September 18, 2020

Inside this issue

• CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly

  CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly  
 
The House and the Senate were both in session this week as lawmakers made a last ditch effort to pass another COVID-19 aid package and fund the government before leaving Washington for election season.

House and Senate leadership remain divided over the amount Congress is willing to spend on another COVID-19 aid package. The House signaled they are unwilling to dip below $2.2 trillion, while the Senate remains steadfast in spending no more than roughly $800 million. House leadership cites the continued hardships facing millions of Americans who remain out of work during the pandemic for their multi- trillion-dollar package. Senate leadership contends that trillions of dollars appropriated have yet to be spent. 

The Federal Reserve fears that any economic gains experienced this summer could reverse course if Congress doesn't include additional stimulus funds. The Federal Reserve, in an attempt to keep the economic recovery from losing momentum, kept interest rates near zero on Wednesday. Many of the federal relief programs passed by Congress in the spring, including the Payment Protection Program and additional unemployment benefits, have been largely expended. Fears of a slowing economic recovery are justified by the stubbornly high unemployment rate.

It was reported that 860,000 new people applied for unemployment insurance last week, according to the Department of Labor. Additionally, 659,000 people applied for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, the program for self-employed and gig workers. Overall, the total number of people making continued claims for unemployment insurance is 29.7 million. While new claims have decreased from the all-time high levels of the spring, they still remain at record levels.

Exacerbating the economic crisis is the slew of natural disasters striking many parts of the country. Wildfires continue to devastate large swaths of the West Coast. Tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes, and there has been billions of dollars of damage. On the Gulf Coast, families are beginning recovery efforts after Hurricane Sally made landfall this week. More than 320,000 homes and businesses remain without power as of Friday. Catholic Charities agencies are in the thick of the recovery effort for families and communities devastated by these natural disasters. You can help those families impacted by the fires by donating here. You can help those families impacted by Hurricane Sally by donating here.

The onslaught of the pandemic, mixed with the natural disasters, is causing millions of families to struggle to meet their essential needs. Catholic Charities USA is calling on Congress to pass an aid package to assist these families as soon as possible. Tell Congress you stand with Catholic Charities and request they take swift action.

110th Anniversary Celebration for Catholic Charities
Please join us Friday, September 25, for a special Mass of  Thanksgiving celebrating Catholic Charities 110 years of responding to the needs of people across the United States.

The event will begin at 2:30 pm EDT with a welcome from Sister Donna Markham OP, President and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, followed by a message from Cardinal Luis Tagle, President Caritas Internationalis. A Mass, celebrated by Bishop Frank Dewane, Diocese of Venice, Florida, and Episcopal Liaison to Catholic Charities USA will broadcast from Epiphany Cathedral.

The events can be streamed live on the following links:
Facebook: [link removed]
YouTube: [link removed]
 
We look forward to having you join us as we mark 110 years of work to reduce poverty in America.

Census 2020
If you haven't responded already, please respond now, online at 2020Census.gov, by phone or by mail - or when a census taker visits. Your answers are protected and confidential, and it only takes a matter of minutes. If you have responded, you can promote the 2020 Census by making sure all of your family and friends are counted!  

Faith and the Common Good
As we celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, we continue to celebrate the gifts of all the members of our universal Church.  We also pray with our brothers and sisters as we join in ministries to be welcoming to everyone in our parishes and agencies.  As we celebrate this month, we offer a prayer to St. Laura Montoya, the first saint from Columbia.

Prayer for Mother Laura Montoya

Dear Lord,

Help me to be brave like Mother Laura and to  take on new challenges, especially those that will help other's experience God's love for them. Give me the courage to always defend those who are mistreated or excluded. Help me set an example of love for those around me in order to shine Christ's light. Mother Laura Montoya, pray for us.

Amen.

©University of Notre Dame

Trivia

Who was the first young Mexican-American to attend an all-white school in California?  

Please send your answers to [email protected]

On September 11th, the trivia question was, " What major Act was enacted on September 18, 1947?"

JoAnn Barbera from the Divine Providence Village in Norwood, Pennsylvania was the first to respond with the correct answer of the National Security Act of 1947.

The National Security Act of 1947 was a law enacting major restructuring of the United States government's military and intelligence agencies following World War II.    It also created the Department of the Air Force and the United States Air Force, which separated the Army Air Forces into its own service. Aside from the military reorganization, the act established the National Security Council and the Central Intelligence Agency, the U.S.'s first peacetime non-military intelligence agency.

Please share the weekly with your friends, family and networks so that we can build a movement of solidarity for those most in need!
You can also access advocacy opportunities through our advocacy and policy page.

Stay connected with our work to end poverty, follow us on Twitter at @CCharitiesUSA.

If you would like to help further Catholic Charities' commitment to alleviating, reducing, and preventing poverty you can contribute here.

Top

You are currently subscribed to a mailing list of Catholic Charities USA. If you wish to unsubscribe, please click here.