Catholic Charities, through its Social Concerns & Advocacy Office, educates parishioners and the broader public on issues affecting human beings at all stages of life, from conception to natural death. Catholic Charities supports efforts to put faith into action on behalf of justice and shares with all a desire for a greater understanding of the call of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) to work for both charity and justice, to advocate for action to create positive change in society, to address unjust social conditions, and to protect human life – from conception to natural death.
Please see other information on Catholic Social Teaching, CRS & CCHD, Public Policy, Human Trafficking Awareness, and Care of Creation. You can also find information on Respect Life-related issues on the Diocesan Office of Family Life webpage.
Quote from Pope Francis
“‘Adam, where are you?’ ‘Where is your brother?’ These are the two questions which God asks at the dawn of human history and which he also asks each man and woman in our own day, which he also asks us. But I would like us to ask a third question: “Has any one of us wept? . . . We are a society which has forgotten how to weep, how to experience compassion – “suffering with” others: the globalization of indifference has taken from us the ability to weep! . . . let us ask the Lord for the grace to weep over our indifference, to weep over the cruelty of our world, of our own hearts, and of all those who in anonymity make social and economic decisions which open the door to tragic situations. ‘Has anyone wept?’ Today, has anyone wept in our world?”
Excerpt from Pope Francis’ Homily during his Visit to Lampedusa Island, Italy, July 8, 2013.
World Water Day Event in Charlotte on March 22, 2024
“As a gift from God, water is a vital element essential to survival; thus, everyone has a right to it.” (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, no. 484).
Dcn. Joshua Klickman (Global Fellow, Catholic Relief Services) and Sr. Rose Marie Tresp, RSM (Director of Justice, Sisters of Mercy South Central Community), shared how a Catholic non-profit (CRS) and a congregation of women religious (the Sisters of Mercy) are helping to build a world where equitable access to clean water is available to all – through action and advocacy. Resources shared at the event are below.
Sr. Rose Marie’s PowerPoint Presentation (Part I and Part II)
Dcn. Joshua Klickman’s PowerPoint Presentation
Event Information and Resources – Prayers, Speaker Bios, Facts, and Websites
Explore clean water issues and conservation tips for North Carolina.
2024 World Day of Migrants and Refugees (WDMR) – Sunday, September 29, 2024
The Vatican-sponsored 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees (WDMR) will be celebrated on September 29, 2024. The theme of Pope Francis’ Message for this day is: “God walks with His people.” The Holy Father’s Message focuses on the itinerant dimension of the Church, with special attention to migrant brothers and sisters, who are a contemporary icon of the Church on the move. Pope Francis’ suggestion is a journey to be made together, synodally, overcoming every obstacle and threat in order to reach the true homeland. Along the way, wherever one finds oneself, it is essential to recognize the presence of God, who walks with his people, giving them guidance and protection at every step. Therefore, the starting point is to recognize the Lord present in his people, the Emmanuel, who, in every migrant, knocks at the door of our heart and offers himself for the encounter.
Leading up to the WDMR celebration, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will sponsor National Migration Week from September 23-29. Go to JusticeforImmigrants.org for more information on this week and a resource toolkit, which includes the Holy Father’s message for WDMR 2023.
Let us pray: God, Father Almighty, grant us the grace to work tirelessly for justice, solidarity, and peace so that all your children may enjoy the freedom to choose whether to migrate or to stay. Grant us the courage to denounce all the horrors of our world and to combat every injustice that mars the beauty of your children and the harmony of our common home. Sustain us by the power of your Spirit so that we can reflect your tender love to every migrant whom you place in our path and spread in hearts and in every situation the culture of encounter and of care. (Pope Francis’ Prayer for the 2023 WDMR). Holy Mary, Mother of God, Comfort of Migrants, Pray for Us.
USCCB Justice for Immigrants (JFI) Campaign
In 2004, the USCCB committed to immigration reform as a priority of the U.S. Catholic Church and to creating a culture of welcome in which all migrants are treated with respect and dignity. A diverse group of Catholic organizations joined the USCCB JFI Campaign to unite and mobilize a growing network of Catholic institutions, individuals, and other persons of goodwill in support of immigration reform. Go to www.justiceforimmigrants.org to sign up to receive the latest news and events shared by the JFI Campaign, including advocacy alerts.
The Atlanta Province Shares Message on Immigration Reform
In November of 2006, the five Catholic bishops of the Province of Atlanta released a (PDF), urging the Congressional representatives of Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina to work for a “comprehensive reform of immigration law through civil dialogue, in the spirit of cooperation and love.”
U.S. Catholic Bishops Support Immigration Reform (Resources Available Here)
“Now is the time for Catholics to let their elected officials know that they support immigration reform…We are an immigrant Church and an immigrant nation. The Church has grown with the nation and since the beginning has helped integrate immigrants into our culture and economy.” Archbishop José Gomez, Archbishop of Los Angeles.
Racism and Migration in the United States (Background document from the USCCB)
Pope Francis’ Message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation 2024: Hoping and Acting with Creation
The World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation occurs every September 1st and marks the beginning of the Season of Creation, which ends on October 4th, the liturgical feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. The theme “Hoping and acting with Creation” is inspired by the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans (Rom 8, 19-25), in which the apostle writes that “all creation groans and suffers” but that “in hope we are been saved” therefore we wait “with perseverance”. The diffusion of the Holy Father’s Message for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation is entrusted to the Dicastery for Integral Human Development.
Pray for Creation, Pray for Our Common Home
Pope Francis has asked Catholics each year to pray for creation on September 1. Calling for this day each year to be a World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation, Pope Francis asks the entire global Catholic community to pray for our common home.
Prayer Resource – Common Prayer for Earth and for Humanity
USCCB resources – on environment justice and on the Season of Creation
Care of Creation resources from Catholic Relief Services.
Celebrate the Anniversary of Laudato Si’ on May 24
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has provided online bilingual resources to learn about the encyclical Laudato Si’. Also, find here a one-page resource sheet on Laudato Si’ developed for its fifth anniversary in 2020. Find here resources on Laudato Si.
U.S. Bishops Support Care of Creation and Faithful Stewardship of the Environment
The USCCB Environmental Justice Program’s web page provides statements from the U.S. Bishops and the Vatican on a broad range of environmental justice topics. The most comprehensive statement from the USCCB on global climate change is “Global Climate Change: A Plea for Dialogue Prudence and the Common Good.”
Catholic Climate Covenant
The Catholic Climate Covenant (CCC) works closely with the USCCB Environmental Justice Program. On its website, you will find numerous comments made by Pope Francis on the environment. The CCC also highlights that on or around the Feast of St. Francis, there is an excellent opportunity to support environmental protection.
USCCB Labor Day Statement – 2023
Each year, the USCCB issues a statement to mark Labor Day, the U.S. federal holiday (since 1894) celebrated on the first Monday in September that honors and celebrates workers. The 2023 statement of Most Reverend Borys Gudziak, Archbishop of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia, is titled Radical Solidarity with Working Families and calls for ongoing support for the well-being of all families. Visit the USCCB Labor Day Resource Page for the 2023 Labor Day statements in English and Spanish.
The purpose of the economy is to enable families to thrive. This notion is deeply rooted in Catholic social teaching. The Church teaches that “it is necessary that businesses, professional organizations, labor unions, and the State promote policies that, from an employment point of view, do not penalize but rather support the family nucleus (Labor Day Statement 2023 excerpt).
World Day of the Poor – November 12, 2023
On June 13, 2023, the Memorial of St. Anthony of Padua, Patron Saint of the Poor, the Vatican released the message of Pope Francis for the 2023 World Day of the Poor, taking place on Sunday, November 12, on the theme “Do not turn your face away from anyone who is poor (Tob 4:7).” Pope Francis established the World Day of the Poor in his Apostolic Letter, Misericordia et Misera, issued on November 20, 2016, to celebrate the end of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. Read Pope Francis’ World Poor of the Day message.
Quote from Pope Francis’ 7th World Day of the Poor message:
This, the seventh annual World Day of the Poor, is a fruitful sign of the Father’s mercy and support for the lives of our communities. As its celebration becomes more and more rooted in the pastoral life of the Church, it enables us to discover ever anew the heart of the Gospel. Our daily efforts to welcome the poor are still not enough. A great river of poverty is traversing our cities and swelling to the point of overflowing; it seems to overwhelm us, so great are the needs of our brothers and sisters who plead for our help, support, and solidarity.
Catholics Confront Global Poverty (CCGP)
The USCCB Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development and CRS have joined together in an effort to reduce global poverty through learning and action. Sign up to receive advocacy and legislative alerts.
CCUSA Policy Paper – Poverty and Racism: Overlapping Threats to the Common Good
Poverty Awareness – Every January, the U.S. Bishops focus on this important topic.
The Theme of Holy Father’s Message for World Peace of Day – January 1, 2024
Artificial Intelligence and Peace (Statement Issued on August 8, 2023)
The remarkable advances made in the field of artificial intelligence are having a rapidly increasing impact on human activity, personal and social life, politics, and the economy. Pope Francis calls for an open dialogue on the meaning of these new technologies, endowed with disruptive possibilities and ambivalent effects. He recalls the need to be vigilant and to work so that a logic of violence and discrimination does not take root in the production and use of such devices, at the expense of the most fragile and excluded: injustice and inequalities fuel conflicts and antagonisms. The urgent need to orient the concept and use of artificial intelligence in a responsible way, so that it may be at the service of humanity and the protection of our common home, requires that ethical reflection be extended to the sphere of education and law. The protection of the dignity of the person, and concern for a fraternity effectively open to the entire human family, are indispensable conditions for technological development to help contribute to the promotion of justice and peace in the world.
Read past messages for the World Day of Peace.
Fighting Racism – Calls for Healing, Justice, and Prayers
The USCCB has developed a wide range of resources to fight racism for adult learners in parishes and students at various educational levels, including the U.S. Bishops’ Pastoral Letter Against Racism, study guides on opening our hearts and examining subconscious perceptions, and a backgrounder on confronting the poison of racism. Also useful are a statement on Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington and resources to study his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail.”
Catholic Bishops Launch Major Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty
In 2005, Catholic Bishops launched a campaign to end the use of the death penalty. Bishop Peter J. Jugis’s letter, written on May 3, 2005, in support of the death penalty moratorium in North Carolina, was published in the Catholic News Herald on May 6, 2005.
Fratelli Tutti – On Fraternity and Social Friendship
Fratelli Tutti is the third encyclical of Pope Francis, which was promulgated on October 3, 2020. Read the encyclical in English and Spanish.
The encyclical was signed by the Holy Father and released to the public at the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi in Assisi. Fratelli Tutti is the third encyclical of Pope Francis’s pontificate. According to analysis provided by the Catholic Apostolic Center in Washington, DC, Fratelli Tutti “offers profound insight into the fragmentation of our world today and a call to deeper encounter with one another individually and societally.
The Holy Father uses the parable of the Good Samaritan to reflect on Christ’s teaching about our neighbor:
Jesus asks us to be present to those in need of help, regardless of whether or not they belong to our social group. In this case, the Samaritan became a neighbor to the wounded Judean. By approaching and making himself present, he crossed all cultural and historical barriers. Jesus concludes the parable by saying: “Go and do likewise” (Lk 10:37).
In other words, he challenges us to put aside all differences and, in the face of suffering, to draw near to us to others with no questions asked. I should no longer say that I have neighbors to help, but that I must myself be a neighbor to others” (81).
The Vatican News published an article that provides an in-depth summary of the encyclical’s major themes. The USCCB issued a press release on the encyclical.
Pope Francis’ First Encyclical – Lumen Fidei
Pope Francis’ first encyclical, “Lumen Fidei” (“The Light of Faith”), celebrates the Christian faith as the guiding light of a “successful and fruitful life,” inspiring social action and devotion to God and illuminating “every aspect of human existence,” including philosophy and the natural sciences.