JUSTICE, PEACE
AND INTEGRITY OF CREATION
(JPIC)
MISSION STATEMENT
"The mission of JPIC is to assist the Professed Secular Franciscans as they reflect on their relationship with God as manifested in the fruits of conversion in their lives.
This with special regard to the daily choices made in the areas of justice, peacemaking and respect for all created things and people; as brothers and sisters of penance, bringing life to the Gospel and the Gospel to Life." -
MESSAGE from our JPIC REGIONAL ANIMATOR
About Catholic Social Teachings
Each of the 7 points of Catholic Social Teaching is rooted in:
· the Gospels,
· in the handed-down Church traditions,
· in the lived experience of the faithful, and
· in Apostolic Teachings (Papal Encyclicals, Statements from our Bishops, etc.)
Many of us were not aware of these in our formative years in the Church.
Yet they are each addressed more deeply in the Catechism of the Catholic Church translated into English in 1994 with an Imprimatur by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (before he became Pope Benedict XVI)
May we take these teachings to heart. May we live and support one another in living more deeply our call "to build a more fraternal and evangelical world so that the Kingdom of God may be brought about more effectively." Article 1, SFO Rule.
Everything is connected to everything else
Jesus reminds us in Mark 12:28-29 that:
To Love God, with our whole heart, soul, mind and strength, and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves is the essence of our purpose here on earth.
We are meant to be connected with God and one another by bonds of love.
Each of us has intrinsic value.
Each of us is a gift of God.
So, what about the rest of creation?
It, too was created by God as gift,
with intrinsic value, to be interconnected in a web of life and mutual inter-dependence.
Brothers Sun, Wind, Fire, and
Sisters Moon, Water, Mother Earth, and Bodily Death...
Each reflects an aspect of the glory of God.
Integrity of Creation: The value of all creatures in themselves, for one another, and for God, and their inter-connectedness in a diverse whole that has unique value for God.
Jay McDaniel, philosopher, theologian
Painting by Cynara Himes
This, in a nutshell, is what Integrity of Creation is all about.
Everything is connected to everything else.
Everything in creation is GIFT from God, has INTRINSIC VALUE, and is INTERCONNECTED.
People cannot live and thrive for long if the plants, animals, and ecosystems we depend on aren’t thriving – if the air and water we breathe and drink aren’t clean and available to us. Harming, overusing, or misusing one part of creation can lead to loss and damage to another.
God entrusts us with stewardship over creation – Franciscans speak of ‘kinship’ with her.
THE WHOLE IS GREATER THAN THE SUM OF THE PARTS
Pray, Live Simply, Protect Our Common Home
Contact information of your Regional JPIC Animator and team.
Dot Himes,ofs dothimes@gmail.com
Cathy Roszhart, ofs croszhart@gmail.com
Rosemarie LeClercq, ofs jewel.li.0603@gmail.com
Cindy McCollum, ofs cynthia.mccollum@gmail.com
Tom McNamara, ofs trmcnamara@yahoo.com
Lupe Saldano, ofs gsaldanaofs@yahoo.com
Bill Garofolo, ofs billyjg@toast.net
Sharon Masterjohn, ofs sharonmasterjohn@yahoo.com
John Elder, ofs john.elder@ecolab.com
Justice
Promotion of Human Dignity
in all Stages of Life
"Respect for the human person proceeds by way of respect for the principle that "everyone should look upon his neighbor (without any exception) as 'another self,' above all bearing in mind his life and the means necessary for living it with dignity. No legislation could by itself do away with the fears, prejudices, and attitudes of pride and selfishness which obstruct the establishment of truly fraternal societies. Such behavior will cease only through the charity that finds in every man a "neighbor," a brother."
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Peace
Offering Mercy, Peaceful Dialogue and Prayer
"Socio-economic problems can be resolved only with the help of all the forms of solidarity: solidarity of the poor among themselves, between rich and poor, of workers among themselves, between employers and employees in a business, solidarity among nations and peoples. International solidarity is a requirement of the moral order; world peace depends in part upon this."
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Integrity of Creation
From Humanity to Environment
"Endowed with "a spiritual and immortal" soul,5 the human person is "the only creature on earth that God has willed for its own sake."6 From his conception, he is destined for eternal beatitude."
“Our mistreatment of the natural world diminishes our own dignity and sacredness, not only because we are destroying resources that future generations of humans need, but because we are engaging in actions that contradict what it means to be human. Our tradition calls us to protect the life and dignity of the human person, and it is increasingly clear that this task cannot be separated from the care and defense of all creation.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church
JPIC Chair, Carolyn Townes reminds us all that:
"JPIC is our “presence in the world” and is at the heart of our Rule.
We need to refrain from saying JPIC is something ‘out there’.
JPIC is not an extra thing that we do - JPIC is part of every single thing we do.”
from NAFRA News, August 15, 2015