Report from the Justice, Charity and Care of Creation working groups (7 groups total)

The working groups in this category examined St. Camillus’ commitment to peace and justice efforts, and celebrated the accomplishments of St. Camillus in these areas as well as offering extensive reflections on how we might improve.   Overall, scores in this area were low.  On a scale from zero (not at all) to three (very much so), the assessments ranged from 0.76 to 1.71.  None of the categories averaged “adequate” or better.  This may reflect dissatisfaction with St. Camillus efforts, or perhaps a sense that St. Camillus should continue to do more.  All groups involved in Care of Creation issues recognized that St. Camillus is just beginning its efforts in that area, and so emphasized recommendations on what should come next.  A total of 70 participants were involved in these groups.

JCCC Group 1: Spirituality of Justice and Peace, Justice and Charity in the Liturgy, Parish Participation in Justice and Charity.

Questions in this area focused on the spiritual basis for justice and charity activities, the inclusiveness of parish efforts, and the parish-wide commitment to justice and charity efforts.  Among the Spanish, English and French groups, the Spanish community group had the lowest satisfaction overall with efforts in these areas (see appendix).  

Spanish JCCC Group 1:  The Spanish group emphasized the need for a point person, leadership and organization on these issues.    The group reflected a sense of frustration with the perceived inability to organize efforts.  They noted, for example, “there are a lot of gifted people at our parish who would like to do some voluntary service, but there is no contact person for that.”  

Key Recommendations:

° Form a Committee for Justice and Charity that engages the Spanish Community                              

 ° Integrate peace, justice and charity into catechesis and evangelization/outreach  (these issues are raised at mass, but remain  peripheral in the rest of church-related activity.

English JCCC Group 1:  The English community group had the highest satisfaction overall with efforts in these areas, although the averages remained below 2.  They noted the centrality of Franciscan commitment to serve the poor, focus on the marginalized, and remember the “worldly work” that is needed.  They also lauded the Just Faith and Servant Leadership programs as excellent formation programs.  The group’s concerns about weaknesses emphasized connections within the St. Camillus parish.  Especially noted was the lack of connections across various groups within the parish (“we don’t know each other’s stories inside our parish – need sharing opportunities”);  the difficulty in building togetherness in such a large and diverse community;  the lack of efforts to communicate across groups; and the limited participation in some efforts (ie, only 20 people participated in the Annapolis lobby night).  

Key Recommendations:

° do more in the area of justice (including advocacy on root causes of poverty)                                  

° have more activity to better understand the different cultures in our parish                                    

 ° focus on alleviation of local abject poverty and on corporal mercies and on networking  have more unity of purpose (the reorganization of the Social Concerns Committee was noted)              

 ° challenge each other to act.                                                                         ° Overall, they noted that we need stronger infrastructure for justice and peace, including the ability to organize, integrate and communicate – perhaps by sharing success stories.  This group noted that the website, while useful, is not a panacea.

French JCCC Group 1:  While the French community group also gave average scores of below 2, they expressed some satisfaction that the foundations of the Parish are strong in these areas, due to the Franciscan roots of our church.  They noted that the parish focuses effectively on immigration issues, and reflected an appreciation of efforts on the part of the Pastor to communicate to the whole community.  They noted lack of communication as the most significant weakness, and also reflected concern about the absence of a sense of voluntarism in the community, and problems with better integrating the French speaking people of the community.

Key Recommendations:

° create a communication cell within the Parish                                    ° establish immigration services within the Parish;                              

° have more of the Priests learn to speak French.

JCCC Group 2: Actions for Justice and Charity, Parish Participation in Solidarity

Questions to this group focused on the parish’s outreach to diverse groups, and on the parish’s financial and organizational commitment to justice and charity.  This group had the highest satisfaction with the Parish participation in solidarity.  It was felt that generally, because of the nature/diversity of the parish that people seek out relationships with those different than themselves.  The group noted, though, that the different language masses create a situation where many parishioners only know those who attend the same language mass.  The group noted that education about Fair Trade products has been good – at the masses where they are sold.  The survey asked about “twinning” parishes.  This group noted that the work with Langley Park Mission is not a traditional twinning but is very important.                                     

Key Recommendation:  The group recommended better communication about the mission to Langley Park – the parish should understand our efforts more clearly and receive more frequent communication about them.

Concerning building community beyond the parish, this group noted that the parish has a natural awareness (because of its cultural diversity) of international issues, and this is deepened by the friars.  The Parish strength in this area is its programs in different countries.  (ie, Haiti, Peru, Bolivia, Habitat) The group also noted that the parish has many joint activities with other Catholic parishes, such as the Via Crucis, the Catechetical Day, Young Adult Rally Day, March for Life, African Day of Prayer, World Youth Event, and the Pope’s recent visit.    As a shortcoming, the group noted that as a parish, we do not have any outreach and working with other faith communities such as Muslims and Jews.  

Key Recommendation: interfaith dialogues, table discussions or common projects whereby we can work with Jews and Muslims to serve the marginalized and decrease prejudice against those of other faiths.  

This survey group had the most concerns about Parish Finances, mostly because they felt that they understood the financial situation poorly.  There was an appreciation that the Parish has limited financial resources and that it is a very large parish with many families who are struggling financially.  However, the group noted a visible commitment to the poor and vulnerable across many projects such as  St Vincent de Paul, Forward Partners, outreach in Langley Park, facilities for ESL classes, etc, as well as a commitment to the poor in other parts of the world.  The group noted that many of them did not know the answers to a number of questions in the area of parish financial commitments, and felt that communication between those who are involved in finances and those who are involved in social justice issues might be improved.  

Key Recommendation: greater transparency in finances of the parish – and in communication between social justice ministries and the committees involved in finance.

JCCC Group 3: Care for Creation

Questions in this area focused on everyday ecology – that is, care for the physical space of the parish, and on integrity of creation – that is, a broader sense of environmental awareness and its spiritual basis.

Spanish JCCC Group 3:   The  Spanish community group had the lowest satisfaction overall with parish efforts regarding care of creation – overall scores remained below 1.   They recognized that efforts in this area are new – and noted recycling bins, the Earth Day project and energy saving measures as evidence that things are beginning to change.  They noted that one friar is very committed to the issue, and that the parish has existing structures that can be used to promote values of care for creation.  However, they did not see much parish-wide visibility of these issues, they did not believe that all the friars are committed to this priority, and they recognized that the reality of an immigrant community with many concerns may make this a difficult set of issues to promote. 

Key Recommendations:

 ° Establish a parish committee dedicated to monitor parish efforts in this area                                      

° increase visibility of these issues (announce each Sunday before mass a reminder to take care of the grounds and facilities, have the pastor provide a monthly message in the bulletin integrity of creation, and dedicate a multilingual “green corner” in the bulletin for announcements and tips, incorporate this issue into religious education at all levels, improve our own green area, offer green awareness products in the parish store)            ° provide more well-labeled recycling bins                                          

° Celebrate an Annual Integrity of Creation program on St. Francis Day (Oct 4)                                   

 ° Explore making St Camillus solar

French JCCC Group 3: The French community group also noted that the Parish needs to do a lot more in this area.  They gave overall scores below 2.  They noted that the maintenance personnel keep the church and its surroundings up very nicely, and that some awareness of ecological issues has been promoted recently.  However, they call for more leadership on these issues and emphasized the need to incorporate the children and youth of the parish.  

Key Recommendations:

° (Everyday Ecology) Create a manual about facilities use for parish groups                                         

 ° (Everyday Ecology) Improve the restroom and water fountain facilities in the church                      

° (Integrity of Creation) offer more homilies to reflect environmental concern and awareness         

° (Integrity of Creation) Make more use of the Bible to call attention to care for God’s creation.

English JCCC Group 3: The English community group noted that many improvements have been made recently – but they agreed that the Parish needs to do more.  They were the only group to rate the parish over 2 in these efforts.  In terms of everyday ecology, they praised the efforts of maintenance to improve efficiency and keep grounds clean, but were concerned about the parishioners who don’t take care of the church well.  In integrity of creation, the group praised the Parish recent efforts to better educate people about issues such as global warming.  

Key Recommendations:

°(Everyday Ecology) better communicate recent efforts to improve the footprint of the Parish (and explain why), provide success stories                 °(Everyday Ecology) involve  the school, youth group, and parish overall in “walking the walk” of becoming more green.                                                  °(Integrity of Creation) broaden homilies to include concrete ideas of what to do/ what has been done                                                                              ° (Integrity of Creation develop a parish group that keeps up with environmental issues and takes responsibility for informing the Parish.         °(Integrity of Creation) involve the school –this is critical – and take other measures to improve communication/integration.                                                                                                                           °(Integrity of Creation) feature  the environmental groups’ efforts in the bulletin. 

Por favor, lea este informe en preparación a la Reunión Parroquial del 12 de septiembre. Para más información sobre el proceso, por favor lea el boletín

Reporte de los Grupos de Trabajo de Justicia, Caridad y Cuidado de la Creación

Borrador del 1 de agosto 2009 (incluye las revisiones del 17 de junio y del 31 de julio)

Los grupos de trabajo en esta categoría examinaron el compromiso de San Camilo hacia los esfuerzos de paz y justicia, y celebraron el cumplimiento de la parroquia en estas áreas ofrecieron extensas reflexiones sobre cómo podríamos mejorar. Como resultado, el puntaje en esta área fue muy bajo. En una escala de cero (no del todo) a tres (mucho), las evaluaciones variaron de 0.76 a 1.71. Ninguna de las categorías tuvo promedio “adecuado” o mejor. Esto puede reflejar la no satisfacción con los esfuerzos que hace San Camilo, o tal vez un sentir de que San Camilo debería hacer algo más. Todos los grupos que participaron en el tema de Cuidado de la Creación reconocieron que San Camilo está recién iniciando sus esfuerzos en esta área, y enfatizaron recomendaciones sobre lo que se debiera hacer más adelante. Un total de 70 personas participaron en estos grupos.

Grupo 1 JCCC: Espiritualidad de Justicia y Paz, Justicia y Caridad en la Liturgia, Participación parroquial en Justicia y Caridad.

Las preguntas en esta área se enfocaron en la base espiritual para las actividades de justicia y caridad, los esfuerzos generales de la parroquia, y el amplio compromiso hacia los esfuerzos por justicia y caridad. Entre los grupos hispanos, anglo y francés, el grupo de la comunidad hispana tuvo la más baja satisfacción con esfuerzos en estas áreas (ver nota en apéndice).

Grupo Hispano 1 JCCC: El grupo hispano acentuó la necesidad de una persona encargada, liderazgo y organización en estos asuntos. El grupo refleja un sentido de frustración con la incapacidad percibida para organizar esfuerzos. Ellos observaron, por ejemplo, “que existen muchas personas dotadas en nuestra parroquia a quienes les gustaría hacer un servicio voluntario, pero no hay una persona con la cual puedan ponerse en contacto para eso.”

Puntos de Recomendación:

·       Formar un Comité para Justicia y Caridad que reúna a la Comunidad Hispana

·       Integrar paz, justicia y caridad dentro de la catequesis y evangelización (estos temas son planteados en la Misa, pero permanecen secundarios en el resto de las actividades relacionadas con la iglesia.

Grupo Anglo 1 JCCC: El grupo de la comunidad Anglo tuvo la respuesta más alta de satisfacción con relación a los esfuerzos en estas áreas, aunque los puntajes permanecieron bajo 2. Ellos resaltaron la centralidad del compromiso Franciscano de servir al pobre, centrarse en los marginalizados, y recordar el “trabajo material” que se necesita. También alabaron los programas de Just Faith y Servant Leadership, como excelentes programas de formación. Las preocupaciones del grupo sobre las debilidades enfatizaron las conexiones dentro de la parroquia San Camilo. Se observó especialmente la falta de conexión entre varios grupos de la parroquia (“no conocemos la historia de cada uno dentro de nuestra parroquia – necesitamos compartir oportunidades”); la dificultad en construir unidad en una comunidad tan grande y diversa; la falta de esfuerzos por comunicarse entre los grupos; y la limitada participación en algunos eventos (ejemplo, solo 20 personas participaron en la noche de cabildeo de Anápolis).

Puntos de Recomendación

·       Trabajar más en el área de justicia (incluyendo apoyo en causas que originan la pobreza)

·       Realizar más actividades para mejor comprender las diferentes culturas en nuestra parroquia

·       Enfocarse en el alivio de la pobreza local, las obras corporales de misericordia y establecer contactos

·       Desafiar uno a uno para actuar

·       En general, señalaron que necesitamos una infraestructura más fuerte para justicia y paz, incluyendo la habilidad para organizar, integrar y comunicar – tal vez compartiendo historias con éxito. Este grupo observó que la página web, si bien es útil, no es una solución.