<p><img alt="" src="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/new med 1.jpg" /></p>
<p><img alt="" src="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/new med 2.jpg" /></p>
<p>For printable PDF file click <a href="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/Medicaid Fact Sheet 4-30-2015.pdf">HERE</a></p>

<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Encouraging Initial Rule Needs Strengthening, says Jesuit Social Research Institute</strong></p>
<p>New Orleans, LA- April 14, 2015: The Jesuit Social Research Institute welcomes the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau&rsquo;s (CFPB) encouraging initial rule to curtail payday lending but we are concerned that the proposal leaves too many loopholes for continued abuses. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Significant additional rules are necessary to break a business model designed to catch families in a cycle of debt. &nbsp;</p>
<p>&ldquo;When a family has nothing to eat because they have to repay loan sharks,&rdquo; exclaimed Pope Francis on January 29, 2014, &ldquo;that is not Christian, It is inhuman!&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<p>As Bishop Stephen E. Blaire wrote to CFPB Director Cordray (November 13, 2013):&nbsp;</p>
<p><em>The Catechism of the Catholic Church </em>equates exploiting economic hardship with theft:&nbsp; &ldquo;Even if it does not contradict provisions of civil law, any form of unjustly taking and keeping the property of others is against the seventh commandment: thus, deliberate retention of goods lent or objects lost; business fraud; paying unjust wages; forcing up prices by taking advantage of ignorance or hardship of another (#2409).&rdquo;</p>
<p>Bishop Blaire explains that payday lending meets these criteria because it preys on the financial hardship of the poor, exploits their lack of understanding, and increases economic insecurity. &nbsp;</p>
<p>Payday lending violates the most cherished values of our faith and democracy: human dignity and freedom.</p>
<p>Payday loans led to the net loss of 671 jobs and drained at least $46 million from</p>
<p>Louisiana in 2011 according to a <a href="http://www.insightcced.org/uploads/assets/Net%20Economic%20Impact%20of%20Payday%20Lending.pdf">study</a> by the Insight Center for Community Development.&nbsp; A typical Louisiana borrower will need to take out 9 loans each year to pay off their original debt, resulting in $270 in fees for a one-time $100 loan.</p>
<p>We welcome the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau&rsquo;s proposed rule that calls upon payday lenders to practice what any responsible lender does: consider the borrower&rsquo;s ability to repay the loan while meeting other expenses without needing to re-borrow.&nbsp; This is an important first-step to stop predatory lending practices that prey upon financially insecure families and their inability to repay loans that trap them in a cycle of debt. &nbsp;</p>
<p>However, this rule needs to be strengthened and close loopholes that allow this perverse business model to persist. &nbsp;</p>
<p>We need federal regulations that require lenders to determine the ability of borrowers to repay a loan in consideration of both income and expenses and obligations.&nbsp; We also need to prohibit lenders from requiring a post-dated check or electronic access to a borrower&rsquo;s checking account. &nbsp;</p>
<p>The Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection Act , signed into law by President Obama in July 2010, does not grant the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau authority to cap interest rates which is the single most effective way to constrain predatory lending.&nbsp; State interest rate caps thus remain critical even if new federal rules are set to regulate payday loans. &nbsp;</p>
<p>We understand that the CFPB proposal is only a first look at the agency&rsquo;s approach.&nbsp; We look forward to working with our state, regional, and national partners to help the CFPB craft new rules that will ensure that the small dollar loan market is affordable, responsible, and safe, especially for individuals and families struggling to make ends meet.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Alex Mikulich, Ph.D.</p>
<p>Jesuit Social Research Institute</p>
<p>Loyola University New Orleans</p>
<p>mikulich@loyno.edu &middot; (504)-864-7750</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Robert D. Gorman</p>
<p>Executive Director</p>
<p>Catholic Charities of the&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux&nbsp;</p>

<p><img alt="" src="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/Interfaith new.jpg" /></p>

<p><em>Today the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced it is considering proposing rules that would end payday debt traps by requiring lenders to take steps to make sure consumers can repay their loans. The proposals under consideration would also restrict lenders from attempting to collect payment from consumers&rsquo; bank accounts in ways that tend to rack up excessive fees. The strong consumer protections being considered would apply to payday loans, vehicle title loans, deposit advance products, and certain high-cost installment and open-end loans.</em></p>
<p><strong>Overview</strong></p>
<p>The proposals under consideration cover both short-term and longer-term credit products that are often marketed heavily to financially vulnerable consumers. The CFPB recognizes consumers&rsquo; need for affordable credit but is concerned that the practices often associated with these products &ndash; such as failure to underwrite for affordable payments, repeatedly rolling over or refinancing loans, holding a security interest in a vehicle as collateral, accessing the consumer&rsquo;s deposit account for repayment, and performing costly withdrawal attempts &ndash; can trap consumers in debt. Consumers can be forced to choose between reborrowing, defaulting, or falling behind on other obligations, and also may face deposit account fees and closures, vehicle repossessions, and other harms. For short-term loans, the CFPB has found that for consumers living paycheck to paycheck, the short timeframe can make it difficult to accumulate the necessary funds to pay off the principal and fees before the due date. Borrowers who cannot repay often roll over the loan &ndash; pay more fees to delay paying off the loan or take out a new loan to replace the old one. For many borrowers, what starts out as a short-term loan turns into an unaffordable, long-term cycle of debt. For longer-term loans, many consumers struggle to keep up with unaffordable payments, which can result in defaults, costly refinancing, or falling behind on other bills. The proposals under consideration provide two different approaches to ending debt traps &ndash; prevention and protection. Under the prevention requirements, lenders would have to determine at the outset that the consumer is not taking on unaffordable debt. Under the protection requirements, lenders would have to comply with various restrictions designed to ensure that consumers can affordably repay their debt. Lenders could choose which set of requirements to follow. The CFPB is publishing the outline of proposals under consideration in preparation for convening a Small Business Review Panel to gather feedback from small lenders, which is the next step in the rulemaking process.</p>
<p><a href="http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201503_cfpb-proposal-under-consideration.pdf">MORE&gt;&gt;</a></p>
<div>
&nbsp;</div>

<p><img alt="" src="https://jsri.loyno.edu/sites/loyno.edu.jsri/files/stu death pen.jpg" /></p>

<p>February 8: International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking&nbsp;</p>
<p>The Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and the International Union of Superiors General has designated February 8 as an annual day of prayer and awareness against human trafficking. February 8 is the feast day of St. Josephine Bakhita, who was kidnapped as a child and sold into slavery in Sudan and Italy. Once Josephine was freed, she became a Canossian nun and dedicated her life to sharing her testament of deliverance from slavery and comforting the poor and suffering. She was declared a Saint in 2000.</p>
<p>&nbsp;On February 8, Catholics all over the world are encouraged to host or attend prayer services to create greater awareness about this phenomenon. Through prayer, we not only reflect on the experiences of those that have suffered through this affront to human dignity, but also comfort, strengthen, and help empower survivors.&nbsp;</p>
<p>If you are in the Washington, DC area please join us on Sunday, February 8, 2015 &nbsp;for a Special Mass at Noon in the Upper Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. Or use this flyer to promote the day and visit our Become a SHEPHERD page to help you host an awareness raising event locally. In the words of the &nbsp;committee chairman for migration, Bishop Eusebio Elizondo, M.Sp.S.: &quot;If just one person realizes from this day that they or someone they know is being trafficked, we will have made a difference.&quot;</p>
<p><a href="http://www.usccb.org/about/anti-trafficking-program/day-of-prayer.cfm.">MORE&gt;&gt;</a></p>

<p>As Catholics committed to building a culture of life, we write to urge our fellow Catholics in Congress to support the U.S. bishops&rsquo; effort to pass comprehensive immigration reform. Our nation&rsquo;s inhumane and flawed immigration policies leave migrant women, children and families abandoned by the side of the road. As Cardinal S&eacute;an O&rsquo;Malley put it in a homily at the US-Mexico border last year: &ldquo;We know that the border is lined with unmarked graves of thousands who die alone and nameless.&rdquo; Immigration is &ldquo;another pro-life issue,&rdquo; the cardinal reminds us, echoing our Holy Father Pope Francis, who views abortion, extreme economic inequality and the death of migrants as part of a &ldquo;globalization of indifference&rdquo; and a &ldquo;throwaway culture&rdquo; that treats human beings as disposable.</p>
<p>There are more than two dozen pro-life Catholics in the House of Representatives. Many of them will join thousands of people of faith, including some of us, at the March for Life in Washington later this week. As brothers and sisters in faith, we urge these elected officials and all Catholics to defend the sanctity of human lives at all stages. We recognize the image of God in the migrant at the border, in the prisoner on death row, in the pregnant woman and in the hungry child.</p>
<p>The immigration crisis will not be solved by threats to shut down government agencies, enforcement-only strategies or piecemeal approaches. Breaking up immigrant families and denying protection to those fleeing gang or cartel violence, as just one example, is neither a humane or effective strategy. Comprehensive immigration reform that would create an earned path to citizenship for those in the shadows, expedite family reunification, strengthen refugee protection, and address why desperate people reluctantly uproot and cross borders, deserves a vote now.</p>
<p>Delay and partisan bickering will only lead to more hardship, suffering and death.</p>
<p>(Schools named for purposes of identification only, not endorsement)</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Larry Snyder</p>
<p>President, Catholic Charities USA</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza (retired)</p>
<p>Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>John J. DeGioia</p>
<p>President, Georgetown University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Bishop William S. Skylstad (retired)</p>
<p>Diocese of Spokane</p>
<p>Former President, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Donald M. Kerwin, Jr.</p>
<p>Executive Director, Center for Migration Studies</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Michael Galligan-Stierle</p>
<p>President, Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Michael Sheeran, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Michael J. Graham, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Xavier University (Ohio)</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Robert L. Niehoff, S.J.</p>
<p>President, John Carroll University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Michael J. Garanzini, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Loyola University Chicago</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Kevin Wildes, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Loyola University New Orleans</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas W. Keefe</p>
<p>President, University of Dallas</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. James J. Greenfield, OSFS</p>
<p>President, Conference of Major Superiors of Men</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sr. Sharon Holland, IHM,</p>
<p>President, Leadership Conference of Women Religious</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Timothy Kesicki, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Jesuit Conference USA</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Armando Borja</p>
<p>National Director, Jesuit Refugee Service/USA</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Stephen Schneck</p>
<p>Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies</p>
<p>The Catholic University of America</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Frank Monahan</p>
<p>Former Director, Office of Government Liaison</p>
<p>U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Francis X. Doyle</p>
<p>Associate General Secretary (retired)</p>
<p>U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sr. Simone Campbell, SSS</p>
<p>Executive Director, NETWORK, A National Catholic Social Justice Lobby</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sr. Patricia Chappell</p>
<p>Executive Director, Pax Christi USA​</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Fordham University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J.</p>
<p>President, College of the Holy Cross</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. John P. Fitzgibbons, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Regis University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Patricia McGuire</p>
<p>President, Trinity Washington University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Antoine M. Garibaldi, Ph.D.</p>
<p>President, University of Detroit Mercy</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Thomas B. Curran</p>
<p>President, Rockhurst University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>John J. Hurley</p>
<p>President, Canisius College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Linda M. LeMura, Ph.D.</p>
<p>President, Le Moyne College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sr. Candace Introcaso</p>
<p>President, La Roche College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Bernard O&rsquo;Connor</p>
<p>President, DeSales University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Dr. Francesco C. Cesareo</p>
<p>President, Assumption College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Donna M. Carroll</p>
<p>President, Dominican University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas W. Keefe</p>
<p>President, University of Dallas</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas Kunkel</p>
<p>President, St. Norbert College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Jeffrey von Arx, S.J.</p>
<p>President, Fairfield University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Moya Dittmeier</p>
<p>Executive Director, Conference for Mercy Higher Education</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Allan Figueroa Deck, S.J.</p>
<p>Rector of the Jesuit Community</p>
<p>Loyola Marymount University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>A. Gabriel Esteban</p>
<p>President, Seton Hall University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Nancy H. Blattner</p>
<p>President, Caldwell University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Br. Norman Hipps</p>
<p>President, Saint Vincent College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>John Smarrelli Jr.</p>
<p>President, Christian Brothers University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Mary A. Meehan</p>
<p>President, Alverno College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Donald P. Taylor</p>
<p>President, Cabrini College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Timothy Lenchak</p>
<p>President, Divine Word College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Anne Munley</p>
<p>President, Marywood University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sharon Latchaw Hirsch</p>
<p>President, Rosemont College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Jim Collins</p>
<p>President, Loras College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Br. John R. Paige</p>
<p>President, Holy Cross College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Kathleen Maas Weigert</p>
<p>Professor of Women and Leadership</p>
<p>Loyola University Chicago</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Timothy Matovina</p>
<p>Executive Director, Institute for Latino Studies</p>
<p>University of Notre Dame</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Daniel G. Groody</p>
<p>Director of Immigration Initiatives</p>
<p>Institute for Latino Studies</p>
<p>University of Notre Dame</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. T. Michael McNulty, S.J.</p>
<p>MacLean Professor of Philosophy</p>
<p>St. Joseph&rsquo;s University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Helen Alvare</p>
<p>Professor of Law</p>
<p>George Mason University School of Law</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Jeannine Hill Fletcher</p>
<p>Professor of Theology</p>
<p>Fordham University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>John Sniegocki</p>
<p>Associate Professor of Christian Ethics</p>
<p>Xavier University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Suzanne C. Toton, Ed.D.</p>
<p>Associate Professor of Theology and Religious Studies</p>
<p>Villanova University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Tobias Winright</p>
<p>Maeder Endowed Chair of Health Care Ethics</p>
<p>Saint Louis University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Paul Lakeland</p>
<p>Director, Center for Catholic Studies</p>
<p>Fairfield University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Terrence W. Tilley</p>
<p>Professor of Catholic Theology</p>
<p>Fordham University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Vincent Miller</p>
<p>Gudorf Chair in Catholic Theology and Culture</p>
<p>University of Dayton</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Kathryn Getek Soltis</p>
<p>Assistant Professor of Christian Ethics</p>
<p>Villanova University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Hosffman Ospino</p>
<p>Assistant Professor of Theology and Education</p>
<p>Boston College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Kelly S. Johnson</p>
<p>Associate Professor, Religious Studies</p>
<p>University of Dayton</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Una M. Cadegan</p>
<p>Associate Professor, Department of History</p>
<p>University of Dayton</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Charles T. Strauss</p>
<p>Assistant Professor of History</p>
<p>Mount St. Mary&rsquo;s University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Ron Pagnucco, Associate Professor</p>
<p>Department of Peace Studies</p>
<p>College of St. Benedict/St. John&rsquo;s University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Rev. Fred Kammer, S.J.</strong></span></p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Director, Jesuit Social Research Institute</strong></span></p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Loyola University New Orleans</strong></span></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Alex Mikulich</strong></span></p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Jesuit Social Research Institute</strong></span></p>
<p><span class="gold"><strong>Loyola University New Orleans</strong></span></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Leadership Team, Sisters of Mercy of the Americas</p>
<p>Sr. Pat McDermott, RSM President</p>
<p>Sr. Eileen Campbell, RSM</p>
<p>Sr. Anne Curtis, RSM</p>
<p>Sr. Deborah Troillett, RSM</p>
<p>Sr. Mary Pat Garvin, RSM</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Raymond Finch, MM</p>
<p>Superior General, Maryknoll Fathers &amp; Brothers</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas Allio, Jr.</p>
<p>Diocesan Social Action Director (retired)</p>
<p>Diocese of Cleveland</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Sean Carroll, S.J.</p>
<p>Executive Director, Kino Border Initiative</p>
<p>Nogales, AZ</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Charles C. Camosy</p>
<p>Associate Prof. of Theological and Social Ethics</p>
<p>Fordham University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Peter H. Beisheim</p>
<p>Director, Catholic Studies Department</p>
<p>Stonehill College, MA</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Christopher G. Kerr</p>
<p>Executive Director, Ignatian Solidarity Network</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Gerry Lee</p>
<p>Director, Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Karen Clifton</p>
<p>Executive Director, Catholic Mobilizing Network</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Patrick Carolan</p>
<p>Executive Director, Franciscan Action Network</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Kerry A. Robinson</p>
<p>Executive Director, National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>John Gehring</p>
<p>Catholic Program Director, Faith in Public Life</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Walter Grazer</p>
<p>Former Policy Advisor for International Religious Freedom and Human Rights, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Christopher Hale</p>
<p>Senior Fellow, Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Richard R. Gaillardetz</p>
<p>Joseph Professor of Catholic Theology</p>
<p>Boston College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Mark J. Allman</p>
<p>Chair of Religious and Theological Studies</p>
<p>Merrimack College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Dolores Christie</p>
<p>Executive Director (retired)</p>
<p>Catholic Theological Society of America</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Christopher Pramuk</p>
<p>Associate Professor of Theology</p>
<p>Xavier University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Kevin Ahern</p>
<p>Assistant Professor of Religious Studies</p>
<p>Manhattan College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Daniel Finn</p>
<p>Professor of Economics and Theology</p>
<p>St. John&rsquo;s University (MN)</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>M. Shawn Copeland</p>
<p>Professor of Theology</p>
<p>Boston College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. John A. Coleman, S.J.</p>
<p>Associate Pastor, St. Ignatius Church (San Francisco)</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Rev. Joseph Nangle, OFM</p>
<p>Washington, DC</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Eugene McCarraher</p>
<p>Associate Professor of Humanities</p>
<p>Villanova University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Sr. Paulette Skiba, BVM</p>
<p>Professor of Religious Studies</p>
<p>Clarke University</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Thomas Ryan</p>
<p>Director, Loyola Institute for Ministry</p>
<p>Loyola University New Orleans</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Billy Kangas</p>
<p>Writer, Patheos Catholic</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Peter H. Beisheim</p>
<p>Director, Catholic Studies Department</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Lisa Sowell Cahill</p>
<p>Monan Professor of Theology</p>
<p>Boston College</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>*Signers as of 01/20/15. For an updated list please click <a href="http://www.faithinpubliclife.org/immigrationlife/">HERE</a></p>

<p>Posted on:&nbsp;<a href="http://catholicmoraltheology.com/">http://catholicmoraltheology.com/</a></p>
<p>Advent is a season of waiting and of hoping. In the face of conflict, distrust, and division &ndash; in the wilderness &ndash; we are called to cry out for a different way. In consultation with several others, CMTer and former law enforcement officer Tobias Winright has prepared a statement of commitment to racial justice, which names the particularly difficult hope we might bring to illuminate darkness. We are happy to share the statement here on this blog. Many Catholic theologians, including myself and my co-editor, Jana Bennett, have already signed on to the statement. Please pray and act for truth and reconciliation this season&hellip;</p>
<p>Statement: Catholic Theologians for Police Reform and Racial Justice</p>
<p>The season of Advent is meant to be a time when Christians remember the birth of Jesus Christ, when God became human, born on the margins of society. To the poor shepherds, the angelic host proclaimed &ldquo;peace, goodwill among people&rdquo; (Luke 2:14), which refers to a shalom that is not merely the absence of conflict, but rather a just and lasting peace, wherein people are reconciled with one another, with God, and indeed with all creation. &nbsp;But this Advent, hope for a just peace must face the flagrant failures of a nation still bound by sin, our bondage to and complicity in racial injustice.</p>
<p>​The killings of Black men, women and children &ndash; including but not limited to Rekia Boyd, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, John Crawford, 7 year-old Aiyana Stanley-Jones and 12 year-old Tamir Rice &ndash; by White policemen, and the failures of the grand jury process to indict some of the police officers involved, brought to our attention not only problems in law enforcement today, but also deeper racial injustice in our nation, our communities, and even our churches.</p>
<p>As Eric Garner&rsquo;s dying words &ldquo;I can&rsquo;t breathe&rdquo; are chanted in the streets, and as people of faith, we hear the echo of Jesus&rsquo; breathing on his disciples, telling them, &ldquo;Peace be with you.&rdquo; &nbsp;His spirit-filled breath gives his disciples, then and now, the power and obligation to raise our voices about the imperative of a just peace in a fragmented and violent world.</p>
<p>The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King&rsquo;s &ldquo;Letter from a Birmingham Jail&rdquo; speaks searingly to our headline divisions today. The &ldquo;cup of endurance runs over&rdquo; again for African Americans and many others of good will. Our streets are filled with those exhausted by the need to explain yet again &ldquo;why we can&rsquo;t wait.&rdquo;</p>
<p>King challenged &ldquo;white moderate&rdquo; Christians for being &ldquo;more devoted to &lsquo;order&rsquo; than to justice;&rdquo; and for preferring &ldquo;a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice.&rdquo; This challenge to the White Christian community is as relevant today as it was over 50 years ago. Such a negative peace calls to mind the warning by the prophet Ezekiel, &ldquo;They led my people astray, saying, &lsquo;Peace!&rsquo; when there was no peace&rdquo; (13:10).</p>
<p>Pope Francis&rsquo;s warning of the explosive consequences of exclusion and fearful seeking of &ldquo;security&rdquo; based on such a negative peace are similarly prophetic:</p>
<p>&ldquo;Today in many places we hear a call for greater security. But until exclusion and inequality in society and between peoples are reversed, it will be impossible to eliminate violence. The poor and the poorer peoples are accused of violence, yet without equal opportunities the different forms of aggression and conflict will find a fertile terrain for growth and eventually explode. When a society &ndash; whether local, national or global &ndash; is willing to leave a part of itself on the fringes, no political programmes or resources spent on law enforcement or surveillance systems can indefinitely guarantee tranquility. This is not the case simply because inequality provokes a violent reaction from those excluded from the system, but because the socioeconomic system is unjust at its root. Just as goodness tends to spread, the toleration of evil, which is injustice, tends to expand its baneful influence and quietly to undermine any political and social system, no matter how solid it may appear.&rdquo; Evangelii Gaudium, 59</p>
<p>As Catholic theologians, we wish to go on the record in calling for a serious examination of both policing and racial injustice in the US. The time demands that we leave some mark that US Catholic theologians did not ignore what is happening in our midst &ndash; as the vast majority sadly did during the 1960s Civil Rights movement.</p>
<p><a href="http://catholicmoraltheology.com/statement-of-catholic-theologians-on-racial-justice/">MORE&gt;&gt;</a></p>

<p><a href="http://www.jesuit.org/">http://www.jesuit.org/</a></p>
<p>November 21, 2014 &mdash; The Jesuits of the United States, Jesuit Refugee Service/USA and the Kino Border Initiative, a bi-national border ministry in Nogales, Arizona and Nogales, Sonora, welcome President Obama&rsquo;s announcement of temporary relief from deportation for as many as five million of our community members. At the same time we acknowledge that millions more families will continue to suffer under the constant specter of family separation caused by our broken immigration system, which can only be permanently resolved through positive, humane and practical legislation.</p>
<p>Through our ministries, we witness on a daily basis the tragic consequences of our nation&rsquo;s current immigration laws and policies.</p>
<p>As Jesuits, we assess each immigration policy by whether it adheres to the Catholic and American value of promoting and affirming human dignity. The President has exercised his constitutional discretion to prioritize immigration enforcement resources, while offering a process by which some of the 11 million undocumented may apply for a temporary reprieve. &nbsp;Meanwhile, Congressional leaders must complete the urgent and necessary work of permanently fixing our unjust and broken immigration system.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Through the President&rsquo;s order, the following groups will be offered the chance to apply for relief through a fee-based system: parents of U.S. citizen children who have lived in the U.S. for at least 5 years; parents of U.S. legal permanent resident children who have lived in the U.S. for at least 5 years; and Dreamers who arrived in the U.S. before their eighteenth birthday who have been living in the U.S. since January 1, 2010, and meet education or military service requirements.</p>
<p>To be sure, the President&rsquo;s policy change is a major step forward, and we celebrate this move toward recognizing the worth and dignity of up to five million of our brothers, sisters, parishioners, friends, colleagues and companions. However, this is only a first step, and we will continue to struggle for a day when all men, women and children who live within our communities are welcomed as full members of our nation.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.jesuit.org/news-detail?TN=NEWS-20141121032132">MORE&gt;&gt;</a></p>

<p>by&nbsp;<span>Francis X. Rocca</span></p>
<p><span>Catholic News Service</span></p>
<p>October 23, 2014</p>
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<p>Pope Francis called for abolition of the death penalty as well as life imprisonment, and denounced what he called a &quot;penal populism&quot; that promises to solve society&#39;s problems by punishing crime instead of pursuing social justice.</p>
<p>&quot;It is impossible to imagine that states today cannot make use of another means than capital punishment to defend peoples&#39; lives from an unjust aggressor,&quot; the pope said Thursday in a meeting with representatives of the International Association of Penal Law.</p>
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<p>&quot;All Christians and people of good will are thus called today to struggle not only for abolition of the death penalty, whether it be legal or illegal and in all its forms, but also to improve prison conditions, out of respect for the human dignity of persons deprived of their liberty. And this, I connect with life imprisonment,&quot; he said. &quot;Life imprisonment is a hidden death penalty.&quot;</p>
<p>The pope noted that the Vatican recently eliminated the death penalty from its own penal code.</p>
<p>According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, cited by Pope Francis in his talk, &quot;the traditional teaching of the church does not exclude recourse to the death penalty, if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor,&quot; but modern advances in protecting society from dangerous criminals mean that &quot;cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity are very rare, if not practically nonexistent.&quot; <a href="http://ncronline.org/blogs/francis-chronicles/pope-francis-calls-abolishing-death-penalty-and-life-imprisonment">MORE&gt;&gt;</a></p>
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