In the early part of November, the Social Concerns Committee of the Second Federation of the Visitation met in St. Louis. We worked intensely to produce the fourth edition of our newsletter, which follows below. We also made plans to set up this blog. We hope you find these resources helpful. Have a peaceful Advent.
--Sister Mary Virginia, VHM
Salesian Social Concerns
Second Federation Newsletter, November, 2007
Introduction
Political campaigning for Election 2008 is already in high gear and the major issues that will dominate the national discussion are generally clear. This newsletter discusses some of these issues in relationship to the common good and our Salesian values.
What is the Common good?
In the words of St. Francis de Sales, “there are certainly occasions when there is a need to speak out strongly because justice demands it.” When considering the meaning of the Common Good we remind ourselves that we are called to live in relationship with one another and to care for each other. Pope John Paul II reminds us “the common good refers to the good of all and the good of each individual because we are really responsible for all.” In order to build a just society, there is an urgent need to promote the common good. Advocacy for the common good recognizes our solidarity, defends and protects our freedom, fundamental rights, and spiritual as well as material conditions necessary for everyone to achieve his/her full potential.
In our nation, the common good is grounded in the very words of our Declaration of Independence “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
In the words of the Constitution “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity…”
Our challenge and sense of responsibility today is to recognize the common good in the most vulnerable members of society and to offer these members of society opportunities to participate so that “all are able to make their own contributions to social and economic life.
Salesian response to the Common Good
As Salesians, how do we approach the issues of the common good? Practice of Salesian virtues prepares us for our response. Primarily, St. Francis de Sales’ spirituality is a relational one, a concern for others that is born of our friendship with God. Basic to this concern is the dignity of every human being. “Real humility makes us really human. Real humility makes us really equal,” (Kevin Nadolski, OSFS, unpublished paper given at the Salesian Conference 2007) thus deepening our capacity for relationship. The fundamental dignity of every individual is basic to all Salesian themes. Each person, especially the most needy and most neglected, is to be treated with gentleness, a hallmark of Salesian spirituality. This gentleness when confronted with unjust and overwhelming situations, remains firm and also optimistic, assured that the tasks done in God’s will, no matter how small, build the Kingdom and are pleasing to God.
Below are descriptions of issues in the 2008 election that are being discussed:
Climate Change
There is no way to diminish the threat of global warming in the U.S. without working cooperatively with other nations and addressing the problem for the planet as a whole. No one nation or small group of nations can do enough to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without collaboration from all the rest. Our common good requires that our local and national efforts to address climate change be conceived from a global perspective and reached through global cooperation. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good,20080
Healthcare
A steadily growing number of Americans – now more than 47 million– lack health insurance, and the President and his supporters in Congress recently refused to extend the S-CHIP program to millions of low income children. The rapidly rising costs of our high-tech approach to healthcare are putting it out of reach for more individuals and businesses every day. Simply debating how to make healthcare affordable and accessible for all Americans, though, will not secure for us a healthy nation in which to live. The Surgeon General’s 2006 report insists that the “...health of an individual, community, or nation is GLOBAL by nature.” Diseases anywhere travel everywhere by passenger jet, cargo ship, and migration flow. No sustainable solution to the U.S. healthcare crisis can be hoped for without a long-term commitment to global public health as well. Our common good requires a vision that addresses the U.S. problems of cost and access within a broader collaborative global approach to good health. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Poverty
By some estimates, 37 million people in the U.S. live in poverty. The gap between the wealthy and the poor within our country and around the world has continued to grow over the last 4 decades. The free-trade, small-government policies dominating the national and international scenes during that time have promoted capital flight and job-outsourcing, eroding the middle class and increasing economic insecurity and poverty. Corporations are free to move around the world, but workers are not. Educated populations in countries with lower cost of living need the jobs and welcome the corporations. These problems faced by U.S. workers cannot be solved at the national level. Our common good requires addressing poverty in theU.S. as part of a cooperative global strategy to guarantee decent work and a living wage for everyone on the planet.
(Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Immigration
Many factors are contributing to the historic flows of migration in the world today – wars, climate change, ethnic cleansing, hunger, government policies, and economic insecurity to name a few. U.S. international trade agreements, for example, have driven small farmers off their land and contributed to business failures in many poorer nations, resulting in increased migration flows into the U.S. for economic survival. People in those migration streams have become essential to the survival of important U.S. industries. Too often their basic human rights are violated and their work exploited. Border fences and stricter penalties cannot address this reality adequately. Our common good requires solutions that recognize our common humanity with the migrants worldwide, acknowledge the role of our own economic and political policies in forced migration and our interdependence and mutual responsibility, and enable us to live and work together in ways that promote healthy and secure communities for all of us. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Security and Terrorism
The U.S. has invested trillions of dollars and sacrificed thousands of lives over the last five years proving that the projection of military force, even overwhelming military force, cannot suppress terrorism or guarantee security. Our common good requires policies and institutions that strengthen global bonds of friendship, dialogue and diplomacy, mutual support and collaboration. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Abortion
The experiences of the last two U.S. administrations have shown that abortions are reduced more by employment and secure incomes than by threats of criminalization and punishment. Unless we address poverty effectively, we have no realistic hope of ending abortion. And we have already seen that poverty and economic security are issues that must be addressed in a global context. Our common good requires that we devise approaches to eliminating abortion that address its many contributing social factors and truly protect human dignity. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Education
One major issue in the upcoming presidential election is equity in funding for the education of all children in the United States. Since the major funding for education in the United States comes from property taxes, school districts where the wealthier live receive more funding, while economically poorer districts receive an insufficient allotment of funds. Simply put, the educational experience of children in public schools is not uniform; if students are fortunate enough to live in a school district that receives more tax dollars for their schools many benefits are available to them. Conversely, the poor face additional challenges, attending school districts that receive less funding from tax dollars. The educational issue comes into the homes of all Americans since every American home pays taxes. How funds are allocated for public schools in the United States raises moral questions of economic segregation and equal education for all. Leaders in our country need to close the gap and better provide funding equity for all schools, urban and rural, rich and poor throughout our nation.
Many proposals are suggested by presidential candidates to improve our educational system. Charter schools, No Child Left Behind, Vouchers, School Choice, and Teacher Testing are some proposals debated. (Michael Mohan)
Reflection
All of the issues of serious concern to American voters today are local issues deeply enmeshed in global networks of interdependence. In fact, they are all interrelated with each other in complex ways. They are all parts of an emerging global system. Caring about one or more of these issues requires caring about them all and about how they are interrelated.
Considering our Constitutions and the common good, learn what each candidate for office says. The following reflections may assist you in your civic duty.
Climate Change
Health Care
Poverty
Immigration
Security and Terrorism
Abortion
Education
The Social Concerns Committee recommends the pamphlet “Voting for the Common Good” Check the website www.thecatholicalliance.org.
We would also like to announce the creation of a blog. Please check:
www.Salesianjustice.blogspot.com for regular comments.
Salesian response to the Common Good
As Salesians, how do we approach the issues of the common good? Practice of Salesian virtues prepares us for our response. Primarily, St. Francis de Sales’ spirituality is a relational one, a concern for others that is born of our friendship with God. Basic to this concern is the dignity of every human being. “Real humility makes us really human. Real humility makes us really equal,” (Kevin Nadolski, OSFS, unpublished paper given at the Salesian Conference 2007) thus deepening our capacity for relationship. The fundamental dignity of every individual is basic to all Salesian themes. Each person, especially the most needy and most neglected, is to be treated with gentleness, a hallmark of Salesian spirituality. This gentleness when confronted with unjust and overwhelming situations, remains firm and also optimistic, assured that the tasks done in God’s will, no matter how small, build the Kingdom and are pleasing to God.
Below are descriptions of issues in the 2008 election that are being discussed:
Climate Change
There is no way to diminish the threat of global warming in the U.S. without working cooperatively with other nations and addressing the problem for the planet as a whole. No one nation or small group of nations can do enough to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without collaboration from all the rest. Our common good requires that our local and national efforts to address climate change be conceived from a global perspective and reached through global cooperation. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good,20080
Healthcare
A steadily growing number of Americans – now more than 47 million– lack health insurance, and the President and his supporters in Congress recently refused to extend the S-CHIP program to millions of low income children. The rapidly rising costs of our high-tech approach to healthcare are putting it out of reach for more individuals and businesses every day. Simply debating how to make healthcare affordable and accessible for all Americans, though, will not secure for us a healthy nation in which to live. The Surgeon General’s 2006 report insists that the “...health of an individual, community, or nation is GLOBAL by nature.” Diseases anywhere travel everywhere by passenger jet, cargo ship, and migration flow. No sustainable solution to the U.S. healthcare crisis can be hoped for without a long-term commitment to global public health as well. Our common good requires a vision that addresses the U.S. problems of cost and access within a broader collaborative global approach to good health. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Poverty
By some estimates, 37 million people in the U.S. live in poverty. The gap between the wealthy and the poor within our country and around the world has continued to grow over the last 4 decades. The free-trade, small-government policies dominating the national and international scenes during that time have promoted capital flight and job-outsourcing, eroding the middle class and increasing economic insecurity and poverty. Corporations are free to move around the world, but workers are not. Educated populations in countries with lower cost of living need the jobs and welcome the corporations. These problems faced by U.S. workers cannot be solved at the national level. Our common good requires addressing poverty in theU.S. as part of a cooperative global strategy to guarantee decent work and a living wage for everyone on the planet.
(Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Immigration
Many factors are contributing to the historic flows of migration in the world today – wars, climate change, ethnic cleansing, hunger, government policies, and economic insecurity to name a few. U.S. international trade agreements, for example, have driven small farmers off their land and contributed to business failures in many poorer nations, resulting in increased migration flows into the U.S. for economic survival. People in those migration streams have become essential to the survival of important U.S. industries. Too often their basic human rights are violated and their work exploited. Border fences and stricter penalties cannot address this reality adequately. Our common good requires solutions that recognize our common humanity with the migrants worldwide, acknowledge the role of our own economic and political policies in forced migration and our interdependence and mutual responsibility, and enable us to live and work together in ways that promote healthy and secure communities for all of us. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Security and Terrorism
The U.S. has invested trillions of dollars and sacrificed thousands of lives over the last five years proving that the projection of military force, even overwhelming military force, cannot suppress terrorism or guarantee security. Our common good requires policies and institutions that strengthen global bonds of friendship, dialogue and diplomacy, mutual support and collaboration. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Abortion
The experiences of the last two U.S. administrations have shown that abortions are reduced more by employment and secure incomes than by threats of criminalization and punishment. Unless we address poverty effectively, we have no realistic hope of ending abortion. And we have already seen that poverty and economic security are issues that must be addressed in a global context. Our common good requires that we devise approaches to eliminating abortion that address its many contributing social factors and truly protect human dignity. (Center of Concern: Voting the Common Good, 2008)
Education
One major issue in the upcoming presidential election is equity in funding for the education of all children in the United States. Since the major funding for education in the United States comes from property taxes, school districts where the wealthier live receive more funding, while economically poorer districts receive an insufficient allotment of funds. Simply put, the educational experience of children in public schools is not uniform; if students are fortunate enough to live in a school district that receives more tax dollars for their schools many benefits are available to them. Conversely, the poor face additional challenges, attending school districts that receive less funding from tax dollars. The educational issue comes into the homes of all Americans since every American home pays taxes. How funds are allocated for public schools in the United States raises moral questions of economic segregation and equal education for all. Leaders in our country need to close the gap and better provide funding equity for all schools, urban and rural, rich and poor throughout our nation.
Many proposals are suggested by presidential candidates to improve our educational system. Charter schools, No Child Left Behind, Vouchers, School Choice, and Teacher Testing are some proposals debated. (Michael Mohan)
Reflection
All of the issues of serious concern to American voters today are local issues deeply enmeshed in global networks of interdependence. In fact, they are all interrelated with each other in complex ways. They are all parts of an emerging global system. Caring about one or more of these issues requires caring about them all and about how they are interrelated.
Considering our Constitutions and the common good, learn what each candidate for office says. The following reflections may assist you in your civic duty.
Climate Change
- What is the impact of the climate change on the less privileged?
- What are some specific actions to protect God’s creation and practice stewardship?
- Who are more adversely affected by climate change?
- How can we work with local and national organizations to address climate change?
- How can we show more respect for God’s creation?
Health Care
- How are we to distinguish between lawful innovations in health care which nurture and sustain life, and those procedures that threaten life and human dignity?
- How are we committed to long-term universal health?
- How can we contribute to a vision that addresses problems of health care cost in the US and our global world?
- As Catholics and Salesians, how can we be advocates for health care at the local and global levels?
- What is it that drives the costs and limits the access for universal health care?
Poverty
- Francis de Sales says, “Love the poor and love poverty, for it is by such that you become truly poor. Love makes lovers equal.” How can each of us put this directive into practice?
- Is free trade an answer to global poverty? What are the some of the negative ramifications of free trade?
- St. Francis de Sales encourages us to be “just and equitable” in all our actions, and to put ourselves in our neighbor’s place and the neighbor in ours.” Evaluate the working conditions and wages in your own environment.
Immigration
- How can immigration reform incorporate Salesian principles?
- How do economic and political policies relate to forced migration?
- What are some ideas to support our mutual responsibilities and work together in ways that promote healthy and secure communities for all of us?
- How do recent policies on immigration affect human rights and dignity?
Security and Terrorism
- How might channeling military spending into different areas help to create conditions for peace?
- As Salesians, we are taught to make our decisions out of love. How do we respond to the
- fear and the anger that is present in our country
- What can we do to support policies and institutions that strengthen global bonds of friendship? What steps can we take to support such policies?
Abortion
- What are some suggestions you have to eliminate abortion?
- As Salesians we are called to celebrate and embrace life in all social and economic situations. How might we reach out to pregnant women faced with unwanted or difficult pregnancies and what agencies may assist them?
- What are some specific ways to support women who make a decision not to have an abortion but either decide to keep or to put the child up for adoption?
Education
- What changes could be made to systems and structures in the US to improve the lives of children in the area of education?
- Education is connected to economic segregation. How may we encourage our candidates to work for an equitable distribution of property taxes for educating our children?
The Social Concerns Committee recommends the pamphlet “Voting for the Common Good” Check the website www.thecatholicalliance.org.
We would also like to announce the creation of a blog. Please check:
www.Salesianjustice.blogspot.com for regular comments.
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