Development and Peace
Saint Vincent de Paul 
Pastoral Council  
Pro-Life  
Bereavement  
Prayer Line  
St. Martin de Porres Social Justice Committee  

The members of the St. Martin de Porres Social Justice Committee also form the Development and Peace Committee of St. Peter's Parish.  Our parish affiliation with the Canadian Organization for Development and Peace enables us to keep issues of justice, promoted and sponsored by our Canadian Catholoic Bishops, at the forefront of parishioners consideration.  In this way the parish is able to participate in the ongoing education programs, development needs and the annual Share Lent Campaign. 

Contact:  Erma Weernick
 

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a lay Catholic organization whose mission is to live the Gospel message by serving Christ in the poor with love, respect, justice and joy. The St. Vincent de Paul Society provides outreach in our parish neighbourhood through monthly visits to clients in need and providing food and household goods. Opportunities are also available for volunteers to work at the St Vincent de Paul Store on MacEwan Street in Goderich, ON.  Please visit our website: www.svdpgoderich.ca
 

Contact: Patricia Clifford
Store Located at 441 MacEwan St., Goderich, ON
Phone: 519-524-1087

Witness and Invitation by Bridget

 Being Catholic did not make me pro-life.  Science and basic human rights is what makes me pro-life.   Scientists around the world almost unanimously agree that human life begins at the moment of conception.  Basic human rights say we should protect and respect that life until natural death regardless of age, physical or mental capabilities.

 No, my faith did not make me pro-life, but being pro-life has deepened my faith and given me new respect for the teachings of the Catholic Church.

 When working in the pro-life movement one cannot help but see the pain and heartache in the lives of others.  Teen mothers, young women abandoned by partners unwilling to raise a child, women riddled with the guilt of aborting their child, the handicapped whose lives are deemed unworthy even of birth, the old and sick regarded as burdens on society.

 That is why a large part of being pro-life is not only in showing others how eliminating life through abortion and euthanasia will not take away their pain but in also trying to educate people to a lifestyle where these choices become less necessary and hopefully unthinkable.

 We try to impress upon teens that no sex is the only safe sex.   Numerous studies have shown an increase in STI’s, teen pregnancy and abortion rates where safe sex has been taught.   Due in part, to a phenomenon known as risk compensation, meaning that when one uses a risk-reduction ‘technology’ such as condoms, one often takes greater chances than one would take without them.

 We encourage couples to wait until they are in a committed relationship before having sex and to stay faithful to that one partner.  We teach that pregnancy is a natural result of sex and that if a couple wants to be in an intimate relationship they should be prepared that it may result in the creation of a new human life.  A life that should be loved and respected regardless of its capabilities.  In a 2011 survey done by the American Journal of Medical Genetics in which thousands of  parents, siblings and individuals with Down’s Syndrome themselves were questioned, it was found that 99% of down syndrome individuals were happy with their lives, far above the average, yet, 9 out of 10 children diagnosed with Down’s Syndrome before birth will be aborted.

 Some pro-life organizations work strictly with women or men looking for healing and forgiveness after an abortion.  Others work on bringing respect and dignity to the handicapped, aged and dying.  Advocating for loving and compassionate end of life care over offers to kill.

 After years of promoting these lifestyle choices I finally came to the realization that it is exactly these same choices or values that the Catholic Church has been teaching for over two thousand years.  Laws set down for us by a loving God who wants us to live full and happy lives. 

 No, you do not have to be religious to be pro-life but it is hard not to see the loving hand of God involved in the pro-life movement.  The awesome wonder of the developing unborn child, the healing after an abortion so many women find only when they come to the realization of a loving and forgiving God, the dozens of abortion facility workers who have left their jobs to join the pro-life cause drawn by the humility and kindness of those praying outside their doors.   Unwed mothers given dignity and a chance for a new life, the peace and happiness in those shown love and compassion in their old age and fragility.   And the hope in those who have found respect in the ones they find hardest to love, themselves.

 Please support your local pro-life organization with your prayers and your membership.  We ask for $25 for a family membership, $20 for individuals and $20 for senior couples, but if that’s too much we will gladly accept any offering you can make, and if you’d like to give more we’ll accept that too.  Please make out any cheques to Goderich & District Pro-life, slip it in an envelope marked pro-life along with your name and address and email if you like, drop it in the offertory basket or leave it in one of the baskets at the back of the church.

Contact: Bridget Van Osch

Contact: Jackie Simpson

We became a "Ministry" in October of 2008 with the mandate to pray for the healing of the sick. We commit to setting aside some time, hopefully daily, to pray for those whose names appear on our "PrayerLine". We are asked to pray for these people by the person concerned or by family, friends, etc., with the persons permission.

As they occur, additions, deletions and updates are sent out to those who have committed to this Ministry. 

The Prayer Line Group has set-up an email account.  If you wish to have members added to the Prayer Line list for prayers or individuals removed from the Prayer Line, you may now email your request to the following email address:  [email protected]

New members are always welcome. Please contact the Parish Office if you would like to become a part of this very special, personal Ministry.

Social Justice is the work of every baptized person.  By social justice we mean changing policies, structures, and institutions so they work on behalf of the common good.  The core planning group gets things started for the parish, provides opportunities for all parishioners to get involved, constantly visits with members of the community to surface issues, and organizes them for actions that lead to effective social change.  The public life of the parish is just as essential as the inner life of the parish.  At every level – internal and external – we seek to develop just processes and policies to govern ourselves. 

This little statement is taken from the Diocese of Buffalo on the importance of a Social Justice Committee in the Parish 

We have heard a great deal of information through public media about the refugee crisis not only in Syria, but in many places across the world.

Parishioners are wondering what we are going to do to help alieviate the suffering of the refugee.  Our Social Justice committee met to deal with this very topic. Unfortunately, we do not have sufficient personnel/volunteers to take on the responsibility of sponsoring a refugee family.  We recognize that we have sufficient resources.  There are many parishioners willing to donate resources, but we are lacking in consistent and long-term leadership.

That does not mean we do nothing. We will continue to look for volunteers and individuals willing to take on roles of leader, coordinator and organizer.  The community of Goderich and the other Christian Churches of Goderich are beginning to work together in this time of crisis.  With them there are many ways that we can participate in changing the lives of those who are suffering.

You ask: What can I do this very minute to help?

1) The very first thing we can do is educate ourselves about the global refugee crisis.  Click Here to Begin

2) Purchase Fair Trade products through our Social Justice committee.  All proceeds will provide aid to refugees through the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace.

3) Join an organization that is already working with refugees from Syria as well as the neighbouring countries of Syria and Jordan.  Good organizations are in existence, let us join them in our spiritual and material support.

4) Take political action.  Right now Development and Peace has an online petition that you can sign requesting that the Government of Canada take a more active role in its foreign aid policy in light of this expancing crisis.

Start Reading Now

These links will help you find a way to support our brothers and sisters who are refugees.

Begin Here:  This is an update on what has happened in the past four years.

• Crisis in Syria: Giving Hope Through Solidarity

Sign the Petition to the Prime Minister of Canada: Peace in Syria

What should I know about the crisis in Syria?

Visit and read from Caritas Syria