INTRODUCTION TO CHRISTIAN SERVICE LEARNING 2023-2024
Welcome to our Christian Service Learning Program. This website has been updated to reflect the changes necessitated due to the pandemic.
As Catholic Christians, we seek to follow Christ, to be like Him in our hearts and minds so that His love flows through us to all we meet. When we participate in this call, we grow in holiness and our relationship with God. When our love is connected to the love that God has for us, and when we share that with others, we are building the Kingdom of God announced by Jesus.
"For I was hungry and you gave me to eat..." Matthew 25:42. Many of the ways in which we serve are called the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy (caring for the daily physical and spiritual needs of others) and are found in the words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 25. Our call to serve others, especially the poorest and most vulnerable among us flow from this Scripture:
Below you will find references to our Catholic teachings and understandings which inform the way we serve as followers of Christ. These references will provide you with the framework for service that is rooted in Catholic theological reflection and contemporary realities of our world today. Many of the references are found on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website (www.usccb.org) whose headquarters is located in Washington, D.C. You may be asked by your Religion teacher to read up about a particular concept, issue or teaching. Of particular note is the new section on Intercultural Competencies and its 5 modules for training and educating ministers.
USCCB ISSUES AND ACTION
A new evangelization is synonymous with mission, requiring the capacity to set out anew, go beyond boundaries and broaden horizons. The new evangelization is the opposite of self-sufficiency, a withdrawal into oneself, a status quo mentality and an idea that pastoral programs are simply to proceed as they did in the past. Today a “business as usual” attitude can no longer be the case. Some local Churches, already engaged in renewal, reconfirm the fact that now is the time for the Church to call upon every Christian community to evaluate their pastoral practice on the basis of the missionary character of their program and activities.
-Synod of Bishops XIII Ordinary General Assembly, The New Evangelization for the Transmission of Christian Faith, Lineamenta, #10, www.usccb.org
USCCB Issues and Action Overview
USCCB Issues and Action: Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship
USCCB Issues and Action: Faithful Citizenship Questions for Reflection
USCCB Issues and Action: Overview of Using Guidelines for Intercultural Competencies
USCCB Issues and Action: Cultural Diversity Intercultural Competencies Modules
USCCB Issues and Action: Cultural Diversity Summary Report 2016 (89 pages)
Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Ethnic Ministry (Ethnic Liturgies and Communities)