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Parish Social Ministry |
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| Hello,
and welcome!
Jesus Christ is alive! I am pleased to introduce you to the St. Francis of Assisi Parish Social Ministry. As Christians, we the Church, follow Christ in both word and deed. The three constitutive elements of living faithful to Jesus' Gospel include: SCRIPTURE studies; SACRAMENTS celebrating His presence; and SERVICE charity for the good of our neighbors. The St. Francis Parish Social Ministry is concerned with both direct service and justice education & advocacy. By providing coordinated service opportunities and by teaching Catholic social thought, we witness the Gospel of Jesus Christ and become ever more united with Christ in the love of neighbor. In this labor together united with Christ present in the Sunday Eucharist, we experience a glimpse of Heaven right here at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church. We want justice for all people & we care for God's creation, our environment, because we believe that all people are holy, made in the image of God, and that people are both holy and social; when one suffers, we all suffer. People have a basic right to life, food, shelter, health care, education and work, especially the poor and vulnerable. Money, work and business exist to serve people, not the other way around. Our Parish Social Ministry involves the work of many individuals, teams, committees & groups including: Christian Service; St. Vincent de Paul; Peace & Justice; Pro-Life; Elizabeth Ministry; Health Ministry; Counseling Assistance Program; Home Bound Ministry; Jail & Prison Ministry; Disabilities Liaison; Employment Job Seekers Network; Stephen Ministry; Migrant Ministry; & the School/Religious Education Stewardship/Service Committee. We are proud of our collaborative work to help our neighbors, especially the poor & to promote justice through projects such as: Advocates for Legislative Justice; Advocacy for Affordable Housing; Rebuilding Together & Habitat for Humanity; Budgeting Strategies Group; Cell Phone Donations & Redistributing Donations of Any other Items; CROP Hunger Walk; Emergency Assistance Grants; Fair Trade Shopping, Food/Grocery Drives; Giving Tree for Christmas - sharing gifts; Support Holy Family Ministries Camp; New Orleans Going South Group to Cleanup After Hurricanes; Non-Violence Teams, Pregnancy & Household Help; Christmas Paty for Perry Nursery School & the Safe House Christmas Party - Healing Wounds of Domestic Violence; Extra Seasonal Projects; Shelter/Hospitality Programs for Homeless; Sister Parishes; Special Collections - Disaster Relief; Sustainable Gardening; Stephen Ministry; Tax Assistance; Tele-Care Ministry; Transportation Ministry; and Vehicle Donations & Transfers. Thanks to your involvement, and, especially the persons that volunteer to help coordinate each of these projects is made possible. To GET INVOLVED, please contact the parish Social Ministry Office 821-2121 & VISIT: www.stfrancisa2.com/socialministry/ Christ provides for all of our needs according to His riches in glory, while, at the same time we serve one another in specific direct ways. (Also read: Isaiah 58 & Matthew 25). Your brother in Christ,
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 Sound
the Shofar The ram's horn is also called a "shofar." It is still sounded in Jewish worship on the High Holy Days or Days of Awe, Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The startling and penetrating sound of the shofar has been described as a joyful sound, as a wild shout or battle cry, and as the wail of a person crying for mercy. In the Old Testament the shofar was blown to rally troops and terrify the enemy. (This use was revived in modern times during the Israeli Six-Day War when a bearded military chaplain parachuted with his troop, blowing the shofar as he descended.) The shofar was also sounded to warn of danger, to celebrate the anointing of a king, and to call the people to repentance. It was at the sound of seven shofars that the walls of Jericho collapsed. The sound of the shofar was heard when Yahweh descended in fire and smoke on Mount Sinai. It is believed that the shofar was sounded for the first time at the creation of the world and will sound for the last time at the resurrection of the dead. A Jewish writer has described the power of the shofar to make people "stop thinking about business, personal problems, important meetings, and what lunch will be" and to get them thinking "about improving their family life" or "about giving charity or helping other people who are in need." You are invited to inspect the shofar hanging on the wall of the Parish
Social Ministry Office.
------------------- To learn more about who we are as the church, read:
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