Northeast MS Family Life Center

 

The Family Life Center is located in Vardaman, Mississippi and provides programs to support those living in poverty and to strenghten families.

Services provided include:

• Emergency Assistance - Provides families with temporary relief from the fear of eviction and remaining homeless and with maintaining their electricity and/or gas.  This is only offered when funds are available.

• Spanish/English Translation and Interpretation

• Advanced ESL

• Outreach Services

• Resource and Referral

• Summer & Afterschool Reading, Writing, and Comprehension for grades 4-5 and 7-8

 

Parish Health Ministry

 

The Office of Parish Health Ministry assists individual parishes to establish their own health ministries through the efforts of parish nurses and other volunteers, and may be able to help individuals find resources to medical or social needs that are not easily addressed.

 

Parish Social Ministry

 

Parish Social Ministry provides educational resources to the parishes across the Jackson Diocese regarding Catholic Social Teaching and social justice advocacy.  Our focus is to spread awareness of issues affecting the poor and vulnerable across Mississippi.  Through partnering with various Catholic entities such as the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Charities USA, we provide materials for parishes to further enrich the social justice life of the congregation.

 

Parish Social Ministry provides consultation to parishes in four areas of social concern - education, direct service,  advocacy, empowerment.

 

• Education - Helps parishes explore Catholic Social Teachings and why responding to social concerns in not optional.

• Direct Service - Provides consultation to parishes in developing Social Concerns Committees and provides data on specific parish’s locale to help assess needs.

• Advocacy - Serves as the diocesan legislative advocate in addressing issues concerning the Church’s Consistent Ethic of Life, social justice concerns and many other issues affecting the mission of the Catholic Charities.

• Empowerment and Rebuilding Coalitions - Helps develop a broader base of support with people of similar values; and represents the Diocese at various interfaith and human service coalitions. 

 

 

The Office of Parish Social Ministry coordinates with Religious Education Department of the Jackson Diocese to provide educational resources regarding advocacy and Catholic Social Teaching. These resources are gathered through partnership with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Catholic Charities USA, and various Catholic organizations whose focus is peace and social justice. Please take advantage of our resources today.

 

Catholic Social Teaching

 

Far too many Catholics are not familiar with the basic content of Catholic social teaching. More fundamentally, many Catholics do not adequately understand that the social teaching of the Church is an essential part of Catholic faith. This poses a serious challenge for all Catholics, since it weakens our capacity to be a Church that is true to the demands of the Gospel. We need to do more to share the social mission and message of our Church (U.S. Catholic Bishops, Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions).

 

Pro-Life Resources

 

Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person---among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2270).

 

Mississippi Food Network

 

In the modern world, too many people suffer from hunger and hunger related illnesses. This mission of the Mississippi Food Network is to relieve poverty-related hunger for Mississippi families. The Mississippi Food Network collaborates with member churches and non-profit organizations to distribute food and grocery products to persons living in poverty. The Network serves over 320 churches and 501c3 nonprofit agencies in Mississippi. From its beginning in 1984, when 139,000 pounds were distributed, to 2009, when more than 15 million pounds were distributed, the work goes on.

 

Justice for Immigrants

 

Every human being has the right to freedom of movement and of residence with the confines of his own state. When there are just reasons in favor or it, he must be permitted to emigrate to other countries and to take up residence there. The fact that he is a citizen of a particular state does not deprive him of membership in the human family, nor the citizenship in that universal society, the common, world-wide fellowship of women and men (Pacem in Terris #25).

Beginning in 2010, Justice for Immigrants will be ramping up our efforts and re-launching a national campaign to support comprehensive immigration reform. This effort will educate and engage Catholics around the country on this critical issue. The action calendar below identifies a number of opportunities for action in the initial months of 2010, but may be modified as the legislative calendar evolves and new opportunities arise. We have provided resources below for each parish and all parishioners, and community members to participate in this effort. Parishes should announce this campaign, and insert a bulletin notice (link to bulletin announcement file) of this important effort. Attached is a postcard campaign order form (link to order form file). Electronic versions of the postcards will soon be available at the Justice for Immigrants website. Instructions for using postcards and suggestions for marketing the postcards are included as well.

 

Help Reduce Poverty

 

It is estimated that more than 40-million Americans live below the federal poverty line. Currently, more than 22% of Mississippians live in poverty. Catholic Charities, Inc. has partnered with Catholic Charities USA in the Poverty Campaign to reduce poverty by 50% by the year 2020. Please visit the below links to find out more about national and state poverty.

Poverty In American Taskforce
Catholic Charities USA Poverty Initiative

Catholics Confront Global Poverty

 

Our world shows increasing evidence of another grave threat to peace: many individuals and indeed whole peoples are living today in conditions of extreme poverty. The gap between rich and poor has become more marked, even in the most economically developed nations. This is a problem which the conscience of humanity cannot ignore, since the conditions in which a great number of people are living are an insult to their innate dignity and as a result are a threat to the authentic and harmonious progress of the world community (Pope John Paul II, Message for the 1993 World Day of Peace).

 

Solidarity

 

We are one human family. We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers, wherever they may be. Loving our neighbor has global dimensions in a shrinking world. At the core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of justice and peace. The Gospel calls us to be "peacemakers" in a world wounded by violence and conflict.

 
Mississippi Religious Leadership Conference
Catholic Relief Services
Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty

 

Fair Trade is about fair prices.  It’s about eliminating exploitative middlemen and sharing more of a product’s value with the people who made it.  Fair Trade is about being good stewards of the planet God gave us. And it can be a lot more. In CRS’ Fair Trade program, we embrace the idea of Fair Trade as a partnership between producers and consumers.  Fair Trade “contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers.

 

Justice, Peace, and Human Development

 

The USCCB Justice, Peace, and Human Development is the anti-poverty and social justice program of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This program sponsors activities and educational materials regarding social justice and Catholic Social Teaching. Resources can be downloaded and/or ordered through the USCCB CCHD website.

 

Catholic Campaign for Human Development

 

The Catholic Campaign for Human Development is the domestic anti-poverty, social justice program of the U.S. Catholic bishops. Its mission is to address the root causes of poverty in America through promotion and support of community controlled, self help organizations and through transformative education. 

 

Social Encyclicals of Pope Benedict XVI

 

Since his election as Bishop of Rome and successor of St. Peter, Pope Benedict XVI has written two encyclicals dealing with social justice issues.  In these encyclicals, the Holy Father addresses the social concerns of humanity and calls us to live a life of service to all people created in the Divine image.