CATHOLICISM AND POLITICAL LIFE
JUSTICE, PEACE, AND INTEGRITY OF CREATION (JPIC)

The information included below has been provided by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Please use the provided links to find more information on these topics from the USCCB. Additional sources will be noted.
If you have any questions about these resources on Catholic Social Teaching and Political Life, please contact:
Ken Chiha, Director of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (JPIC)

USCCB & FRANCISCAN
​CURRENT POLITICAL ADVOCACY EFFORTS

As a Franciscan parish, our Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) often makes our parishioners aware of advocacy issues shared through Franciscan Action Network (FAN) and other Franciscan organizations. Franciscan Action Network recently shared the following advocacy alert with us.

SUPPORT NORTH CAROLINA'S IMMIGRANT COMMUNITY
Tell Your North Carolina Representatives & Senators
​Let’s #KeepNCWelcoming!

In North Carolina, we know that living in communities where we treat each other like neighbors and where we all can feel safe going to work, taking our kids to school, and participating in our faith communities is what allows our state to thrive.
Unfortunately, the General Assembly recently passed two harmful, anti-immigrant bills that fuel division and fear by profiling and criminalizing members of our community, and wasting government resources and taxpayer dollars by requiring local law enforcement to do the job of the federal government.
  • ​We know what helps us thrive, it is living in communities where we treat each other like neighbors.
  • We know that all our neighbors, including our immigrant and refugee neighbors, are integral to our communities.
  • Policies that force those whose job it is to keep us safe to divert limited resources away from crucial community support systems and enforce an unfunded federal mandate will hurt North Carolina’s ability to grow and prosper.
  • These policies, that will drive new North Carolinians into the shadows, fueling fear and division, are not solutions that advance freedom, safety, and wellbeing for North Carolina families.​​
Thankfully, Governor Stein vetoed these bills in June. However, it is not over yet. On July 29th, the General Assembly will reconvene to consider an override of the governor’s vetoes. We have two critical weeks and our Representatives and Senators need to hear from us! Let them know we support our newcomer neighbors and want real solutions that help our communities thrive - they must oppose the potential veto overrides on HB 318 and SB 153.

Our North Carolina Representatives and Senators need to hear from us! Please take two minutes today to contact your elected leaders and share this message by clicking on the link below. Remind our elected leaders that North Carolina is a place that opens doors, not slams them shut. Let them know we support our newcomer neighbors and want real solutions that help our communities thrive - they must VOTE NO on HB 690, HB 261, HB 318, and SB 153.
The following advocacy action below was sent to our Franciscan friars by Church World Services (CWS)

TAKE ACTION: TELL CONGRESS & THE WHITE HOUSE THAT YOU OPPOSE TRUMP’S INDEFINITE REFUGEE BAN AND EXECUTIVE ACTIONS TARGETING NEWCOMER

Upon taking office on January 20, President Trump signed a sweeping series of executive actions that reversed decades of precedent for welcome, going much further than he did in his first term to target programs supporting refugees and others who are fleeing persecution and violence. In the days since, many of these actions have been operationalized and are causing significant harm across the country and around the world.
The administration’s actions included:
  • An indefinite ban on refugee resettlement, stranding tens of thousands of refugees who have gone through years of security screening and remain in danger overseas. 
  • A 90-day suspension of all foreign aid to displaced people overseas — followed by stop work orders implicating services to refugees and forcibly displaced people who are already here. 
  • A total ban on access to asylum and other protections for anyone arriving at the border  and authorizing and mobilizing the military to stop people seeking protection from entering the United States via the southern border.
  • An end to crucial humanitarian pathways like Uniting for Ukraine program and the Cuban, Haitian, Nicaraguan, and Venezuelan parole program.
  • An expansion of detention and deportation in the interior of the United States and an end to guidance preventing ICE enforcement actions in churches and schools.
  • An attack on humanitarian organizations serving refugees and newcomers here in the United States.
These orders are gut-wrenching for so many community members waiting to welcome or reunite with loved ones who remain at risk abroad. They will deal immediate and significant harm to untold numbers of vulnerable families searching for a safe place to call home. And they lay the groundwork for future extreme actions that would facilitate mass deportations. These policies are rooted in militarization and fear and fail to recognize that welcoming refugees makes our country stronger, safer, and more prosperous. 
It is critical that all our elected leaders hear our communities decry these cruel actions and advocate for refugees here in the U.S. and around the world. 

CONTACT (EMAIL OR CALL) YOUR SENATORS AND REPRESENTATIVE TODAY
​USING THE LINK BELOW

SAMPLE:
“My name is [insert name], and as your constituent from [City/Town] and a [person of faith/refugee/member of my community], I urge you and your office to stand with refugees and push back on President Trump’s actions that ban refugees, abruptly halt vital services to refugees who have already been resettled, end vital humanitarian pathways and programs, and target immigrants. Congress has a vital role to play in preserving refugee and humanitarian protections and supporting displaced people’s ability to integrate and thrive in their new communities. 
Specifically, I urge you to: 
  • Call on the Trump administration to immediately rescind the refugee ban, reverse course on stop-work orders, and oppose other executive orders that target our asylum-seeking and immigrant neighbors and the communities that welcome them. If the executive orders are not rescinded, Congress must exercise close oversight over their implementation. For example, I urge you to encourage the administration to clarify and expand waivers to the stop-work orders and exemptions to the refugee ban, including for family reunification cases, unaccompanied refugee minors, or other particularly urgent cases. 
  • Support legislation and appropriations that uphold decades of precedent for welcoming newcomers – and oppose legislation that further codifies harm to immigrants. As legislative and funding negotiations continue, I urge you to stand with newcomers by joining pro-refugee, pro-immigrant legislation and oppose harmful policies that seek to codify the administration’s restrictions.
  • Publicly express your support for refugees and humanitarian protections. I urge you to be vocal in support for refugees and recognize and uplift the value refugees and newcomers bring to our community – including via press events, floor statements, and on social media.
A growing majority of Americans support welcoming refugees and newcomers. Refugees bring enormous economic and sociocultural benefits to the communities where they resettle; they are small business owners, tax contributors, and job creators. Our community welcomes refugees, and I encourage you to do so as well.”

URGE SENATOR TILLIS TO OPPOSE CANCELLING FUNDING
​FOR INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE
(SUPPORT CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES)

This week is Congress’s deadline to act on the White House’s request to cancel lifesaving funding for international humanitarian assistance, called rescissions. The Senate will be voting on the President’s request to rescind money that Congress has already appropriated for International Aid.
 
If passed, these cuts would eliminate support for pregnant mothers and their children, emergency food, infectious disease prevention and opportunities for our human family to move out of poverty.
Your action is critically needed to move the Senate to push back and oppose canceling funding for these programs that would greatly affect Catholic Relief Services’ important work.
 
Over the last month, thousands of people around the country have raised their voices to preserve international poverty-reducing assistance from these cuts, with many more mobilizing to meet with, call, and email their senators during this critical week for action. Your voice can make the difference.
 
In solidarity with the Catholic Church, please help us convey our opposition to this rescission to senator Thom Tillis, who is sympathetic to Catholic Relief Services’ activity and may be persuaded to oppose the relevant bill, which has already been passed by the House. As this bill is required by law to be resolved by July 18th, now is the time to make calls and send emails to Senator Tillis. Here are two options that have been suggested. Please forward this on to others.

1) Action Alert

Using this alert will send a message to both NC Senators (Senators Tillis and Budd)

​2) Contact Senator Tillis

Email: Click on “email me”
Call: (202) 224-6342 (Washington DC Office)
Changing the subject line and putting your personal reason why it matters to you in the text box/email will have a greater impact and make it much more effective. Here are some words you can adapt, should you find them helpful. Feel free to use language from this CRS Backgrounder on Foreign Aid Freeze for more information. Please remember to add your personal “why it matters to me.”
SAMPLE:
Hi, my name is _____________ and I am a constituent. I live in __________ and I support Catholic Relief Services. I am deeply concerned about cuts to foreign assistance programs. These programs are saving lives and livelihoods all over the world. Cutting these life-affirming international assistance programs will put millions of lives at risk. For this reason, I am calling to urge Senator Tillis to oppose H.R.4, the Rescissions Act of 2025.
 
International humanitarian and development assistance is crucial for protecting life, upholding human dignity, and pursuing long-term solutions to the world’s toughest challenges. It is a small yet smart investment that fosters economic opportunity, promotes peace and projects to the world the common values this country holds dear. Reducing funding means fewer people will receive essential aid, increasing suffering and the need for help.
 
Please tell the administration to reverse terminations of CRS programs. Please oppose rescissions of all lifesaving and life-affirming programs and robustly fund poverty-reducing budget lines in the fiscal year 2026 appropriations.  
 
Thank you for your time, consideration, and leadership.

U.S. BISHOPS’ PRESIDENT REACTS TO PASSAGE OF ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL ACT

Reacting to the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Archbishop Broglio, president of the USCCB, lamented the great harm the bill will cause to many of the most vulnerable in society, making steeper cuts to Medicaid and clean energy tax credits, and adding more to the deficit.
“My brother bishops and I have repeatedly and consistently urged lawmakers to use the budget reconciliation process to help families in need and to change course on aspects of the bill that fail the poor and vulnerable. The final version of the bill includes unconscionable cuts to healthcare and food assistance, tax cuts that increase inequality, immigration provisions that harm families and children, and cuts to programs that protect God’s creation. The bill, as passed, will cause the greatest harm to those who are especially vulnerable in our society. As its provisions go into effect, people will lose access to healthcare and struggle to buy groceries, family members will be separated, and vulnerable communities will be less prepared to cope with environmental impacts of pollution and extreme weather. More must be done to prevent these devastating effects. 

“The Catholic Church’s teaching to uphold human dignity and the common good compels us to redouble our efforts and offer concrete help to those who will be in greater need and continue to advocate for legislative efforts that will provide better possibilities in the future for those in need.”

CONFRONTING CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM

HOW TO END CHRISTIAN NATIONALISM
Amanda Tyler

Our 2025 JPIC Lenten Book Study discussed Amanda Tyler’s book How to End Christian Nationalism. This book gives readers a better understanding of what Christian Nationalism is, how it is showing up in our daily lives, the harm it can cause, and how people of faith can combat its spread. 

If you believe Christians follow a gospel of love and not the idol of power, this might be the book club for you!

Online Summary/Praise for How to End Christian Nationalism

“A potent tool for taking action.” - Jemar Tisby
​
“An indispensable tool in renewing civic engagement and democracy.” - Anthea Butler
The essential guidebook for Christians alarmed by the rising tide of Christian nationalism yet unsure how to counter it.

Christian nationalism is a powerful and pervasive ideology, and it is becoming normalized. From Amanda Tyler, lead organizer of the Christians Against Christian Nationalism campaign, comes How to End Christian Nationalism, your vital companion for countering this dangerous ideology. Tyler draws on her experiences, conversations with pastors and laypeople, research, Scripture, her Baptist convictions, and her work as a constitutional law expert to help us confront Christian nationalist fervor.
You will learn how to distinguish Christian nationalism from the teachings of Jesus and to demonstrate how the former perpetuates white supremacy. This book also unpacks key truths we can share with others: Patriotism is not the same as nationalism. Religious freedom means little if it is not for everyone. Christians follow a gospel of love, not the idol of power.
 
Here, you will find stories of what Christians are doing to resist Christian nationalism in their churches and communities, plus ideas for your own work. From strategies for faith-rooted organizing to guidance for holding hard conversations with loved ones, Tyler offers practical ways to protect faith freedom for all. With precision and compassion, Tyler offers cogent arguments for the separation of church and state, a timely call to action, and an urgent case for replacing a twisted, fearful version of faith with one that is good and right and true. We have all seen what Christian nationalism can do. Now is the time for Christians to reckon with its harm. Now is the time to end it.

CIVILIZE IT - A BETTER KIND OF POLITICS

A polarized Church. A divided nation. Pope Francis calls for “a better kind of politics.” How will you respond? As Catholics, we take to heart Jesus’ invitation to follow the example of the Good Samaritan, who challenges us to “become neighbors to all” (no. 80). As a Church and a nation, we are polarized and divided. But as Pope Francis writes in Fratelli Tutti, we can seek “a better kind of politics, one truly at the service of the common good” (no. 154). We can see ourselves as members of one family. We can seek to encounter and to grow. We can identify common values. We can listen to understand. We can seek the truth together. We can jointly come up with creative solutions to the problems that face our world.
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Civilize It - A Better Kind of Politics USCCB Website
Civilize It - A Better Kind of Politics is a response to Pope Francis’ invitation. Join us to model this “better kind of politics.” Take the pledge below to commit to seeking the truth, building bridges, and finding solutions together that promote the common good. Individuals, families, and communities can participate.

Taking the pledge is just the first step. Additional materials can help us as we reimagine our way of being in the world. Begin today by loving God through encounter with a neighbor as a sister or brother.

I PLEDGE

CHARITY
  • To affirm through my words and actions the dignity of every person, each made in God’s image. Even those with whom I disagree are made in his image.
  • To respectfully listen in order to understand experiences different from my own.
CLARITY
  • To engage in critical examination to ensure that my perspectives are rooted in truth, that my sources of information are unbiased, and that I do not open myself to manipulation by partisan interests.
  • To form my conscience through prayerful reflection, study of scripture and Church teaching, and guidance from reputable experts.
  • To reflect on my own values and seek, with others, to identify shared values.
  • To be open to the process of dialogue that can require change of perspective—my own and others’—in service to the inviolable dignity of all and the common good.
CREATIVITY
  • To be a bridgebuilder who participates in constructive dialogue based in shared values, a mutual exchange of gifts, and the humility to together seek the good.
  • To see differences in perspective as opportunities for creative tension which can yield solutions for the common good.
  • To work with others in order to identify creative solutions rooted in our shared values.

RESOURCES TO BUILD "A BETTER KIND OF POLITICS"

THE CALL TO "A BETTER KIND OF POLITICS"

*For easier readability, you can click on the document images below to be taken to their PDF web links.

5 TIPS FOR "A BETTER KIND OF POLITICS" - POPE FRANCIS

*For easier readability, you can click on the document images below to be taken to their PDF web links.

FAITHFUL CITIZENSHIP: ELECTIONS

Catholic Social Teaching reminds us of the importance of active participation in public and political life. You may also find it helpful to reflect on our JPIC guide to the Themes and Principles of Catholic Social Teaching (CST). This call to community and promoting the common good requires prayer, education, discernment, and action.
The Gospel teaches us always to promote the dignity and sanctity of the human person, especially on behalf of the poor and most vulnerable. Our faith calls us to active participation in the election process. Voting is an essential way we can help to promote the Gospel’s call to work for justice and peace.

​The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops also offers resources on Catholic Social Teaching and periodically updates its "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship:" A Call to Political Responsibility guide.
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"Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship" USCCB Website
© All rights reserved.
If you have questions regarding our various JPIC ministries, please contact:
Kennith M. Chiha, Director of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation (JPIC)
Immaculate Conception Catholic Church - 901-A West Chapel Hill Street, Durham, NC 27701
(919) 682-3449 Ext. 293 - [email protected]
​
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