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Sign up for the Oblate Earth Literacy program: “Exploring the Sacred Universe” January 24th, 2014
Daily, all of us, members of the Earth community, are reminded that we live on a rare, precious, threatened planet. At the same time we realize that at its root, ecological devastation is a spiritual issue. Our weeklong “Exploring the Sacred Universe” program addresses our current situation in a spiritual context. Past participants consider the program to have been a transformative learning experience, as they were invited to broaden their vision and include our numinous Universe in all aspects of life.
The dates for the 2014 Earth Literacy Program are August 3-10. Information is available here, or on the La Vista website.
Interested in learning more about a different perspective now? Watch “The Known Universe”, a marvelous video from the American Museum of Natural History in New York. It will help you experience the awesome scale of the known universe, as mapped through astronomical observations. In the video, you start at the Himalayas, move through Earth’s atmosphere and the black of space to the afterglow of the Big Bang.
Death Penalty Resources for Communities of Faith January 16th, 2014
At the start of the New Year, we would like to remind everyone of the excellent free educational resources on the death penalty available from the Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty (CMN). The ready-for-use resources on the death penalty are helpful for anyone interested in learning more about the faith response to the death penalty.
CMN materials are available on the website and are downloadable. Many of these resources are also available in Spanish.
Learn more about the Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty:
The Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty (CMN) is a lay ministry of the institutional U.S. Catholic Church that educates Catholics to seek a faithful response to crime, with a focus on abolishing the death penalty in the U.S. and promoting restorative justice. CMN works as a national lay collaborative of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and state Catholic conferences. CMN has since developed partnerships with Catholic lay leaders, diocesan staff and secular organizations in the movement.
More information is available elsewhere on our website.
National Migration Week: January 5-11, 2014 January 4th, 2014
Here are the Days of Action associated with National Migration Week:
- January 7: Send electronic Post Card to the House of Representatives.
- January 8: Call In Day to support reform.
- January 9: Social Media Day for immigration reform.
See below for links to help with your actions.
Materials for National Migration Week:
USCCB News Release on National Migration Week 2014 | En Español
Advocacy activities you are urged to do during the week:
- Tuesday, Jan. 7 – Send a JFI e-postcard for the national electronic advocacy day.
- Wednesday, Jan. 8 – Participate in the JFI National Call-In Day to Congress.
- Use the toll free number, 1-855-589-5698, to call your Representative and ask them to “Support a path to citizenship and oppose the SAFE Act.”
- Thursday, Jan. 9 – Post on Facebook, Tweet, and re-Tweet your support for immigrants during the JFI National Social Media Day.
National Migration Week information sheet (PDF) This includes other other advocacy activities you can do:
Find out more at the USCCB/MRS´National Migration Week homepage.
National Migration Week 2014: Out of the Darkness December 20th, 2013
The Missionary Oblates JPIC Office will join the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and its Justice for Immigrants Campaign in celebrating National Migration Week, January 5-11.
The theme for the 2014 National MigrationWeek is “Out of Darkness”. This theme is an invitation to the faithful community to reflect and recommit in its support of migrants, especially the most vulnerable: the undocumented, refugees, asylum seekers, and victims of human trafficking. These migrants are the most vulnerable and run the risk of violence and exploitation on the daily basis.
As part of the National Migration Week celebration, the USCCB Justice for Immigrants initiative will launch a postcard campaign, a national call-in day and a social media day. We encourage you and your local community to use the resources at the National Migration Week website at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Sign up for World Bank MOOC on Climate Change! December 18th, 2013
The World Bank is offering a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on climate change next month, starting January 27, 2014. This course presents recent scientific evidence as well as some of the opportunities for urgent action on climate change. It also covers the latest knowledge and information based on cutting-edge research.
It is being offered in two tracks: (1) GeneralPublic; and (2) Policy Makers and Practitioners. The course runs for 4 weeks, and is free of charge. You have access to the material for approximately 6 months after the course ends.
Sign up for the first delivery of the course at https://www.coursera.org/#course/warmerworld
Climate change affects us all, so please feel free to share the registration link as widely as possible in your networks.
