Pray, study, act: The third week of Lent, March 12-18

PRAYER - STUDY - ACTION

Third week of Lent, March 12-18

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Dear Greetings!

As we reflect on the theme of “witness” this Lent, I’m struck by how beautiful our history as a movement is of giving witness to the needs of our time. Where we put our money is an indication of where we place our priorities. While funding for militarism has increased over time, I’m deeply inspired by the persistence Pax Christi USA communities have shown to expressing a radical resistance to this threat to peace.

This afternoon, President Biden released his budget for 2024.

When billionaires are paying a lower tax rate than the average person; healthcare is costly and inaccessible; and weapons of mass destruction are seemingly granted unlimited funds while social service programs are under-resourced, we know there needs to be a witness to something greater. Budgets serve as moral documents: they guide where time and energy can be poured out, they determine who has access to opportunities, and they have the power to mitigate or perpetuate existing inequities. As peacemakers, our challenge is to advocate for budgets – both small and large – that reflect our values.

In peace,

Lauren Bailey (she/her)

National Field Organizer

Pax Christi USA

PRAYER

A prayer for social justice

by Constance (Connie) Fahey, Franciscan Sisters of Mary

Spirit of Truth

Who enfolds our world in Your Love,

we come to You with a heavy heart.

How does one begin to dismantle the evils

of racism, sexism, classism, environmental injustice

and other ism’s permeating society?

Are we complicit with the corporate sin

of societal institutions by remaining silent observers?

How can we be an instrument of peace and

radiate Your healing love?

People like Desmond Tutu, Martin Luther King, Jr.

and protestors marching on our streets

denounce systemic injustices.

We read Scripture’s injunctions--love God,

love my neighbor,

pray for my enemies,

even those who persecute me.

Are we heeding these difficult teachings?

Is it enough for us to welcome strangers into

our circle of relationships,

alleviate the suffering of the Lazaruses-on-my-doorstep,

and celebrate the diversity of people and their creeds?

Grace us that we have love for all,

promote justice for all,

and have mutual respect for all creation.

Amen.

* From the Laudato Si' Movement Prayer Book

>> For Women's History Month, pray "A Litany of Women for the Church" by Pax Christi USA Teacher of Peace Joan Chittister, osb. Scroll to the bottom of this email to find it.

>> Join us throughout Lent every Monday for a short Lenten prayer service with the Pax Christi USA national community over Zoom. Service lasts 30 minutes and includes reflection, readings, prayers of the faithful, music, and more. Our third prayer service is this Monday, March 13 at 8:30 pm Eastern/5:30 pm Pacific. Click here to register.

STUDY

Why Catholics should oppose massive increases in defense spending,

by Dwayne David Paul, National Catholic Reporter, March 7, 2023

In December, even as the country was still reeling from soaring food and fuel prices, Congress authorized an $858 billion budget in the National Defense Authorization Act, increasing military spending by $80 billion — $45 billion more than President Biden requested. If the U.S. military were a country, its 2023 budget would make it the 18th-largest economy in the world.

It was the latest instance of the U.S. leading the world in what Pope Francis has called the "madness" of prioritizing military dominance over human needs and international relations.

It's not just that we spend an astronomical amount on warfare, it's that nobody else does. As author and militarism expert William Hartung notes, the $80 billion increase between fiscal years 2022 and 2023 is greater than the total military expenditure of every other nation but China, which itself spends less than half as much on militarism as we do. According to the World Bank, among G20 nations — which account for 80 percent of global gross domestic product — only Saudi Arabia (6.6 percent) and Russia (4.1 percent) devote a larger fraction of their national economic output to military spending than the United States' 3.5 percent.

The power of the military, and the web of interests surrounding it, is incompatible with democracy and human development.

Finish reading the article here on the National Catholic Reporter website.

* Graphic of 2021 worldwide military budgets from National Priorities Project, part of the Institute for Policy Studies.

ACTION

Online Lenten prayer service for young adults, March 15

For 19-39 year-olds: Join the Pax Christi USA Young Adult Caucus on Wednesday, March 15 for a Lenten prayer service. Throughout the Lenten season, Pax Christi USA has been exploring the theme of “witness.” Six African American Catholics, the “Saintly Six,” are under consideration for canonization and gave witness to what it looks like for the church to be an active community of disciples. As we heard from Dr. Shannen Dee Williams and read in Subversive Habits, Black Catholic history is misreported and underreported within the Church. Because of this omission, there are currently no Black saints from the U.S.

This Lent, PCYAC will pray with and for the Saintly Six during a prayer service on Wednesday, March 15. For more information or to register, click here.

Planning a Good Friday event? Let us know

Traditionally, many Pax Christi USA local groups plan and stage a “Way of the Cross” event on Good Friday, connecting the sufferings of Christ during his passion with the suffering of our siblings at the hands of violence, greed, poverty, sickness and war.

>> Let us know if you have a Way of the Cross planned in your community by filling out this form. We will post the events here on our Lent 2023 page on our website.

>> Tell your elected officials where our money should be invested! Contact your reps and tell them you want them to support H.R.1111 to establish a U.S. Department of Peacebuilding! Click here to send a message to your representative.

HELP BUILD THE PEACE OF CHRIST!

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work for peace with justice, we'd be so grateful!

Just click on the donation button to the right to give securely and quickly online. Thanks!