This year marked the 5th anniversary of the Bishop Peter Rosazza Social Justice Conference!  On June 14th, 300 people from around the diocese and beyond gathered together to pray for social justice, learn from each other, and encourage one another!  

New to the conference this year, the OCSJM welcomed four parish social ministry leaders to speak about their work, in light of the four cornerstones of parish social ministry: Prayer by Migdalia Almedina, Direct Service by Deacon Stan Petrowski, Education by Lou Terzo, and Advocacy by Ana Landskron.  These four speakers set the tone for the day, showing that everyone has a role to play in social justice ministry.  Special thanks to them for their inspiration!

Throughout the day, participants attended workshops and visited exhibits to learn about a variety of social justice organizations and efforts.  A number of people used the time to network and said that they hope to bring this information back to their parishes. 

A special note to our attendees: Please capture the energy of the conference, and remember that the OCSJM is here to assist you in bringing social justice to your parish.  If you would like more information about a specific organization or speaker, let us know and we can connect you. And contact the Office if we can help you in your ministry!

We will be posting materials from the workshops on our website shortly - watch the Home Page for updates.  If you loved Brother Mickey's keynote and were inspired by his stories, you can purchase his books and artwork at these websites:  World Library Publications; Clear Faith Publishing.

Thank you to all of our volunteers who made the day possible, including Brake the Cycle and the students, faculty and staff from St. Paul's Catholic High School. And of course, a big thanks to our participants who took the time to come to the conference. We hope to see you again next year!

NOW is the time to plan a JustFaith introduction 
for your parish. 
If not now, when??

NOW is the time to contact John Ryan to fill in the blanks on how, and why, you want to make it happen. What, who are the obstacles? Let's overcome them together!

Check out this simple schedule, figure out what days are best for you, and contact John at 860-716-3914, or at jryan@saintbridget.com.

          JULY:

• Call, and meet with John ... at your convenience
  
• Schedule meeting(s): parish council and/or justice committee and/or pasto
  
  AUGUST:
• Finalize planning
  
• Plan and begin publicity efforts
  
  SEPTEMBER:
• Recruit participants (8-12 people)
  
  OCTOBER:
• Begin weekly sessions and opening retreat
  

JustFaith changes people!
We invite you and your whole community to embark on a spiritual journey for small groups that invites people to engage the world's needs with compassion.  CALL TODAY!

Catholic dioceses and parishes across the United States are once again encouraged to raise awareness of domestic and international religious freedom concerns during the third annual Fortnight for Freedom, June 21-July 4. The two-week celebration will focus on the theme "Freedom to Serve," emphasizing the link between religious liberty and service to the poor and vulnerable.

Fighting continues throughout Syria and threatens to spill into surrounding countries where tensions between Sunni and Shia Muslims remain high. Syrian Christians have been frustrated that they have not been invited to participate in peace talks or international negotiations about how to resolve the Syrian conflict. They fear that unless their voices are heard and they receive support from the international community, the Christian presence in Syria will dramatically decline, as it did in Iraq. Learn more: English - Spanish.  

On a more local level, national and local Catholic charitable agencies around the country have long provided services to people in need, regardless of immigration status. However, several states have passed laws that forbid what state legislatures consider to be the "harboring" of undocumented immigrants - including actions that the Church considers to be Christian charity and pastoral care to those immigrants. State immigration laws affect the religious liberty of the Church because they have criminalized these acts of Christian charity and pastoral care. Learn more about attacks against humanitarian services: English - Spanish.

Please visit the Fortnight for Freedom webpage for resources and more information on how you can take action to protect religious liberty. We invite you to join us in prayer with the Litany for Liberty.

          Litany for Liberty
          Letanía por la Libertad