LOVE IN ACTION: Life, Justice and Creation
MISSION STATEMENT:
The Love In Action: Life, Justice and Creation Ministry is grounded in our baptismal call as Christians to care for one another and for the planet Earth. Through Scripture and Catholic Social Teaching, we are committed to identifying, educating and acting upon the needs of the vulnerable and the poor in our community and beyond, and to care for our common home.
Love In Action is a parish social justice ministry that is committed to charity and justice for the most marginalized among us; and to respect life from conception to natural death, as Jesus has commanded us to do. We seek to work for the common good by caring for creation—both the planet as a whole and our local environment. We strive to put love into action by serving our community and beyond, wherever there is need.
Tree of Life: Our symbol is the Tree of life, where God is the roots, the Gospel is the trunk, and we are the branches. From the larger branches of Life, Justice and Creation, we form smaller branches in all 3 areas, with much overlap.
- Our Life Branch focuses on issues such as abortion, the death penalty, poverty, refugees, homelessness, the sick, and all who are marginalized or in need.
- Our Justice Branch encompasses all Catholic Social Teaching as delineated by the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the USCCB.
- Our Creation Branch seeks to combat the destruction of our planet with direct action and awareness, from pollution to climate change, as set forth by Pope Francis in his encyclicals Laudato Si and Laudate Deum.
Patron Saint:
St. MARTIN de PORRES 1579-1639
Feast day: November 3
St. Martin de Porres, Pray for us and all we serve.
Social Justice Links:
USCCB document Communities of Salt and Light: Reflections on the Social Mission of the Parish
https://www.usccb.org/resources/communities-salt-and-light-reflections-social-mission-parish
7 Themes of Catholic Social Teaching
“The entire material universe speaks of God’s love, God’s boundless affection for us. Soil, water, mountains: everything is a caress of God.” (Pope Francis; Laudato Si’, 84).
“The social message of the Gospel must not be considered a theory, but above all else a basis and motivation for action.” (Pope St. John Paul II, Centesimus Annus, 57).
We are a Eucharistic People: We adore Christ; We receive Christ; We become Christ for one another.
For more information, or if you wish to join us in our ministry, please contact Lia Romero or SueAnn Jeral at lia@stjoans.org