January 2018 Newsletter
UN Decade of Action on Nutrition

In 2016, the United Nations proclaimed a Decade of Action on Nutrition with the goal of reducing hunger and improving nutrition around the world by 2025.
 
According to the World Health Organization, n early 800 million people remain chronically undernourished and 159 million children under 5 years of age are stunted. Approximately 50 million children under 5 years are wasted, over two billion people suffer from micronutrient deficiencies and 1.9 billion people are affected by overweight of which over 600 million are obese.

In the U.S., according to the US Department of Agriculture, 14% of households with over 16 million children are “food insecure” — meaning they can’t provide enough food for its members at some point during the year.

A typical “food insecure” household spends 26% less on food than typical food secure household of the same size and composition.
Bread for the World
More than 48 million Americans live below the poverty line ( $24,000 for a family of 4 with 2 children) and struggled to put bread on the table.
Bread for the World
More than 20% children in the US live at risk of hunger. Likewise more than 20% of children are living in poverty.
Bread for the World

In contrast, at this time of year Americans eat:
U.S. Department of Agriculture


For more on Hunger , click here.
For more about the U.N. Decade of Action on Nutrition , click here.
For ways of making your voice heard regarding policies that impact the poor and vulnerable,
Resources
Empirical Foundations of the Common Good: What Theology Can Learn from Social Science
By Daniel Finn. In this volume, six social scientists, with backgrounds in economics, political science, sociology, and policy analysis, speak about what their disciplines have to contribute to discussions within Catholic social thought about the common good. Two theologians then respond by examining the insights of social science and exploring how Catholic social thought can integrate social scientific insights into its understanding of the common good. Read more.
For more on the Common Good and Catholic Social Teaching , click here .
Catholicism and Inter-Religious Dialogue
Edited by James Heft. Contains essays by five Catholic scholars who have committed to extensive study of and dialogue with another world religion. Each scholar presents an assessment of the present state of inter-religious dialogue between the Catholic Church and practitioners of a a particular faith, including Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism. These assessments are followed by critical responses from two scholars of the tradition under discussion, as well as concluding comments from the Catholic scholar who offered the assessment. Read more.
For more on Religious Tolerance , click here.
Life Span
An organization that empowers survivors of domestic and sexual violence to demand safety as a human right through client-centered services and leads social change through accountability, community engagement and systemic advocacy.
For more on Domestic Abuse , click here.
The Financial Diaries: How American Families Cope in a World of Uncertainty
By Jonathan Morduch and and Rachel Schneider. Challenges popular assumptions about how Americans earn, spend, borrow, and save―and identifies the true causes of distress and inequality for many working Americans, ranging from a casino dealer to a street vendor to a tax preparer, who open up their lives and illustrate a world of financial uncertainty in which even limited financial success requires imaginative―and often costly―coping strategies. Details what families are doing to help themselves and describes new policies and technologies that will improve stability for those who need it most. Read more.
For more on Economic Justice , click here.

Don't Feel Sorry for Refugees —
Believe in Them
A TED Talk, featuring Luma Mufleh, a Jordanian immigrant and Muslim of Syrian descent, who founded the first accredited school for refugees in the United States. Mufleh shares stories of hope and resilience, explaining how she's helping young people from war-torn countries navigate the difficult process of building new homes. Watch now.
For more on Refugees , click here.
Why the Only Future Worth Building Includes Everyone
A TED Talk featuring Pope Francis, who offers a message to people of all faiths -- to those who have power as well as those who don't -- and provides a commentary on the world and calls for equality, solidarity and tenderness to prevail. "Let us help each other, all together, to remember that the 'other' is not a statistic, or a number," he says. "We all need each other." Watch now.
For more on Refugees , click here.
A Small Country with Big Ideas to
Get Rid of Fossil Fuels
A TED Talk featuring climate advocate Monica Araya, who uses her native Costa Rica as an example of positive action on environmental protection and renewables -- outlining a vision of a world committed to clean energy in all sectors. Watch now.
For more on the Environment , click here.
This Country Isn't Just Carbon Neutral, It's Carbon Negative

A TED Talk featuring the Prime Minister of Bhutan, Tshering Tobgay, who shares his country's mission to put happiness before economic growth and set a world standard for environmental preservation. Watch now.
For more on the Environment , click here.
My Country Will Be Underwater Soon Unless We Work Together
A TED Talk featuring the President of Kiribati, Anote Tong, who discusses his country's present climate catastrophe and its imperiled future in a conversation with TED Curator Chris Anderson. For the people of Kiribati, climate change isn't something to be debated, denied or legislated against -- it's an everyday reality. The low-lying Pacific island nation may soon be underwater, thanks to rising sea levels. He says that, In order to deal with climate change, there's got to be sacrifice. There's got to be commitment. We've got to tell people that the world has changed. Watch now.
For more on the Environment , click here.
The Refugee Crisis is a Test
of Our Character
A TED Talk featuring David Miliban, who says the the refugee crisis is a test of who everyone is and what he or she stands for -- and that each person has a personal responsibility to help solve it. Miliband offers specific, tangible ways to help refugees and turn empathy and altruism into action. Watch now.
For more on Refugees, click here.

Rescue: Refugees and the Political Crisis of Our Time
By David Miliband. Shows why people should care and how everyone can make a difference. Moves from war zones in the Middle East to peaceful suburbs in America to explain the crisis and to show what can be done -- not just by governments with the power to change policy -- but by citizens with the urge to change lives. This call to action shows that the crisis need not be overwhelming and argues that this is a fight to uphold the best of human nature in the face of rhetoric and policy that caters to the worst. Defends the international order built by western leaders out of the ashes of World War II, but says now is the time for reform. Describing on personal family history and drawing lessons from a life in politics, shows that if the world fails refugees, then the world betrays its own history, values, and interests. The message is simple: rescue refugees and one rescues oneself. Read more.
For more on Refugees , click here.

Don’t Tell Anyone (No Le Digas a Nadie)
A resource from Sojourners that follows Angy Rivera, an immigrant rights advocate, as she learns to embraces her status as an undocumented immigrant, while helping others like her to come out of the shadows to share their stories. Watch the trailer or download the discussion guide here .
For more on Immigration , click here.
Religious Leaders Protesting the 2017 Tax Reform Bill
A short video documenting religious leaders from around the country peacefully protesting in Washington D.C. the tax reform bill under consideration by Congress on
November 30, 2017.
For more on Civil Disobedience , click here.
 
Important Dates This Month

Individuals Honored This Month
January 6th
You can look at a slum or a peasant village, but it is only by entering into the world -- by living in it -- that you begin to understand what it is like to be powerless, to be like Christ.
 January 7th
This is our cry, this is our prayer: peace in the world.
January 13th

January 14th
The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others.
Janaury 14th
When the Nazis came for the communists, I was silent -- I was not a communist.
When the Nazis came for the Social Democrats I was silent -- I was not a Social Democrat.
When the Nazis came for the Jews, I was silent -- I was not a Jew.
When the Nazis came for me, there was no one left to protest.
January 15th
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed; We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.
January 24th
For Jesus, there are no countries to be conquered, no ideologies to be imposed, no people to be dominated. There are only children, women and men to be loved.
January 31st
Instead of hating the people you think are war-makers, hate the appetites and disorder in your own soul, which are the causes of war. If you love peace, then hate injustice, hate tyranny, hate greed -- but hate these things in yourself, not in another.
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