Justice Is "What It Means To Be Catholic"
On April 29th over 100 Clevelanders gathered for FutureChurch’s second annual "Open Mic." Night. The question posed to the group was, "Where is the justice in the Catholic Church?" A panel of younger Catholics started the discussion by sharing their experiences, concerns, and hopes. Devon Lynch-Huggins, a theology teacher and campus minister at an inner city Catholic high school, focused on a "new role" for Catholic education—educating the public and being committed to spreading the Gospels to all people. She shared examples, especially a student Spring break trip to New Orleans.
For Megan Gergan, currently a Jesuit Volunteer at a domestic violence center, working for justice is "what it means to be Catholic." Megan believes faith and justice intrinsically linked. She said, "I have had the opportunity to learn about Catholic Social Teachings and the belief we hold of basic human dignity, that each person is made in the image of God; that a healthy community can be achieved only if the poor and marginalized are given special attention; learning these things has helped me grow tremendously in my faith."
Rachel Napolitano shared personal experiences where she witnessed justice in the Church from her year of volunteer service and her involvement in the Catholic Worker community. Dante Parete found the recent parish closings in Cleveland unjust in that a disproportionate number of closings are in the inner city serving the poor.
Lively conversation continued after the panel of young people spoke. Since Cleveland had received word a month prior of the closing of 50 of its parishes, many comments were along the lines of Dante’s. The other concerns raised were the lack of justice towards women, gays, the sex abuse crisis, the appointing of bishops and AIDS in Africa.
Participants walked away hopeful even though many examples of injustice were identified. The witness of younger Catholics, the many Catholic ministries serving as Jesus did, the concrete suggestions for change, and the solidarity and commitment of the people present all gave powerful testimony that the Church—even though imperfect—is an agent of justice.
