Council on Global Solidarity and Missions

Council on Global Solidarity and Missions 

 Catholic Church of Joliet

End Poverty NOW: A Call to Action

“The poverty of billions of men and women is the one issue that most challenges our human and Christian consciences.” Pope John Paul II

Introduction

“ Each day, 30,000 people throughout the world die as a direct result of extreme poverty.  These are needless deaths, and as Catholics we must respond to this evil.  The enormity of this tragedy contrasts with a growing hope that in our day, through the concerted effort of governments, businesses, religious organizations and educational institutions, and the commitment of individuals like you and me, something can be done to end hunger and disease.  Confronted with evil, our faith calls us to act, both with charity and justice. I ask our parishes and parishioners to join with the Diocese of Joliet Council on Global Solidarity and Mission in this initiative to end extreme poverty now.” Bishop J. Peter Sartain

A Call to Action

Global poverty is a fundamental moral issue of our age. The suffering of billions of God’s people cannot go unanswered, especially when solutions are within our grasp. While we are in a time of great crisis and challenge, we are also in a time of unprecedented possibility. We are in a kairos moment. We can change the world if only we have the will to act.

The Situation

There is reason for hope and there is reason for concern. In a recent book, The End of Poverty: Economic Possibilities for Our Time, Jeffrey Sachs points out that the problem is not that the world is failing to develop economically, but it is rather that parts of the world (including much of Sub-Saharan Africa) are actually declining. Much of Asia (including China and India) have placed their feet firmly on the rungs of the ladder of development and are making progress. Yet some countries (most of them being in Sub-Saharan Africa) have not been able to place their footing on the first rung of the ladder of development. The life expectancy of the 700,000,000 people of Sub-Saharan Africa has decreased from 62 to 47. There are 54 countries that are poorer now than in 1990.

In September of 2000 the countries of the world met with great hope at the Millennium Assembly sponsored by the United Nations. The assembled leaders adopted the Millennium Declaration. The Millennium Development Goals (“MDG’s) are a part of the Millennium Declaration. The goals include the reduction of extreme hunger and poverty. A specific goal was set to reduce by half the number of people living on $1 or less a day by the year 2015 and to reduce hunger by half. In 2004 a progress report on the MDG’s showed a substantial number of countries were not progressing.

The World is Awakening to the Crisis and to the Possibilities

The poorest countries are failing. They are not sharing in the development like the rest of the world. Even more, they are declining. This is the challenge of our time to use our resources and skills to reverse the decline of the world’s poorest countries. Awareness of this challenge is growing:

•  The USCCB/CRS Catholic Campaign Against Global Poverty was recently announced.

•  British Prime Minister Tony Blair has spearheaded the effort to reduce debt and increase aid for declining countries.

•  On June 11 th, the finance ministers of the G-8 signed an agreement to eliminate the need to repay the crippling debt for 18 of the most heavily indebted countries.

•  The One Campaign is a coalition effort seeking millions of signatures to support the addition of 1% of the U.S. Budget for international aid to eradicate disease and extreme poverty.

•  Monday, June 20, 2005 the European Commission President Jose Manuel Barrosa at a meeting with President Bush stated: “Every day 25,000 people die because they don’t have enough to eat or they don’t have clean water to drink. This is really a shame for our generation. And you cannot accept it as a kind of natural order of things…..There are enough resources in the world. What we need is political will and good organization.”

•  Newspapers are devoting more coverage

•  Many celebrities are speaking out on this crisis

There are numerous key upcoming events, which will be pivotal in determining whether or not progress is made:

•  On July 6-8, the G-8 countries will meet in Scotland. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has made debt relief and increased economic aid a key issue of this meeting.

•  On September 11-13, a meeting will be held in Washington, D.C. of key representatives of the world’s religious leaders. On September 13 th, these leaders will develop a statement on poverty and travel to the U.N. in New York.

• On September 13-17, the United Nations will review how well the countries of the world are doing in meeting the Millennium Development Goals at the end of year 5.

• The Doha Round of the World Trade Organization meets in December. Trade policiesare critical to economic development for all countries including less developed countries.

An important step forward occurred this June when leaders from the Group of 8 (“G-8”) leading industrialized countries agreed on a debt cancellation plan for 18 countries including 14 from Africa. Debt cancellation will permit needy nations to spend less of their scarce resources on repayments to international banks and more on critical needs such as agricultural development, healthcare and education.

Debt cancellation will save 14 African nations a combined $1.04 billion in debt relief this year. This is an important step forward but much larger amounts of aid are needed. British Prime Minister Tony Blair has called for an immediate doubling of aid to Africa raising the ante to $25 billion. He has called for that figure to double to $50 billion by 2015.

A number of European countries have signed on to Prime Minister Tony Blair’s request to double aid but the United States has not. Although the U.S. is the largest giver in actual dollars it is one of the lowest givers in terms of a percent of its gross domestic product, ranking nearly last of the 22 industrialized countries. Given our extraordinary blessings, for us to rank nearly last as a percent of our production is unacceptable.

Our budget reflects our priorities. Responding to Prime Minister Tony Blair’s call to increase our giving and setting forth a plan to give our fair share is to respond appropriately. Such a response would demonstrate world leadership. It would reflect that we value an appropriate response to extreme poverty more important than we value tax cuts. It would also reduce the conditions that foster desperation and serve as a breeding ground for the development of terrorists.

The moral challenge is great. The crisis is real. The solutions exist. We are asking you, at this time, to do two things.

1. Access the Diocese of Joliet Legislative Advocacy Network

By accessing the Diocese of Joliet Legislative Advocacy Network you can receive up to date information on the efforts of the Council and the Catholic Campaign to End Poverty. The Advocacy committee will provide timely e-mail updates on government actions. Simply follow this link and check "International"

2. Sign the ONE Declaration

The ONE Campaign is a nationwide collaborative effort to rally Americans to fight the emergency of widespread hunger, disease and extreme poverty. The campaign encourages Americans to sign a declaration calling for helping poor and hungry people all over the world by increasing the amount spent on economic assistance by 1% of the Annual U.S. Budget.

The ONE Declaration:

“WE BELIEVE that in the best American tradition of helping others help themselves, now is the time to join with other countries in a historic pact for compassion and justice to help the poorest people of the world overcome AIDS and extreme poverty. WE RECOGNIZE that a pact including such measures as fair trade, debt relief, fighting corruption and directing additional resources for basic needs – education, health, clean water, food, and care for orphans – would transform the futures and hopes of an entire generation in the poorest countries, at a cost equal to just one percent more of the US budget. WE COMMIT ourselves – one person, one voice, one vote at a time – to make a better, safer world for all.”

Go to www.one.org to sign the declaration.

More to Come

In September the Council will announce a “Covenant to End Poverty Now”, a larger program with reflections, education materials, and many, many opportunities to involve parishes and parishioners in this global struggle to end poverty now. Please look for coming details and plan to get involved. Together we can make a difference!

About the Church of Joliet Council for Global Solidarity and Missions

 Mission Statement:  

“Our purpose is to promote the Church’s teaching on global solidarity and missions in order to strengthen our Gospel call to evangelization and international peace and justice.  Our intention is to mobilize the people of the Church of Joliet to actions that result in change for our sisters and brothers in other countries and are transforming to us as U.S. Catholics.”

Who we are: 

 •  A partnership between parishes, religious communities and institutions, the Peace and Social Justice Ministry, Catholic Relief Services, and other national, international and Vatican institutions.

•  A Church of Joliet forum and planning group for discerning the call to global solidarity and missions

•  Catholics involved in parishes and with the larger Church of Joliet who seek a just & peaceful world (just like you!)

You can learn more about the work of the Church of Joliet Council on Global Solidarity and Missions at www.paxjoliet.org/global