As with all the Passionist communities worldwide the Asian members are by no means strangers to social ministries. We had the opportunity to hear so many of the unique social ministries that these communities have organized in light of their own local realities. In India we were able to visit some of these powerful ministries in a poor village called Randham. Social ministries refer to ministries of the Passionist communities that serve the society in which they exist. In Randham we were fortunate enough to visit a number of these ministries, some which are traditional and others which are new and innovative. A traditional yet very powerful social ministry that they offer is education. The goal being to give the emerging generation the real opportunity to gain a quality education that will allow them to improve themselves and their own community in this highly competitive world while integrating the spiritual dimensions of social responsibility.

Other more unconventional ministries included a micro-credit Cow Loan program, a rice and peanut farming project and housing development. The cow loan program is particularly creative. The aim is to supply the local villagers with a natural resource that can sustain them. In India the cow is a very sacred animal, part of this is the religious tradition of Hinduism, but another part of this is that the cow is a great resource for the community. The Passionists have created a loan system where the villagers will have access to a 0% interest loan to purchase a cow. The villagers will then go to the Passionist milking station to sell the milk and a percentage of the milk will go to repay the loan for the cow while the rest go to them. After the cow is payed off they then keep the entire profit of the milk.

This is one example of a Passionist social ministry in Asia that is helping the poorer members of our society by giving them a number of opportunities through work, education and basic services. At the meeting we heard how diverse the social need is with the other Asian communities which include Japan, Korea, Australia, Indonesia, Papa New Guinea and Vietnam. The issues where diverse but we heard a commitment from these communities to promote a network of solidarity so that at a global level we can all support each other in promoting the Christian work of true charity which Pope Benedict XVI reminds us in his recent encyclical is justice. The Passion for Justice blog will become more diverse as we develop further solidarity with each other and sometime soon you will hear other voices throughout the world sharing our issues, concerns and social spirituality.   

As we go off to celebrate Thanksgiving here in the United States I would ask that all of us adopt the spirit of solidarity with the poor members of our human community and to offer a prayer for them and the missionaries who serve them. Consider and reflect on this spiritual quote from Saint Paul of the Cross and may all of us celebrate is the true spirit of Thanksgiving.

Therefore, let us love the dear God, who loves us so much placing everything in the Wounds of Jesus and offering them to the Divine Father, begging him through the grace of his most holy Son that he give remedy to all the evils and send his faithful servants so that the power of the Cross and Passion of Jesus Christ will triumph.

It is with the lens of the social spirituality, articulated in the last blog post, that the regional and international Passionist community has taken to develop these offices or ministries of JPIC. Through JPIC, the Passionists have set three objectives or tasks.

Promote Social Ministries: Engaging in social ministries is not a new initiative for the Passionist family. We can trace early expressions of social ministries from the Passionist founder himself. St. Paul of Cross is known to serve the community as a hospital and military chaplain. He was known to advocate for the poor and to use the opportunity of his missions to organize social charity for the poorer members of society. He also advocated for peace in the midst of a battle during the “War of the Polish Succession.” He was also known to value the integrity and wisdom of the environment and believed in having Christian retreats in places where people had the opportunity to enjoy the presence of God through the beauty of God’s natural creation.

The Passionists have continued to organize various aspects of social and ecological ministries. Through JPIC we look to further these expressions by promoting these isolated ministries into the visible life of the community. The office looks to develop relationships with these social ministries and our institutional ministries like parishes and retreat centers. The JPIC office is also looking for opportunities for the public to engage in these ministries or to create new ones through the Passionist communities and spirituality.

Coordinate Advocacy: The second objective is to empower our Passionist family to engage in the world as a member of civil society and to offer its spiritual wisdom on social issues that concern us. Based on our spirituality we are concerned with social policies or actions that cause tremendous suffering to humanity and creation. We are organizing to be in solidarity with those who suffer. Whenever possible we will walk with those who suffer from the injustices of our global society and we will tend to the needs of those that may be marginalized. Where the dignity of human life and the integrity of the environment are being violated we will be advocating against policies that cause such violations.  

In working with civil society the Passionist JPIC Office will be working with the Catholic Church and several other faith based organization to promote policies that will transform the world into a vision of Justice and Peace that respects the integrity of all creation. This is a vision that we consider to be based in scripture and reflected in that vision which Christ called, “The Kingdom of God.” At the international level we are fortunate to have our own UN organization, Passionists International. At regional levels we will have a number of JPIC offices that will advocate on domestic and foreign issues.

Education and Formation:  The third objective for the office is to develop and create resources on the Passionist spirituality of JPIC. We start by emphasizing Catholic social teachings and principles which are powerful aspects of our faith and tradition which are sadly neglected. On top of this we will promote the social and ecological dimensions of our own spirituality which again is focused on the memory of Christ’s Passion.

Through JPIC we will develop resources for lay and vowed formation. We will also develop liturgical resources on social spirituality either in observance of Holy Days or in observance of social issues. Using some of newest forms of technology like blogs or social networks we will also promote this spirituality along with the other objectives of Passionist JPIC. In North America the JPIC Office is also developing workshops and retreat programs for our retreat and parish ministries.

May the Passion of Jesus, Be Ever in our Hearts