Newsletter Lent 2015

Middlesbrough

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE Lent Fast Day page 2

Surviving Extreme Weather

Kyin Nu’s Story page 3

One Climate:One World Page 4/7

General Election Page 8

Guiding Principles of

Catholic Social teaching Page 9

Hands On Kitui Page 10/11

News from around the

Diocese of Middlesbrough

Page 12/15

Weekly Prayers of

Intercession Page 16

CAFOD Quiz Page 17

Ebola update and Lenten resources

Page 18/19

“Speak out on

behalf of the voiceless, and

for the rights of all who are

Vulnerable. Speak out in

order to judge with

righteousness

and to defend the needy and

the poor” Proverbs 31:8-9

It makes a huge

difference to

people at Mass if

they can hear a

short talk from

someone during

Fast Day

weekend!

Will you speak out?

Kyin Nu on the front cover of our newsletter and on the right,

would love to tell people her story but she can’t tell it to

everyone herself. You can help get Kyin Nu’s story heard by

speaking on her behalf at Masses in your parish over Fast day

Weekend.

What’s more, telling Kyin Nu’s story could have a huge effect

on CAFOD’s Fast Day income this year. Every £1 that is raised

in parishes and schools will be doubled up to a limit of £3.6m.

With your help we can increase the support that we can give to

people like Kyin Nu. Her story is on the opposite page.

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Surviving Extreme Weather

Kyin Nu’s Story

58 year old Kyin Nu (pronounced Chin Noo) lives in a small village in Myanmar (formerly Burma). A few years ago, a huge storm ripped through her community. At 6pm that night, 400 women, men and children lived in her village. By 6am, the next morning, there were just 200 left. In the space of 12 short hours, Kyin Nu had lost everything. Her possessions– precious photographs of her family, hand-me–downs from her parents. GONE! The small bamboo home she slept in and used for her business. GONE! But worst of all, two of her children. GONE! This hardworking woman, who had dedicated her life and her efforts to her children had, through no fault of her own, lost everything. After the essential aid work was underway, your generous support helped Kyin Nu to pick up the pieces, with shelter and some chickens to make a living. But in the months following the disaster, the community’s farmland was flooded and their crops ruined by saltwater because the storm had destroyed all

their natural barriers. The villagers wanted to build a wall to protect their crop but they didn’t have the time to do so as they had to earn money to buy essentials such as food and clothing. Your support ensured the people were paid to build the barrier, this meant they could feed themselves immediately and make something vital that would save them in the long term. You also helped to train Kyin Nu and her neighbours to plant trees that would grow and form a storm wall to protect them from future cyclones. A changing climate and increasingly extreme weather have the biggest impact on those who are least able to cope but we can help our sisters and brothers around the world to adapt to their impact. Please give generously this Fast Day and Gift Aid your donation!

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One Climate : One World

CAFOD supporters from the York area and University of York came along to CAFOD’s Regional Launch of it’s One Climate One world campaign at York’s Council for Voluntary Services Priory Street Centre on Thursday 16 October 2014. We were really fortunate to have two of CAFOD’s partners from Peru with us. They told us of the impact that climate change is having on their communities. Jesy Romero, a water resource co-ordinator for the Peruvian Bishops Social Action Commission (CEAS). She co-ordinates a programme for just water distribution, told us “At CEAS I have seen from close up the marginalisation we work with who are

constantly defending their lands. I face the stark reality of dealing with environmental degradation which continues unabated and climate change which I have seen affecting the most vulnerable communities. We are called to continue to provide a human and just response in solidarity with our communities.

With my colleague Monica, I run workshops for the community on issues related to human rights; help people understand the laws governing indigenous communities; and model water resources and environmental protection practices. Latin America is one of the regions

most vulnerable to climate change, yet some people don’t know about the scarcity of water in Peru. My country has 70% of the world’s tropical glaciers, and in the region where I work I can see how they are melting at an alarming rate. The statistics are catastrophic; the Peruvian government says that by 2030, all the glaciers below 5,000 metres will have melted completely.

In addition to the water shortages, which come about because of the disappearing glaciers, there is also an increased risk of flooding, because the displaced ice from the mountains can crash into the lakes”. “We fear that at any moment there could be another avalanche, like the one in 1970 that killed many thousands of

people in my area”.

Jesy was accompanied on her visit by Adan Samuel Pajuelo Bula, a farmer from Cruz de Mayo, Peru said;

“Where I live and work, the mountain glaciers that we’ve always relied on for our water supplies are shrinking and disappearing.

CAFOD’s One Climate

One World Campaign gets off to a great start!

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Since the 1970s, 40% of the areas covered by glaciers have melted. These glaciers are the main source of water in Peru, so we’re desperately worried. The lack of water is wreaking havoc on our livelihoods, because lots of people like me depend on farming to survive.

In my village, the problems posed by the changing climate were only made worse by a hydroelectricity company who took control of our nearby lagoon. Sometimes they’d release huge amounts of water from the lagoon gates, flooding and destroying our crops, and sometimes they’d keep the gates closed for long periods, and our crops would wither and die. Eventually thousands of us marched to the lagoon and took back control. The company still owns the gates, but our community security guard Julio, holds the keys.

I can’t see how, with the changing climate affecting more poor rural communities like mine, we won’t have more conflicts like this, and it can be hard to know where to turn for help. For us, the Catholic Church is a source of great support. Over half the population here in Peru is Catholic, and many bishops and missionaries work at the grassroots. In our local community the Church has a very strong presence, and because we know it is always on the side of the poor, it’s well respected. What we hope for the UN Conference of Parties (or COP, as it is known) is that the public voice of the Catholic Church in Peru can influence the decisions of governance and help us raise awareness of how the changing climate is affecting us”.

You can help Adan and Jesy. Take CAFOD’s online action at cafod.org.uk/campaign Hold a campaign action card signing event in your parish Call 0303 303 3030 to order your campaign cards Contact your MP and ask him or her to play their part in combating Climate Change See overleaf to find out what CAFOD’s campaign is calling for …………………………….. “Creation is not a property, which we can rule over at will; or, even less, is the property of only a few: Creation is a gift, it is a wonderful gift that God has given us” Pope Francis

Adan Samuel Pajuelo Bula and Jesy Romero

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One Climate : One World

CAFOD’s Climate and Energy campaign

CAFOD’s campaign calls on

all UK party leaders to protect the most vulnerable people from

dangerous climate change

to improve access to sustainable energy.

each of us as individuals to commit to playing our own part by

taking action and living as sustainably as we can.

Together we’ve got the

power to tackle climate

change!

I will install solar

panels

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I will try to

save water and

electricity

Some of our for the love of pledges made

at our regional launch of One Climate One World

Why not do the For The Love Of

action in your parish community.

It’s a great way to encourage

people to think about the things

that they can do to make a

difference to climate change www.cafod.org.uk/campaign

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Whatever you do on the

7 May, make sure you

use your vote. And as the

election approaches put

your Parliamentary

Candidates under

pressure.

Caritas Social Action

Network and CAFOD have

come together to develop

four questions for you to ask

your candidates ahead of

the General Election on 7

May 2015.

Whether you are attending a

hustings meeting or

responding to canvassers on

your doorstep, the 2015

general election offers us an

opportunity to speak out against injustice with a united voice.

Questions for election candidates

Q1: What will you do to make work pay?

Q2: What will you do to guarantee access to a

genuinely affordable home?

Q3: What will you do to speak out for the poorest

and most vulnerable people around the

world?

Q4: What will you do to make tackling climate change

a priority and to prevent it pushing people deeper into poverty overseas Let us know which questions you asked and what the response was!

General Election 7 May 2015

?

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Guiding principles from

Catholic Social Teaching

As the general election draws near, it may be that you are confused about who to vote for. Below are some guiding principles from Catholic Social Teaching that may help to inform you in your decision.

Human Dignity Human life is sacred and that the dignity of the person is the foundation of a moral vision for society and the foundation of all principles of Catholic Social Teaching(CST) Community and the Common Good The person is not only sacred but also social. How we organize our society in terms of economics and politics, in law and policy directly affect human dignity. The role of government is to promote the Common Good.

Rights and Responsibilities Every person has a fundamental right to life and a right to those things required for human decency. Corresponding to these rights are our duties and responsibilities to one another. Option for the Poor and Vulnerable A basic moral test of our society is

how our most vulnerable members are fairing. CST instructs us to put the needs of the poor and vulnerable first. Participation All people have a right to participate in the economic, political and cultural life of a society. It is a fundamental demand of justice.

Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers The economy must serve people. If the dignity of work is to be protected, then basic rights of workers must be respected: right to productive work, decent and fair wages, to join trade unions and to private property. Stewardship of Creation We are called to protect people and the planet, living our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. Solidarity We are our brothers’ and sisters’ keeper, wherever they live. Solidarity means that loving our neighbour has

global dimensions in an interdependent world. Role of Government The state has a positive moral function. It is an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights and build the common good. It’s purpose is to assist citizens in fulfilling their responsibility to others in society.

Promotion of Peace Peace involves mutual respect and confidence between people and nations, collaboration and binding agreements. Peace is the fruit of justice and dependent upon right order among human beings

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Get Hands On Today by calling 0303 303 3030 or visit:

http://www.cafod.org.uk/Give/Donate-to-CAFOD/Hands-

On

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News from around the

Diocese of Middlesbrough

Young people organise a music and drama evening for Harvest Fast Day

young people from English Martyrs and St Hilda’s Parish held an evening of drama and music to raise awareness of the work of CAFOD as part of our Family Fast Day activities. Having met only twice for rehearsals, they rose to the occasion, telling the story of a young girl who had

been given £50.00 from her Grandad’s small lottery win. After being shown stories of children’s suffering in developing countries, she decided to donate all her money to help them. The young people told of the amount of food we waste in this country and of the problems families in poorer countries faced in feeding their children and themselves. All the

children came together to hold up CAFOD posters showing how even small amounts of donated money can help families in many different ways. The children were thanked by Father Pat for showing us all how lucky we are and how we can help to support those much poorer than ourselves.

They were delighted when the congregation of 60 parishioners donated over £250.00. We would like to thank them for giving their time and the enthusiasm they showed for the project. We would also like to thank the parishioners for their generosity.

Liz Atkinson, Parishioner

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St Peter’s Harvest

Bake Off!

Staff and pupils at St Peter’s RC College in South Bank enjoyed a suspended timetable to take part in a number of activities to raise funds for CAFOD’s Harvest fast day.

Students entered a bake off competition, selling home-baked goods from the following categories;

Desserts, savouries, snacks which were then sold to their peers who had to leave an evaluation of the goods they ate. The winning baker from each category will won a prize. A Year 7 settling in event after school was taking place so Year 7 students sold baked goods to their parents.

The Bake off raised £150 and winning bakers were Aimee (custard creams) Toby (Chocolate Brownies) and Shauna and Rachel (Corned Beef Pie). Different departments were each leading workshops with their groups. In R.E they were considering a world hunger recipe; in the English department they held a speaking and listening session to create a charity campaign.

The Maths department worked on a £1 a day budget plan while in P.E they undertook ‘a walk in their shoes’ that involved the students walking carrying a heavy load. This is to represent hardships experienced by a similar age group in different countries. In Food technology they were cooking recipes from Sierra Leone while in Geography the young people considered food intake in an MEDC compared with an LEDC. Even the staff in the school kitchens took part and provided a hunger lunch for volunteer students. Amy Glanville, Head of R.E at the school said “they all did well, we were so pleased”.

We think you are all pretty great – well done!

Do you have a small amount of free time that you feel you could offer to CAFOD? We need people who will help promote our work, raise funds for our projects, speak at Mass or visit schools, campaign and encourage others to do so, to be a CAFOD Parish Volunteer, Media or emergencies contact. We also have volunteering opportunities in our office in York - if you have a couple of hours to spare - we’d love to hear from you!

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Dignity in and out of work Where do you stand?

On 17 September 2014

around 100 people gathered

at Middlesbrough Community

Church to listen to people tell

of how living on a low income

impacts on them and their

families. The aim of the

events was to expel many of

the myths surrounding those

on low incomes or on

benefits.

The event was staged as a

partnership between CAFOD,

Caritas Middlesbrough, THRIVE

Teesside and Together

Middlesbrough.

People shared their experiences

of living on benefits, the impact

of benefit sanctions and the

bedroom tax. Others shared

about being in low paid work and

on zero hour contracts.

One of our local MP’s and a

Parliamentary candidate

attended the event, listening

very carefully to what people

had to say about their situation.

Here’s a few myths:

Myth

Two fifths of the entire welfare budget is spent on the unemployed

Fact

Only 3% of welfare expenditure is accounted for by Jobseeker’s Allowance of £72.40 per week.

Approx’ 50% spent on pensioners with the second largest chunk £9 billion going to private landlords!

Myth

People on benefits have an easy life opting to live on them as a lifestyle

choice.

Fact

Benefits have halved in value relative to average income over the last thirty years. The ill and the unemployed are the people least satisfied and happy with

life!

Myth There are families where four

generations have never had a job.

Fact Only 0.3% of UK households have two generations, let alone three or four that have never worked!

“What does grow bigger every day is the gap between rich and poor” Pope Paul VI

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Climate change, energy and hunger an

Ecumenical and Inter Faith Service

On 5th October 2014, Bishop

Terence Patrick Drainey made

the journey to Hull to preside at

our very first ecumenical and

inter faith Harvest Service at St

Charles Borromeo RC Church in

Hull city centre. He was joined

by Lord Mayor of Hull Mary

Glew and around eighty others

including friends from other

faiths.

CAFOD volunteers in Hull had

worked hard to produce a

liturgy for the service focussing

on climate change, energy and

hunger. The group concerned

also contacted churches and

schools in Hull asking them to

collect non perishable food

stuffs to be distributed to

foodbanks in the Hull area.

Needless to say the response was wonderful with schools and

parishes collecting a veritable mountain of food. For the first time

we were able to link poverty overseas with poverty here at home

and come up with a way of responding that raised awareness of

the issue of climate change and how it impacts on the poor

overseas along with how we need to recognise the poor on our

own doorstep and try to do something to alleviate their situation.

Thank you to everyone involved!

“This is what Yahweh asks of you, only this; to act justly, to love

tenderly and to walk humbly with your God”. Micah 6:8

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Weekly prayers of intercession for use in your parish or group during Lent

“Being church means being God’s people, in accordance with the

great plan of his fatherly love. This means we are to be God’s

leaven in the midst of humanity” (Pope Francis)

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One Climate : One World What do you know?

Why not ask your family and friends to do the following quiz or even have a CAFOD quiz night in your parish. It’s a great way to raise awareness of climate change. It’s fun too!

Q1. The energy we use at home accounts for what percentage of UK carbon emissions? Is it (A) 10% (B) 25% or (C) 45% Q2. If everyone in the world lived like we do, how many planets would it take to sustain us? (A) 3.4 (B) 3.6 or (C) 2.5 Q3. The energy saved by recycling aplastic bottle could power a 60 watt light bulb for (A) 20 minutes (B) 1 Hour or (C) 3 Hours? Q4. Who tweeted, “Care of creation is not just something God spoke of at the dawn of history: he entrusts it to each of us as part of his plan”? (A) The Archbishop of Canterbury (B) Pope Francis (C) Dermot O’Leary Q5. How many extra people in Africa will be at further risk of water stress in 2020 due to climate change? (A) 140 million people (B) 250 Million people (C) 320 million people or (D) 410 million people

Q6. What proportion of the world’s population have no access to electricity? (A) One in twenty (B) One in eight or (C) One in five Q7. How long does it take aplastic bag to decompose? (A) Ten years (B) 50 years (C) 100 years (D) 200 years Q8. Which is the first country in the world to make carbon emission cuts a legal requirement? (A) The UK (B) USA or (C) Germany Q9. According to Isaiah, which animals would eat together in God’s new heavens and new earth? (A) Lion and ox (B) Snake and frog (c) Wolf and

lamb Q10. Which of the following is a renewable energy source? (A) Coal power (B) Solar power (C) Gas power (D) Nuclear power We hope that you enjoyed taking our climate change quiz the full quiz and answers can be found at http://www.cafod.org.uk/Media/Files/Resources/Youth/Resource-pages/CAFOD-Youth-Quiz

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More work needed to reach zero new Ebola cases

Thanks to the money generously donated to our Ebola crisis appeal -

which raised over one million pounds - and funding from the Disasters Emergency Committee, our partners are scaling up distributions of food and household items to quarantined families, as well as outbreak prevention kits – made up of protective clothing, bleach and cleaning materials - to places of worship. We are also continuing the vital training of volunteers in spreading Ebola prevention messages within their communities. Catherine Mahony has been leading CAFOD's emergency response in Sierra Leone since October last year. She says there are signs that the number of cases is starting to reduce in Sierra Leone, but there is no room to be complacent. “CAFOD supporters and the British public have been outstanding in their generosity, allowing us to continue a range of activities for the poorest and most vulnerable affected by this appalling disease. We will be working flat out until there are no longer any new cases."

Thank you for your generous donations. Please continue to support us with your prayers and donations. You can donate at:

http://www.cafod.org.uk/Give

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CAFOD resources to help your Lenten preparations for

celebrating Easter

Stations of the Cross Lent 2015 These Stations of the cross enable us to meditate on Jesus’ journey to the Cross whilst reflecting on the lives of people who experienced Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar (Burma) in 2008. With the fiftieth anniversary of Second Vatican Council Pastoral Constitution, Gaudium et Spes, the text also reflects that document’s call to make our own the joys, hopes, griefs and anxieties of all the people of God. The stations can be downloaded from our

websitehttp://www.cafod.org.uk/pray Lent Calendar 2015: will guide you through Lent with daily Scripture reflections encouraging you to give, act and pray.

One Climate: One World A beautiful set of six cards with reflections and prayers on Creation; Faith and Climate Change; The Common Good; Who is my neighbour; The earth as neighbour; Christ as redeemer of all the earth. A great resource for individuals and groups. Can be downloaded from http://www.cafod.org.uk/Pray

Lent Fast Day Children’s Liturgy for use on 22 February 2015 A great resource for those leading children’s liturgy with prayers, Gospel reading, reflection and picture to colour. Download from www.cafod.org.uk/education

http://www.cafod.org.uk/Pray/Lent-Calendar-2015

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CAFOD Middlesbrough, 54 Blossom Street, York, YO24 1AP Tel: 0190 467 1767 E-mail: middlesbrough@cafod.org.uk Web: http://www.cafod.org.uk/ picture credits: David Cross; Ben White; Annie Bungeroth; Ruth Flores; CAFOD

Tuesday, 24 March 2015

is the 35th Anniversary of

martyrdom of Archbishop

Oscar Romero

Join us at 7.00pm at the

Endsleigh Centre,

Beverley Road, Hull to

commemorate the death

of Romero with Mass and

a showing of the film

“Romero”

All are most welcome!

“Romero was killed because of what he preached and what he said. But he never said anything that was not consistent with the Gospel and with the teachings of the church” (Bishop Ricardo Urioste)

Dates for your diary… 14 February—For the Love of Climate Change Action

27 February– Lent Fast Day—matched funding opportunity

10 March—University of York Question Time event 7.00pm, Heslington West, All welcome

7 May—General Election—use your vote wisely!

17 June—Speak up for the Love of—Climate Change Lobby

September - new global poverty targets set

December - UN Climate Summit

Climate change is the biggest threat to reducing poverty that exists today!