Justice Each and Every day

At its sixty-second session, in November 2007, the General Assembly of the United Nations, 192 member states, voted unanimously to declare February 20th as World Day of Social Justice. The day was designated to be observed for the first time in 2009. This declaration is certainly linked to our charism which states, “a special concern for the poor and disadvantaged”, both collectively and individually.

Two streams of justice were focussed upon: standing up for human rights and government accountability.

The General Assembly acknowledged that, “The observance of the day should contribute to the further consolidation of the efforts of the international community in poverty eradication, promotion of full employment and decent work, gender equity and access to social well-being and justice for all.”

Note the emphasis on a just society for all people, fair wages, access to resources for everyone. This is the social justice that the member states agreed to. What is our government doing in this area?

And where are we in all of this?

What are we doing in the face of the global crises? And what are we doing concerning the injustices in our own “back yard”? Do we daily think about the poor who are suffering? Do you know what the basic human needs are? food, water, health care, decent housing, etc. Who are the deprived?

Social justice should be in our awareness and action each and every day and not only once a year.

“Justice and peace shall embrace.”
If you want peace, work for justice.

What do you think?

Sr. Monique Thériault s.n.j.m.

Translation: Sr. Pat O'Neill s.n.j.m.

Love: a Commitment? or a Risk?"

Saint Valentine's Day offers us the opportunity to show our appreciation to those we love and care for. The celebration of this day has most certainly augmented the income of the retail industry: buying of cards, decorations, flowers, chocolates and other delectable delights, etc. as well as more expensive gifts for that special person in our lives.

While reflecting on the meaning of this day, I pondered on the meaning of love: God's unconditional love for me, my parents' love for me, my love of myself, those who love me and those I love, my consecration as an SNJM sister and so on. Indeed, it is all a mystery.

The following article speaks of relationships, friendships, personal disclosure, mutual respect and freedom. How many true, deep friendships can a person have? It is a big risk!

Without the solitude of heart, our relationships with others easily become needy and greedy, sticky and clingy, dependent, and sentimental, exploitive and parasitic, because without the solitude of heart, we cannot experience the others as different from ourselves but only as people who can be used for the fulfillment of our own, often hidden needs.

The mystery of love is that it protects and respects the aloneness of the other and creates the free space where we can convert our loneliness into a solitude that can be shared. In this solitude we can strengthen each other by mutual respect, by careful consideration of each other's individuality, by an obedient distance from each other's privacy and by a reverent understanding of the sacredness of the human heart.

In this solitude we encourage each other to enter into the silence of our inner­most being and discover there the voice that calls us beyond the limits of human togetherness to a new communion. In this solitude we can slowly become aware of a presence of him who embraces friends and lovers and offers us the freedom to love each other, “because he loved us first” (1 Jn 4:19). The Mystery of Love, “Mornings with Henri J. M. Nouwen” compiled by Evelyn Bence 1997 , Servant Publications p. 23

Sr. Pat O'Neill, SNJM