July 8, 2022

Inside this issue

• CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly
• Faith and the Common Good
• Trivia
• Connections

  CCUSA Presents the Washington Weekly  
 
Overview: Yet another mass shooting, this time in Highland Park, Ill., underscores the need for conversion in our society. Given the violence and division in the public square, how can we contribute to positive change? The answer comes through both prayer and action, as Pope Francis reminds us when he recommends for our imitation the Blessed Mother, "the woman of prayer and work," who combines contemplation with concern for others (Evangelii Gaudium, No. 288). The Catholic Charities ministry is well-suited for such prayerful engagement through its local agencies and social programs that come to the aid of people who need everything from the basic necessities to whole life services, which help individuals and families live according to their God-given dignity.

This painting titled "Windsock Visitation," created by Oblate Brother Mickey McGrath, depicts the joyful encounter in St. Luke's Gospel between Mary and Elizabeth. (CNS photo/courtesy Oblate Brother Mickey McGrath) 

Action Alert: The CCUSA Advocacy and Social Policy team sent out an action alert today asking people to urge Congress to support low-income families and individuals in the final reconciliation bill by including the following provisions: 

Housing/rental assistance
Fully refundable child tax credit prioritizing the most vulnerable
Child care and early education supports
Fix the Medicaid coverage gap
Support for home and community-based care for seniors and persons with disabilities

Economy: In the week ending July 2, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial [unemployment] claims was 235,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 231,000. The 4-week moving average was 232,500, an increase of 750 from the previous week's unrevised average of 231,750. Employers added 372,000 jobs during June.

Immigration: The 6th Circuit Court of Appeals in Arizona v. Biden said on Wednesday that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) should not have been blocked from implementing a memo that directed immigration agents to make case-by-case determinations on who to target for arrest and deportation. The memo said that immigration agents should focus their efforts on those migrants who pose a national security or public safety threat. The states of Arizona, Ohio, and Montana maintained that picking and choosing who to detain would ultimately lead to public safety threats and costs to the states.

However, in a separate case, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a conflicting ruling on Thursday. In Texas v. United States, Louisiana and Texas asked the district court to issue a preliminary injunction to block the implementation of the DHS memo because its implementation would burden their states with increasing costs for incarceration, public education and healthcare. The lower court agreed and temporarily blocked DHS from enforcing the memo while the case plays out in court. DHS appealed the decision to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld the lower court's decision.

Given the conflicting decisions in both circuits on the same issue, it is likely the U.S. Supreme Court will weigh in to resolve the conflict.

DACA: The likelihood of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy (DACA) continuing became less certain this week when federal appeals court  judges in New Orleans seemed unconvinced by the Justice Department's argument for keeping it active. President Barack Obama created DACA by executive action in 2012, allowing those migrants brought to the U.S. as children to remain in the country, obtain work permits, and receive health insurance from employers who offer it. The protection lasts for two years and is renewable. However, no new applications are being accepted while the fate of the policy is in the hands of the court system.
 
Top

  Faith and the Common Good  
 
The gospel for Mass this Sunday (15th Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 10, 2022) is the very familiar story of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:25-37). In fact, it's so familiar we may forget that it was born of confrontation, not on the part of Jesus but on the part of the scholar of the law.

We hear that this scholar stands up to "test" Jesus. The original Greek word for "test" used here in chapter 10 (ekpeirazō) is an intensified form of the same word used by the devil who "tests" Jesus in chapter 4 (peirazō). Needless to say, this does not put the scholar in good company, but it does reveal his intention. He wants to take Jesus down; he wants to demonstrate that Jesus is not true to the law.

The scholar, however, fails to appreciate two things: First, he is not confronting some amateur interpreter of the law in Jesus; he stands before the Lawgiver Himself. Second, the scholar does not understand how faulty his own interpretation of the law is. Still, the conversation doesn't seem so bad at first.

The scholar asks what one must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus answers with his own questions: "What's written in the law? How do you read it?" Jesus could have pointed out the implied self-sufficiency in the scholar's question-the notion that one can do something to earn salvation-but he gives the scholar the benefit of the doubt and waits to hear his response.

The scholar's answer is correct, technically speaking. He does not simply repeat the 10 commandments; he goes immediately to the heart of the matter and summarizes the entire law in terms of love-love of God and love of neighbor-the same words that Jesus would use. It seems the scholar has done his homework.

But the scholar's interpretation of the words he uses, how he reads the law, is immediately suspect when he asks his next question: "And who is my neighbor?"

The scholar knows that the law-narrowly interpreted-extends the title "neighbor" only to fellow Jews. His question is meant to stir up controversy and to set limits on love, which he does not extend to Jesus, even though Jesus, a Jew, is his neighbor. We learn from this that the scholar may be able to talk about the law and give correct answers, but his understanding needs deepening.

Jesus, despite the hostility aimed at him, continues the conversation with the famous story of the Good Samaritan.

The icon of the Good Samaritan hangs next to the entrance of the chapel in the office of Catholic Charities USA, Alexandria, Va. (Photo by Elias Kontogiannis)

The story begins with the poor victim beaten almost to death and left on the side of the road. The first person to come down the road is a priest-an expert in the law-and the law says that he cannot touch a dead person. So, to be safe, he does not go near the man, he does not investigate, he isn't even moved to see if anything can be done. He decides to pass by on the far side of the road.

Next comes the Levite, also of the priestly class at that time, and also knowledgeable about the law. He makes the same choice as the priest; he passes by as far away as possible, to be safe and to keep the law.

Now, the listeners of Jesus would have expected the third person to come along in the story to be a layperson, which would lead to the crushing conclusion by the storyteller indicting the scholar and priests and the experts of the law of getting bogged down in minutiae while a regular Jew, abiding by the spirit of the law, cares for the victim.

But Jesus upsets the expectations of everyone. He says that the third person coming down the road is a Samaritan, a hated enemy of the Jews and not someone to be portrayed in a good light, according to the customs of the time. To appreciate the shock value of Jesus' words, it would be like someone saying to us in our day that a "Good Terrorist" came to the rescue. Moreover, by making the third person a Samaritan, Jesus changes the conversation from an intramural fight into an opportunity to fully appreciate God's commandment to love.

Everyone should be challenged by Jesus' words; and they are challenging. Consider again what the Samaritan does: he sees the same sight as the priest and Levite, but instead of moving away, he is moved with deep compassion. The Samaritan moves closer to the victim, not further away; he tends to the victim's wounds, places him on his donkey, puts him up in an inn, continues to care for him, pays the innkeeper, and promises to come back to pay for any extra expenses.

And he does all this knowing that, as a Samaritan, he may receive from the victim-especially if the victim is a Jew-not gratitude, but retaliation.

What the Samaritan does is extravagant, over-the-top, Christ-like charity, and again, it is meant to challenge every listener to consider how seriously one receives and practices God's commandment of love. 

Part of Jesus' point is that if the understanding of the law prevents the priest and Levite from helping a dying man, then there is something wrong with that understanding. Jesus has no problem with the law. He has no problem with the scholar's first answer: that the law is summed up in love of God and neighbor. What Jesus has a problem with is interpreting the law to protect oneself, to set up limits to keep oneself safe and comfortable.

The question "Who is my neighbor?" can be used to absolve oneself from extending love to a lot of people, if understood narrowly. That's why Jesus offers a better question: Which of the three was neighbor to the victim?

If the fulfillment of the law is love, then each precept needs to be interpreted with love in mind. In other words, the question is not "who is my neighbor?" but "how can I be a good neighbor to the person in front of me at this moment?" It's not always an easy question to answer, but Jesus points us in the right direction.
 
Top

  Trivia  
 
Q. What event related to Independence Day happened on this day (July 8) in 1776 in Philadelphia?

Please send your answers to [email protected].

Last week's question and answer:

Q. What event with world-wide significance took place on July 1, twenty-five years ago?

A. This one stumped everybody. The answer: Hong Kong reverted back to Chinese rule.
 
Top

  Connections  
 
Please share the weekly with your friends, family and networks so that we can build a movement of solidarity for those most in need!

Be sure to text "CCUSA" to #50457 to receive our action alerts! 

You can also access advocacy opportunities through our advocacy and policy page.

Stay connected with our work to end poverty: Follow us on Twitter: @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.