gaudium et spes and the praxis of charity

GAUDIUM ET SPES AND THE PRAXIS OF CHARITY Interpreting the Signs of the Times in Our Work to Accompany Families

PATRICK BROWN | BRIAN CORBIN | CYNTHIA DOBRZYNSKI

CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA

CATHOLIC SOCIAL TRADITION CONFERENCE – “FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF GAUDIUM ET SPES”University of Notre Dame, Center for Social Concerns | March 22-24, 2015

CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA | PAGE 3

Interpreting the Signs of the Times in Our Work to Accompany Families

ABSTRACT

Throughout its history, Catholic Charities has “interpreted the signs of the times” to respond proactively to the causes and symptoms of families and individuals in need, and in today’s complex and global world, these efforts must more than ever include a focus on the systemic barriers preventing families from achieving economic and social stability.

In this paper, we offer a brief history of our movement and show that advocacy for charity and justice is at the core of our identity. We highlight innovative programs that offer models for a more effective and efficient response to the plight of 45 million Americans in need than our current fragmented and fraying social safety net. And we offer three policy principles and five anti-poverty lenses that inform our approach to advo-cacy, a work that is essential to our identity as workers in the vineyard of both charity and justice.

We call for a holistic approach, focused on individual needs of each clients, and grounded in rigorous social science, and encourage the Church to heighten its efforts to be a prophetic witness to more comprehensively and effectively addressing the “griefs and anxieties” of those in need.

GAUDIUM ET SPES AND THE PRAXIS OF CHARITY

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INTRODUCTION“The Church in the Modern World”

“The joys and the hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the men [sic] of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxi-eties of the followers of Christ.” So begins Gaudium et Spes, laying out the challenge to be taken up by those who would follow Christ; when one member of our human family suffers, the whole body suffers.

In the international development sphere, the material depri-vations and abject poverty provide a vivid picture of what it means to be hungry, thirsty, naked, or without shelter. Catholic Relief Services is on the front lines of responding to the needs of those in developing nations. But here at home, in this land of plenty, far too many of our neighbors go to sleep on an empty stomach, without means of supporting themselves or their families, abandoned and alone, or otherwise unable to pursue their full God-given potential.

Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA), as the national representa-tive of the Church’s social services agencies accompanying the poor in communities across America, has a special call to understand and address the systemic barriers that prevent our nation and society from building a social order that is more just. Throughout our history, we have engaged people of good will to respond to the poverty that “is as if Christ Himself were crying out in these poor.” In communities across Amer-ica, local Catholic Charities agencies and programs continue this work, accompanying families and individuals in need. But in order to live out our dual mission of charity and justice, we must also address the root causes that are keeping so many families trapped in poverty.

The challenges of today are different than those facing the church and the world 50 years ago, and require a new ap-proach and fresh enthusiasm. We must continue to read “the signs of the times” and devise forms of assistance and ac-companiment that fit these new needs and realities. Led by the example of Pope Francis, challenged by the legacy of a War on Poverty launched over 50 years ago, driven by the unacceptable reality of 45 million Americans in need, and inspired by the life-changing work our agencies are accom-plishing every day, CCUSA wants to be involved in new conver-sations about meeting the needs of families and individuals.

In this time of tremendous focus on the needs of the family, and responding to the remarkable changes in social struc-tures that have dramatically altered what families look like and are in need of, our society needs to re-commit to sup-porting the family, what Gaudium et Spes calls “the school of humanity.” Based on the local realities witnessed by Catholic Charities agencies every day, and grounded in rigorous social science, the Church’s unique and vital voice can encourage society to address more comprehensively and effectively the

“griefs and anxieties” of those in need. To build a society that is more just and charitable, we must constantly analyze the micro- and macro-level problems in our own culture, and ad-dress the unique challenges facing families in our own coun-try and in our own time. In this work, we suggest three policy principles and five lenses of understanding and approaching meaningful and long-lasting reform of our anti-poverty system.



A Legacy of “Scrutinizing the Signs of the Times”

In addition to representing our member agencies on the national level, Catholic Charities USA has a long history of engaging with elected officials, researchers, political leaders, and all those of good will to build a stronger society that fully acknowledges and supports the inherent dignity of all, espe-cially those on the margins of society. The organization’s vision statement provides an apt summary of this legacy of service and advocacy:

Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we pro-claim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with indi-viduals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.5

Throughout its history, Catholic Charities in the United States has lived out its identity of being the hands of the Church min-istering to the wounds of Christ personified in the lives of the poor and marginalized. Starting in 1727, with French Ursuline Sisters in what is now the Ninth Ward of New Orleans offering shelter to widows and orphaned children, Catholic social ser-vices have been woven into the fabric of our country.6

The vast majority of those receiving services from Catholic charitable organizations in the early years of our nation were themselves Catholic. In 1866, the bishops of the United States noted the large number of Catholics imprisoned and destitute in a pastoral letter, specifically referencing the Irish newcomers which made up the majority of delinquent youth in American cities. “It is a melancholy fact, and a very humil-iating avowal for us to make, that a very large portion of the vicious and idle youth of our principle cities are the children of Catholic parents.”7

In 1910, the National Conference of Catholic Charities (NCCC) was founded on the campus of The Catholic Universi-ty of America in Washington, D.C., to provide a national forum for discussion, social work best practices, and addressing the systemic causes of poverty and destitution in the United States. At that Charter meeting, Catholic Charities declared itself to be the “attorney for the poor.” This aspiration and insight leads our work today.

As Catholics became part of the American mainstream, the work of Catholic social services agencies expanded to include all suffering from exclusion, disability, or economic or social deprivation, regardless of race, creed, or social background. Understanding the need to address the causes of poverty, in addition to its effects, the NCCC played a significant role in the shaping of social welfare legislation such as the National Housing Act of 1934 and 1935’s Social Security Act, specif-ically in the development of Aid to Dependent Children and Child Welfare Services.

In 1969, inspired in part by the summons of Gaudium et Spes to live out the Church’s “duty of scrutinizing the signs of the times [and] interpreting them in the light of the Gospel,” the NCCC launched a process of reflection on the work and min-istry of Catholic Charities, culminating in “Toward A Renewed Catholic Charities’ Movement,” a document that would be-come known as the Cadre Study. The document reoriented the mission of the national Catholic Charities network to promi-nently take up the roles of social action, legislative advocacy, and convening.



The Cadre Study focused on the mandate for renewal of vari-ous institutions in the church and the challenges being made to nearly all institutions in society. The document reflected upon the fact that not only were society and the Church changing, but also that the very structure and fabric of social work practices and agencies was “the subject of massive de-mands for a new orientation toward action and away from di-rect service.” From then on, the Catholic Charities’ movement has strived towards living out its mission statement in every aspect of its responsibilities and actions, “to provide services to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same.”

One key element to the second concept of advocacy focuses on our ability as a movement and as a Church to not only advocate for justice in social structures, but to actually work to “transform and humanize” them. This element grew in tan-dem with the work of the U.S. Catholic Bishops’ anti-poverty program, The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) which engaged the Church – with many local Catholic Charities agencies on the forefront – in community organizing and community economic development.

Beginning in 1993, the Vision 2000 Task Force began its work of redefining and developing a strategic plan that would allow the organization, now called Catholic Charities USA, to face the challenges of the new century. The Vision 2000 doc-ument called upon the church and others to continue to read the signs of the times and engage in charitable and social justice action.

Taken as a whole, the Catholic Charities network has a long history of not only serving those in need, but engaging in discussion, thought, and action to make our nation a more just and compassionate society. Our history shows a commit-

ment to responding to the needs of families and society in our own country and in our own time, and adjusting our ap-proach and efforts to address contemporary challenges. We are committed to accompanying those in need on their path out of poverty, and to using their stories and insights to work with government leaders and other sectors to build a more compassionate response. Addressing the challenges of today through the lens of social work, policy analysis, and our Cath-olic identity isn’t a new responsibility for Catholic Charities; it is central, and essential, to our work.

“The Family…is the Foundation of Society”

We have seen that Catholic Charities USA’s history and lega-cy compels us to address the systemic roots of the problem of poverty that leaves 45 million Americans at or below the federal poverty line.10 In these efforts, we must start with the fundamental building-block of society – the family.

Gaudium et Spes aptly summarizes why supporting the family must be at the center of our work to reduce poverty: “The family, in which the various generations come together and help one another grow wiser and harmonize personal rights with the other requirements of social life, is the foundation of society.”11 Through a gift of “mutual self-bestowal,” parents become living examples of Christ’s love for each other and for their children. In family life, children are introduced to the val-ues of patience, kindness, self-sacrifice, humility, faith, hope, and charity; families provide parents the opportunity to raise new citizens and children of God. “Marriage and the family are the central social institutions that must be supported and strengthened, not undermined.” Therefore, our work to reduce poverty must have at its center the importance of supporting the family, especially ones in need.



The challenges facing families have never been so diverse and pervasive. For many, the lack of stable employment means that economically providing for a stable family life remains out of reach. The fraying of the social contract means that the institutions and bonds that families used to be able to rely on for support are increasingly leaving them on their own. Changes in cultural and social norms mean that children are more likely to grow up without the love and support of both biological parents – and children in low-income families, who need that support most of all, are disproportionately impacted by the breakdown of strong family life.

Catholic Charities and Supporting “A School of Deeper Humanity”

Recognizing the importance of the family, Catholic Charities agencies are involved in pioneering programs that help ad-dress challenges and threats to families’ social and economic security. The five pillars of our campaign to reduce poverty in America are each grounded in our agencies’ daily work to accompany families on their journey out of poverty.

Addressing the economic challenges facing families needs means addressing the areas of: A) education and training, B) family economic security, C) food insecurity, D) housing, and E) health care, all within a special focus of carefully under-standing the needs of populations who are in need of special care. What follows are brief examples of how Catholic Chari-ties agencies are walking alongside families in communities across America.

A) Education and training

Students in community college often drop out of school for reasons that have nothing to do with performance in the classroom, yet a college degree is increasingly important in achieving economic security. To respond to the challenges that life throws at at-risk and low-income students, Catholic Charities Fort Worth developed the Stay the Course program, which offers comprehensive case management to address the students’ challenges. Through a partnership with the Universi-ty of Notre Dame’s Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Oppor-tunities, the program is engaged in rigorous analysis of the impact and scalability of its offerings. In addition, early child-hood and elementary education is a vital ladder to oppor-tunity that many Catholic Charities provide and supplement through Head Start or Head Start-like programs. In 2013, over 57,000 children benefitted from the education programs of-fered by Catholic Charities agencies.



B) Family economic security

Catholic Social and Community Services, Biloxi, Mississippi, is providing opportunities for homeless people in their commu-nity. In partnership with Back Bay Mission homeless service center, Catholic Social and Community Services, interviewed and hired a client from Back Bay’s shelter program to work at their Twelve Baskets Food Bank. While employed and receiving job training at Catholic Social and Community Services, the client also receives case management from Back Bay Mission. As a result the client is now in stable housing and will become a permanent employee of Catholic Social and Community Services later this year. Once fully employed, the client will act as a mentor to the next person to come into this program.

On another level, various Catholic Charities agencies work with their refugee and immigrant communities to access needed credit in the banking system in order to stabilize their lives and garner access to financial services. Recently a new partnership is emerging with the National Federation of Com-munity Development Credit Unions to serve this population. This effort harkens back to an earlier era wherein parishes and Catholic fraternal institutions designed credit unions to support their members.

C) Food insecurity

Some of the biggest obstacles reported by agencies supporting rural areas are a lack of access to transportation and, as a result, the inability to access available services. In response, agencies such as Catholic Charities Bureau in Lake City, Flor-ida, are meeting the needs of the rural poor by bringing the services to them. Because of the transportation barriers facing this wide-spread and economically-disadvantaged community, fresh foods are often difficult to come by. With the help of a refrigerated truck, Catholic Charities Bureau’s “Feed–A- Family” program is addressing the needs of this underserved, rural community by delivering frozen, canned, and fresh foods to them.

Likewise, Crisp!, a mobile food distribution network operated by Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago, enables low-income families to obtain affordable and fresh produce to support their children’s development and health. Crisp! offers an affordable convenient way for food desert communities, and other Chicago neighborhoods without the luxury of having a mobile grocer, to access healthy food.



D) Housing

Launched in 2009 by Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis, the Holy Family Shelter helps homeless individ-uals “transition in place” by emphasizing ongoing supportive case management services. With an initial goal of transitioning 25 families each year out of homelessness, the “Holy Family Transitional Services” program now helps 30 families annually move into stable, long-term housing. Over the years, Catholic Charities agencies around the United States have employed private capital markets to develop permanent and transitional housing through Low Income Housing Tax Credits. Last year, Catholic Charities agencies provided over 33,500 permanent affordable housing units to stabilize families needing a roof over their heads.

E) Health care

Catholic Charities Diocese of Cleveland, Ohio, is working to increase collaboration and decrease service gaps across gov-ernment health systems, particularly as it relates to their work with vulnerable youth. With the help of a grant through Ohio’s

“Strong Families Safe Communities” initiative, and through partnerships with government agencies and community based programs, Catholic Charities has been able to begin breaking down some of these silos to provide on-call crisis in-tervention, respite services in specialized foster homes, family support groups, and training for first responders. Through in-tensive wrap-around services and community based training, this program provides potentially lifesaving services to ensure that these vulnerable youth do not fall through the cracks.

Special Populations

There are subsets of the population living in poverty that re-quire our special care and attention, such as pregnant women and young families, youth, seniors, veterans, prisoners re-en-tering society, migrants, immigrants, refugees and trafficked persons. Most recently, the plight of immigrant children and families seeking a better life in the United States has been the subject of much coverage and some controversy. The Catholic Charities network has been on the front lines of responding to their plight, following the commission to “love the alien as yourself; for you too were once aliens in the land of Egypt.”13



In Brownsville, Texas, Sr. Norma Pimentel and Catholic Char-ities of the Rio Grande Valley set up a welcome shelter to tend to the needs of exhausted refugee children and fami-lies during last summer’s humanitarian crisis on our southern border. In the midst of political disagreement about the fate of these children, Catholic Charities agencies in places like Richmond, Virginia, San Jose, California, Rochester, New York, and others, volunteered to provide foster care services to un-accompanied minors, many of whom crossed the border with nothing more than the clothes on their back.

Innovative Programs

In addition to the five pillars of our ongoing campaign to reduce poverty in America, CCUSA supports the innovative work of our agencies to comprehensively and holistically ad-dress the issues keeping families from escaping poverty. One such endeavor is the Padua initiative being piloted by Cath-olic Charities Fort Worth, which is devoting a team of case managers to provide intensive and targeted intervention to address each family’s unique situation and challenges. The pi-lot project, which includes an individualized strengths-based asset plan, community support, and rigorous impact evalua-tion through Notre Dame’s Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities, will serve approximately 200 families over the next three to five years and has game-changing potential in addressing the unique challenges facing families.

Another untraditional approach in serving families in need is being pioneered in Washington state as part of a program being spearheaded by the State Catholic Conference of Wash-ington, the dioceses of Seattle, Spokane, and Yakima and each diocese’s Catholic Charities agencies, and with support from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. Pregnancy and Parenting Support for All (PrePareS) brings together holistic social services and pregnancy and parenting support services

to strategically and comprehensively support pregnant young women, especially those in crisis pregnancies, to sustain them through childbirth and the construction of a nurturing home environment. PrePareS promotes the health and wellbeing of women, children and families through counseling, education and supportive services, and seeks to facilitate healthy social and emotional development for each child. It also lives out in a tangible way the Church’s commitment to the protection of all human life and is a powerful example of cross-agency collaboration and our network’s commitment to advancing au-thentic human dignity.

50 Years Later, How Best to “Foster the Nobility of Marriage and the Family”

These programs are doing heroic work. They are pioneering successful approaches to the micro-level challenges facing families in need. But in order to break the cycle of poverty that grips so many in our nation, we need a renewed commitment to address the deeper, macro-level causes that leave so many families broken, left behind, or in need.

During the preparation of Gaudium et Spes, the Second Vat-ican Council was writing at a time of “profound and rapid changes.” The advent of the sexual revolution, a fracturing con-sensus on the importance of marriage and the family, and a global struggle between capitalism and communism were the backdrop against which the Council’s work was being done. The challenges we face today as a Church and social move-ment are different, but in many ways related to, or the result of, the changes the Council was responding to in 1965.

Fifty years later, progress has been made on our journey to-wards a society built on justice and compassion. Race re-lations and civil rights have vastly improved since the mid-1960s, and we no longer live under the imminent threat of



thermonuclear war. The unique gifts of women are now more widely recognized, and technological advancements have in-creased our ability to cure disease and build communities even across geographical distances.

At the same time, the economic pressures and social changes have brought new challenges to bear on families and individ-uals in need. The hollowing out of the American middle class has been the result of many factors, including the decline in manufacturing jobs, increased segregation along socio-eco-nomic lines, a widening gap between the incomes of high earners and those in moderate-to-low income households, and economic pressures that often force both parents into the workforce just to make ends meet. Put simply, our globalized, fast-paced economy no longer values the domestic sphere, and only those already blessed with the means to thrive are reliably able to count on the support of a strong family unit. Marriage, according to Lerman and Wilcox (2014), is increas-ingly an upper-class phenomenon.15

Pope Paul VI told us “Every attack on the fundamental value of the family…is an attack on the true good of man.”16 Respecting the human dignity of every one of our brothers and sisters, regardless of background or situation, means committing to reversing this trend.

In low-income and at-risk communities, in addition to falling rates of marriage and increasing rates of children born out-side of marriage, the problems are compounded by skyrock-eting incarceration rates, punitive welfare reform components, and regressive implicit marginal tax rates which keep people trapped in poverty. Researchers have found that the impact of this latest recession hit low- and middle-income families, particularly men, harder than previous recessions.17 There are many systemic barriers that keep people and families from

moving out of poverty – at the broadest level, Pope Francis has talked about a “culture of exclusion” that prevents the poor and marginalized from being welcomed into the broader community.18

These barriers range from the small-scale to the global. Con-servative researchers and policymakers have talked about regressive burdens like excessive licensure laws that prevent low-income individuals from achieving an economic foothold with a job that could lead to greater self-sufficiency.19 On the liberal side of the aisle, observers have pinpointed a federal minimum wage that leaves many families on the brink of eco-nomic disaster, and corporate policies and procedures that dehumanize workers and contribute to instability.20

Other barriers that contribute to an “economy of exclusion, [or] throwaway culture” include lingering racial inequities 50 years after the passage of the Civil Rights Act, businesses like payday lenders and slumlords who make their living by prey-ing on low-income households, and more global threats, such as climate change, which could most heavily impact those who don’t have the resources to adjust to dramatic changes.

Not all of these problems are solvable in the near-term – in fact, many of them will be the work of lifetimes. They are entrenched, interwoven, and require concerted effort to re-form. Nonetheless, to serve those in need without working for justice would be to live out our mission with one hand tied behind our back. Gaudium et Spes echoes this concern:

“The Church and the political community in their own fields are autonomous and independent from each other. Yet… the more that both foster sounder cooperation between them-selves with due consideration for the circumstances of time and place, the more effective will their service be exercised for the good of all.”21



Like Isaiah, we are charged with the responsibility “to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, release to the prisoners.”22

Therefore, to truly address the systemic causes of poverty, as we believe is a vital component of our role, we suggest the following three public policy principles in understanding and addressing poverty in America.

Three Public Policy Principles: Holistic, Client-Fo-cused, and Results-Driven

As part of CCUSA’s centennial celebration, the organization held a number of regional listening sessions – or “poverty summits” – to better understand and synthesize the challenges facing low-income individuals and families. We also compiled the latest strategies being pioneered by our member agen-cies to assist them on their journey. The lessons learned were turned into a piece of legislation that was introduced into Congress, but fell victim to partisan gridlock. However, these three focus areas, based on the lived experience of our mem-ber agencies, remain our guiding principles in advocating for a stronger response to the problem of poverty in America and build opportunities for families to thrive. They are:

1) Holistic

The current system of fighting poverty was developed in an era of slide rules and electric typewriters. While we have tinkered with the social safety net over the last 51 years, our national approach is still largely dictat-ed by bureaucrats in Washington, D.C., removed from the daily realities facing families and communities. Any meaningful reform should look at the system as a whole, break down bureaucratic silos that hinder effectiveness, and support the formation of strong families as the ba-sic building-block of a healthy society.

2) Client-focused

Truly ending poverty starts with recognizing the dig-nity inherent in every person, and building from their strengths and assets. Utilizing a case management ap-proach, attacking the unique problems trapping each individual and family in poverty, and stabilizing those in need before they are at-risk, as opposed to after they have already fallen into poverty, requires leveraging fed-eral, state, and community resources in the manner that will be most effective, efficient, and targeted in break-ing through the barriers keeping people in poverty from achieving their potential.

3) Results-driven

In order to invest in what works, we need to know what in fact does work. While the ministry of charity will con-tinue for as long as the poor are with us, effectively ad-dressing the structural and personal challenges impact-ing families in need requires rigorous, impartial analysis of our strategies and programs. Our partnership with the Wilson Sheehan Lab for Economic Opportunities is testament to our belief in the importance of evaluation and commitment to supporting measurement and using those results to not only scale up existing programs, but work with policymakers to craft safety-net programs based on examples that have been proven to work.

These three principles guide our work; they set forward an ideal direction but do not preclude us from engaging in discussions about different perspectives or approaches. As Congress and state governments pursue reform of our social service programs, we encourage them to keep in mind these policy principles, as well as the four fundamental pillars of Catholic Social Doctrine: subsidiarity, solidarity, respect for the common good, and the essential dignity of the human person.



Joy and Hope for a World in Need

The recent Extraordinary Synod on the Families addressed many of these same questions about how to strengthen the family, including the Church’s need “to denounce with clarity cultural, social, political and economic factors, such as the excessive importance given to market logic, that prevent au-thentic family life and lead to discrimination, poverty, exclu-sion, and violence.”23

The Synod bishops recognized that material poverty often pre-vents couples from forming the supportive bonds of family, and that in many marginalized, disenfranchised, or low-in-come families, the fruit of poverty and unemployment is a feeling of isolation. They wrote, “One symptom of the great poverty of contemporary culture is loneliness, arising from the absence of God in a person’s life and the fragility of relation-ships. There is also a general feeling of powerlessness in the face of socio-cultural realities that oftentimes end in crushing families.”24 Our agencies see this reality every day; oftentimes, the presence of a supportive family member, friend, or men-tor can be the difference that helps someone surmount the obstacles that had been trapping them in a life of materi-al and spiritual poverty. These are not issues limited to the poor – middle-class and even high-income families struggle with these pressures. Far from being extraneous to the work of Catholic Charities, addressing the systemic challenges facing all families is a vital part of our mission.

Throughout its history, Catholic Charities in the United States have lived out this call – interpreting, as Gaudium et Spes calls us to do, the “signs of the times” to respond in the man-ner most appropriate to the challenges of the present day.

Whether providing housing for the widowed and orphaned in 18th-century New Orleans, ensuring immigrants in 19th-cen-tury New York didn’t go hungry, or working to assist those im-pacted by outsourcing in the 20th-century Rust Belt, Catholic Charities has adapted to meet families and individuals where they are and accompany them on their journey.

Saint Pope John Paul II wrote that the Church must be contin-ually encouraging authentic human dignity, the value of work, and standing in solidarity with those in need, “The Church is firmly committed to this cause, for she considers it her mis-sion, her service, a proof of her fidelity to Christ, so that she can truly be the ‘Church of the poor.’”25

Now, faced with ever-more-complex and globalized challenges, the need to continue walking along side those in need while working to address the deeper causes of poverty and want has never been more important. The efforts of Catholic Char-ities, and the Church, must now more include a focus on the systemic barriers preventing families from achieving econom-ic and social stability. Our mission of spreading gaudium and spes to those in desperate need of joy and hope is not some-thing that is limited to the Catholic Charities network, but to the whole body of Christ, “The spirit of poverty and charity are the glory and witness of the Church of Christ.”26

The Lord hears the cry of the poor; can we do any less? The “griefs and anxieties” of those in need are summoning us to action; as members of one human family, as brothers and sisters in Christ, we must respond.



ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Brian Corbin Senior Vice President for Social PolicyCatholic Charities USA

He has studied philosophy and politics at the Catholic University of America (BA, 1984), political economy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and organizational leadership at Youngstown State University. He is also a Knight of the Holy Sepulcher.

Cynthia DobryznskiSenior Vice President for Mission and MinistryCatholic Charities USA

She has studied theology and psychology at Georgetown University (BA) and pastoral ministry at Boston College (MA). She is the co-author of Love One Another: Catholic Reflec-tions on How to Sustain Marriages Today (New York: Cross-road Pub. Co, 2010).

Patrick BrownManager, Communications and Partnerships Catholic Charities USA

He studied economics and political science at the University of Notre Dame (BA, 2011).



1Pope Paul VI. “Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World - Gaudium et Spes.” §1 Vatican: the Holy See. Rome, 7 Dec. 1965.

2Gaudium et Spes. §88


4 Gaudium et Spes. §52

5Catholic Charities USA vision statement.

6Portions of the following section are heavily taken from “Catholic in Charity and Identity,” published in 2010 by Catholic Charities USA.

7Second Plenary Council of Baltimore, Pasto-ral Letter. Baltimore, Md. October 1866.


9Cadre Study (“Toward a Renewed Catholic Charities Movement: A Study of the National Conference of Catholic Charities.”) Washing-ton: National Conference of Catholic Chari-ties, 1972.

10U.S. Census Bureau. “Income and Poverty in the United States: 2013 Current Popula-tion Reports.” Washington, DC: September 2014.


12United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. “Seven Themes from Catholic Social Teaching.” < www.usccb.org/be-liefs-and-teachings/what-we-believe/cath-olic-social-teaching/seven-themes-of-cath-olic-social-teaching.cfm > Washington, DC: 2005.

13Leviticus 19:34


15Robert I. Lerman and W. Bradford Wilcox. “For Richer, For Poorer: How Family Structures Economic Success in America.” Institute for Family Studies/American Enterprise Insti-tute. October 2014.

16Pope Paul VI, “Message for the World Social Communication Day.” Vatican: the Holy See. Rome, 7 Apr 1969.

17Monique Jethwani, Serena Klempin, and Ronald Mincy. “What the Recession Did to American Fathers.” The Atlantic Monthly. 6 Jan 2015.

18Pope Francis. “Address to the United Na-tions System Chief Executives Board for Co-ordination.” Vatican: the Holy See. Rome, 9 May 2014.

19House Budget Committee Majority Staff. “Expanding Opportunity in America: A Dis-cussion Draft from the House Budget Com-mittee”. <http://budget.house.gov/upload-edfiles/expanding_opportunity_in_america.pdf> Washington, DC: 24 Jul 2014.

20Sharon Parrott, Arloc Sherman, and Dani-lo Trisi. “The War on Poverty at 50, Overview.” <http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?-fa=view&id=4069> Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. Washington, DC: 7 Jan 2014.


22Isaiah 61:1

23Synod of Bishops. “The Vocation and Mis-sion of the Family in the Church and Contem-porary World – Lineamenta” §37. Vatican: the Holy See. Rome, 19 Oct 2014.

24Synod of Bishops. “Lineamenta” §5.

25Pope John Paul II. “Laborem Exercens – En-cyclical Letter.” Vatican: the Holy See. Rome, 14 Sep 1981.


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