholics requires us to care for “the least of these” and to uphold the life and dignity of all people. People affected by HIV or suffering from AIDS need and deserve our love and care just as Jesus called on us to care for those who are “hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or ill or in prison.” Catholic social teaching instructs us to live in solidarity with our brothers and sisters around the world. Pope John Paul II reminded us that we must commit ourselves to this common good: “That is to say the good of all and each individual, because we are all really responsible for all.”


WHAT IS THE CHURCH’S POSITION ON PEPFAR? USCCB and CRS praise the bipartisan consensus that led to significant improvements in the bill that the House passed. The House strengthened HIV and AIDS programs by authorizing $50 billion in funding over five years, increasing nutrition resources needed for effective treatment, improving the health care capacity of host governments, and expanding HIV and AIDS treatment and prevention.


WHERE DOES PEPFAR STAND NOW? Next the Senate will consider its own PEPFAR reauthorization bill, S. 2731, passed by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in March. USCCB and CRS will continue to seek improvements to the Senate bill and to monitor any attempts to weaken it and will alert you for appropriate action.

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Martin Luther King, Jr. - Prophet and Witness for Peace and Justice

CLICK HERE to see an icon of Martin Luther King, Jr. by Br. Robert Lentz, OFM

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assasinated on this date in 1968. Forty years later, his life and words still inspire a world that longs for peace, nonviolent social change, and an end to racism.

The following quote from one of his stirring sermons in 1967 speaks profoundly and prophetically about peace and solidarity in a globalized world. . . . .

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It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated.

We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. We are made to live together because of the interrelated structure of reality.

Did you ever stop to think that you can't leave for your job in the morning without being dependent on most of the world? You get up in the morning and go to the bathroom and reach over for the sponge, and that's handed to you by a Pacific islander. You reach for a bar of soap, and that's given to you at the hands of a Frenchman. And then you go into the kitchen to drink your coffee for the morning, and that's poured into your cup by a South American. And maybe you want tea: that's poured into your cup by a Chinese. Or maybe you're desirous of having cocoa for breakfast, and that's poured into your cup by a West African. And then you reach over for your toast, and that's given to you at the hands of an English-speaking farmer, not to mention the baker. And before you finish eating breakfast in the morning, you've depended on more than half of the world.

This is the way our universe is structured, this is its interrelated quality. We aren't going to have peace on earth until we recognize this basic fact of the interrelated structure of all reality.

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The entire text of Dr. King's 1967 Christmas Sermon on Peace

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Remembering Martin Luther King, Jr.'s last speech

Today's National Public Radio's Morning Edition has a thoughtful segment on Martin Luther King, Jr.'s last speech given the day before he died. It includes an interview with an eyewitness of that memorable event, a video clip of a segment of the speech, a link to an audio of the entire speech, plus the text of the speech.

NPR story: Remembering MLK's Prophetic 'Mountaintop' Speech

On this page you can also find several other NPR stories on Dr. King and his fight for the poor, justice, and civil rights. Tomorrow is the 40th anniversary of the death of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. who was assasinated in 1968.

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Cesar E. Chavez Day of Service & Learning

Painting by Octavio Ocampo
(click on the image to see the detail)


"Chavez Day" is March 31st






From the Cesar E. Chavez Foundation website:


A true American hero, Cesar was a civil rights, Latino, farm worker, and labor leader; a religious and spiritual figure; a community servant and social entrepreneur; a crusader for nonviolent social change; and an environmentalist and consumer advocate.

His motto in life-"si se puede" (it can be done)-embodies the uncommon and invaluable legacy he left for the world's benefit. Since his death, dozens of communities across the nation have renamed schools, parks, streets, libraries, other public facilities, awards and scholarships in his honor, as well as enacting holidays on his birthday, March 31. In 1994 he was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in America.

Cesar Chavez-a common man with an uncommon vision for humankind-stood for equality, justice, and dignity for all Americans. His ecumenical principles remain elevant and inspiring today for all people.

Some of his quotes follow. Find more HERE,


"It is possible to become discouraged about the injustice we see everywhere. But God did not promise us that the world would be humane and just. He gives us the gift of life and allows us to choose the way we will use our limited time on earth. It is an awesome opportunity."

"When any person suffers for someone in greater need, that person is a human."

"I am convinced that the truest act of courage, the strongest act of manliness is to sacrifice ourselves for others in a totally non-violent struggle for justice."

"When the man who feeds the world by toiling in the fields is himself deprived of the basic rights of feeding, sheltering and caring for his own family, the whole community of man is sick."


Used by permission of the César E. Chávez Foundation

Anniversary of the Death of Archbishop Oscar Romero

" . . . Easter is a shout of victory. No one can extinguish that life which Christ revived. Not even death and hatred against him and against his Church will be able to overcome him. He is the victor!

. . . . The Church preaches your liberation just as we studied it today in the Holy Bible. A liberation that holds, above all, respect for human dignity, the salvation of the common good of all people, and the transcendence that looks above all else to God, and from God alone derives its hope and its strength. Let us now proclaim our faith in this truth."

The words above are from Archbishop Oscar Romero's last homily in San Salvador cathedral on March 23, 1980. The next day while he was celebrating Mass, he was shot by a gunman.


He also said:

"The church would betray its own love for God and its fidelity to the gospel if it stopped being . . . a defender of the nights of the poor . . . a humanizer of every legitimate struggle to achieve a more just society . . . that prepares the way for the true reign of God in history."

and

"I don't believe in death without resurrection. They can kill me, but they cannot kill the voice of justice. If they kill me, I will rise again in the Salvadoran people . . . ."

Learn more about Oscar Romero at the Claretian's Salt of the Earth website, which has a webpage for the Remembrance of Archbishop Oscar Romero.

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"Water for Life" - March 22 is World Water Day

As we renew our baptismal promises, imersed in the symbols of Easter, remember God's precious GIFT OF WATER:

Visit: http://www.worldwaterday.org/

The international observance of World Water Day (WWD) is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro.

2008 is the International Year of Sanitation. Here is a calendar of events linked to WWD and it's theme for 2008: "Sanitation Matters!" See this WWD 2008 Advocacy Guide [pdf] for background information and advocacy ideas.

We are currently in The Water for Life Decade (2005-2015) which is highlighting the implementation of water-related programs and the participation of women. Learn more HERE.

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