Catholic Social Teaching

The Esperanza advocates for those wounded by domination and inequality — women, people of color, lesbians and gay men, the working class and poor. We believe in creating bridges between people by exchanging ideas and educating and empowering each other. We believe it is vital to share our visions of hope… we are esperanza.

PURPOSE AND BELIEFS
Violence is a learned behavior,
and so is nonviolence.
Peace is revealed to the world
through peaceful people.
There are growing circles of individuals
and organizations who continue to commit and
re-commit themselves
to a larger and more focused vision of peace
and nonviolence in our city
and beyond.

MISSION
The peaceCENTER's mission is to nurture the ever-growing circles of peacemakers and resources in a unifying approach to end violence in San Antonio and beyond by partnering individuals and organizations, addressing all issues of violence, providing creative opportunities for all people, and building community and relationships focused on a vision of peace in this time and place and for future generations.

God's grace in Jesus Christ moves us to help our neighbors, whether they live in the next house, the next state, or the next continent.

Confronting the problem of hunger can seem overwhelming.

What can one person do? Plenty.

Bread for the World members write personal letters and emails and meet with our members of Congress.

Working through our churches, campuses, and other organizations, we engage more people in advocacy.

Each year, Bread for the World invites churches across the country to take up a nationwide Offering of Letters to Congress on an issue that is important to hungry and poor people.

Vision of Catholic Charities

Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim 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 individuals, families and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society.

Mission of Catholic Charities USA

The mission of Catholic Charities USA is to exercise leadership in assisting its membership, particularly the diocesan Catholic Charities agencies and affiliate members, in their mission of service, advocacy and convening.

Catholic Relief Services carries out the commitment of the Bishops of the United States to assist the poor and vulnerable overseas. We are motivated by the Gospel of Jesus Christ to cherish, preserve and uphold the sacredness and dignity of all human life, foster charity and justice, and embody Catholic social and moral teaching as we act to:

Promote human development by responding to major emergencies, fighting disease and poverty, and nurturing peaceful and just societies; and,
Serve Catholics in the United States as they live their faith in solidarity with their brothers and sisters around the world.

As part of the universal mission of the Catholic Church, we work with local, national and international Catholic institutions and structures, as well as other organizations, to assist people on the basis of need, not creed, race or nationality.

A Catholic leader in the global movement for justice and peace, NETWORK educates, lobbies, and organizes for economic and social transformation.

NETWORK is a progressive voice within the Catholic community that has been influencing Congress in favor of peace and justice for more than 30 years. Through lobbying and legislative advocacy, we strive to close the gap between rich and poor and to dismantle policies rooted in racism, greed and violence. Since our founding in 1971 by 47 Catholic sisters, NETWORK has been faithfully answering the Gospel call to act for justice.

Pax Christi USA strives to create a world that reflects the Peace of Christ by exploring, articulating, and witnessing to the call of Christian nonviolence. This work begins in personal life and extends to communities of reflection and action to transform structures of society. Pax Christi USA rejects war, preparations for war, and every form of violence and domination. It advocates primacy of conscience, economic and social justice, and respect for creation.

Pax Christi USA commits itself to peace education and, with the help of its bishop members, promotes the gospel imperative of peacemaking as a priority in the Catholic Church in the United States. Through the efforts of all its members and in cooperation with other groups, Pax Christi USA works toward a more peaceful, just, and sustainable world.

Pax Christi is a section of Pax Christi International, the Catholic peace movement.

The Campaign's primary objectives are:
* To educate the public about Church teaching on migration and immigrants;
* To create political will for positive immigration reform;
* To enact legislative and administrative reforms based on the principles articulated by the bishops; and
* To organize Catholic networks to assist qualified immigrants obtain the benefits of the reforms.