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January 25, 2007
In this issue:
X
Africa trip
X
Legislation
X
In Memory
X
Thomas is coming
X
Monthly Taize Prayer
X
New from CCC
X
Valentines
X
Coming up
X
On Solidarity
Millennium Development Goals:
1.
Eradicate extreme hunger and
poverty
2.
Achieve universal primary
education
3.
Promote gender equality and
empower women
4.
Reduce child mortality
5.
Improve maternal health
6.
Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and
other diseases
7.
Ensure environmental
sustainability
8.
Develop a global partnership for
development
Catholic Campaign Against Global
Poverty
Millennium Promise
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“God is
good….. All the time!
All the
time…… God is good!
It’s in his*
nature… Wow!”
This
was the joyful chant of a class full of children in Nairobi
on
our last day in Africa. We were visiting a
church compound surrounded by slums and garbage dumps- yet the class was
working away, and raised this cheer when we came to visit. It was a
fitting end to our trip.
Wow!
I
have just returned from a trip to Tanzania
and Kenya
with a delegation from Catholic Relief Services. Our group of diocesan
leaders from Washington and California left on Jan. 7- the Sunday we celebrated
the Epiphany- and in the spirit of the feast- we embarked on a journey to
meet Christ in the people of Tanzania and in the work of CRS. I am back in
the office now, sorting through email, and fighting jet lag. I am happy to
be home and look forward to sharing my stories and renewed sense of mission
for global solidarity. So, in that spirit, I’m passing along some of
the current news… Mary
Doyle
(*or in “her” nature… my addition)
Legislative
Alert:
URGE
CONGRESS TO SAVE LIVES AND FUND GLOBAL AIDS PROGRAMS
Hundreds
of thousands of people living with HIV in the poorest countries of the world
could die because the Congress failed to pass a regular spending bill to fund
international assistance programs for Fiscal Year (FY) 2007. Instead,
the last Congress passed a Continuing Resolution through February 15 that
funds international assistance programs at the FY 2006 levels. The new
Congress is expected to extend the FY 2007 Continuing Resolution and has
indicated that it may maintain the lower FY 2006 funding levels for the rest
of the year. This would seriously
jeopardize lifesaving programs that serve people living with HIV around the
world. With the current funding crisis, the Office of the Global
AIDS Coordinator has estimated that 100,000 to 175,000 people will die if the
Continuing Resolution only provides funding at the lower FY 2006 levels. CRS
fears that within their project alone, even with severe austerity measures,
as many as 16,000 HIV/AIDS victims could die without additional 2007
funding.
TAKE ACTION NOW! Within the next
several weeks, the House of Representatives is expected to decide at what
levels it will fund government programs for the remainder of FY 2007,
followed by Senate consideration. Please contact your Representatives
and Senators today at http://actioncenter.crs.org and
urge them to include $4.36 billion for Global AIDS initiatives.
In Memory:
Many
of you know Deacon Frank Beville, a leader in detention work for many years,
and a mentor in peace and disarmament. Frank died last weekend and we
extend our condolences to his wife Sherry and his family and friends. The
memorial will be at 10am this Saturday, January 27 at St. Leander's Church in
San Leandro.
Thomas Awiapo Visits the Diocese:
Many
of you remember Thomas when he lived here for several years.
A
native of Ghana, West Africa, Thomas works for CRS, and is on a speaking
tour this month in our area.
Chocolate, global poverty, and formation???
Religious
Educators, DREs, and Youth Ministers are invited to a gathering Friday,
January 26, 2007, 9:30 am to noon. at St. Isidore parish in Danville. DEC and Lyn Ford at St. Isidore
are hosting Thomas Awiapo who works for Catholic Relief Services in Ghana, West Africa.
Thomas, who has visited Oakland before and is
a warm and engaging speaker, will bring us up to date on Fair Trade
Chocolate which comes from Ghana
and on other aspects of global solidarity. Thomas will also share his own
story, and discussion will involve how to integrate global issues into
religious formation. There will be time to meet and network with other
leaders. To attend just RSVP Mary Doyle
at DEC mdoyle@oakdiocese.org or
510-267-8379 Oh, and samples of fair trade chocolate, coffee, and tea will
be served. ( You are invited even if you don’t fit in the categories
above…)
Iraq
The
weekend ahead will bring protests around the country including a major
protest in San Francisco.
Two
resources:
- Pax Christi has a new
statement on Iraq:
http://www.paxchristiusa.org/news_Events_more.asp?id=1193
- From Sr. Stella: Create a Culture of Peace: gathering and
action. On Thurs. Feb. 1 at 1 pm, at the SF Federal Building, 450 Golden Gate Ave.,(between Polk
and Larkin Sts.) Bring a white sheet and join the die in- optional
non-violent civil disobedience. Follows the 12-1pm silent vigil.
Taize Prayer:
You’re invited:
Prayer Around the Cross aka Taize Prayer
WHEN:
8:00 p.m.
Every
3rd Friday of the Month
Jan
19, Feb 16, Mar
16, Apr 20,
May
18, Jun 15, Jul
20, Aug 17
WHERE:
Dominican
Sisters of Mission San Jose
Motherhouse
Chapel
WHY:
Come
to the Cross with that inexpressible longing of your heart
In
communion with our sisters and brothers who suffer
Remain
at the Cross
For
whom is the suffering Love of Christ?
What
is Jesus offering you?
Who
does Jesus say you are really?
Dominican
Sisters of Mission San Jose
43326 Mission Blvd.
Fremont, California (Thanks to Sr. Stella)
New from the
Catholic Conference in Sacramento:
Valentine’s Day - Debt Relief for Liberia
You’ll need red construction paper and a big
heart to advocate for the people of Liberia, saddled with years of debt. See
Jubilee USA for this fun and effective effort to help free this nation for
development. www.jubileeusa.org When
a country like Liberia has a democratic election, the world must step up to
support their new direction- you can help.
Coming Up
The
Fr. Bill O’Donnell Social Justice Committee of St.Joseph the Worker
invites you to a screening of WHY WE FIGHT, an unflinching look at the
anatomy of American war making and the Grand Jury Prize Winner at the 2005 Sundance
Film Festival, a film by Eugene Jarecki, on Fri.,
Feb. 2 at 7pm at St. Joseph the Worker Church, 1640 Addison
St.., Berkeley. . Admission- free; information 482-1062.
Follow up to the Pt. Seven Meeting: During Lent, we are hoping
to provide weekly resources for the parishes to use to deepen our
understanding of the Millennium Goals, trade, aid, and debt. A group is
now at work on the materials which will be available in a couple of weeks.
Please pray for our work.
On Solidarity:
According
to Fr. Bryan Hehir, “Solidarity is the conviction that we are born into
a fabric of relationships, that our humanity ties us to others, that the
Gospel consecrates those ties and that the prophets tell us that those ties
are the test by which our very holiness will be judged."
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