Structures of grace : Catholic organzations serving the global common good / Kevin Ahern.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ahern, Kevin, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Church work--Catholic Church.

Church work.

Catholic Church--Charities.

Catholic Church.

Charities.

Common good--Religious aspects--Catholic Church.

Common good.

Physical Description:

xii, 217 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Maryknoll, New York : Orbis Books, [2015]

Summary:

In his encyclical Sollcitudo rei socialis ("On Social Concerns," 1984) Pope St. John Paul II wrote of "structures of sin" and how Christian solidarity held the key to confronting them. In Structures of Grace Kevin Ahern profiles successful Catholic organizations from around the globe that embody Christian solidarity by addressing the urgent human issues of our day: immigration and human rights: healthcare and housing; food, agriculture, and water; war, peace, and reconciliation. In telling the stories of organizations such as Jesuit Refugee Service, the Young Christian Workers, Plowshares, and Network, Dr. Ahern sheds light on the mission, theology, and outreach of hundreds of such organizations, offering church professionals, students, educators, and volunteers a directory of grace at work in the world today. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I The Experience of Christian Social Movements Today

Chapter 1 Voices in the Wilderness: Christian Social Movements in a Globalized World 11

Another World Is Possible 13

Mediating the Global Common Good 22

Christian Social Teaching from Below 25

Christian Social Movements: In Search of a Definition 28

A Church in Transition 35

Looking Ahead 38

Chapter 2 Jesuit Refugee Service: A Movement at the Margins 41

Concern for the Marginalized and the Jesuit Mission 43

JRS: A New Apostolic Initiative 47

JRS Identity, Mission, and Organization 56

Chapter 3 Young Christian Workers: A Movement from the Margins 63

The YCW and Specialized Catholic Action 66

International Movements of Specialized Catholic Action 68

A Movement Divided 74

The Jocist Mystique 77

YCW Identity, Mission, and Organization 82

Chapter 4 Plowshares: A Movement Crying Out from the Margins 85

An Innovative Movement 87

A Prophetic Mission of Disarmament 91

Plowshares and the Catholic Peace Movement 97

Plowshares Identity, Mission, and Organization 100

Part II Theological Considerations-Mission, Charism, and Grace

Chapter 5 Christian Social Movements and the Church's Justice Mission 109

Educators Not Actors: The Distinction of Planes Model 112

Mission as Liberating Service of the Reign of God 114

Mission, Justice, and the New Evangelization 118

Mission as Prophetic Dialogue 121

Structures of the Church in Pursuit of Justice 124

Chapter 6 Structures of Grace 125

God's Grace and Social Tansformation 127

Structures of Grace in Opposition to Structures of Sin 130

Structures of Charity and Solidarity 136

Structural Embodiments of Charisms 138

Toward a Theology of Social/Structural Grace 141

Part III Discerning God's Spirit In Action-Identity, Mission, And Organization

Chapter 7 Always in Need of Reform: The Need for Communal Discernment 145

Discernment of Spirits: A Challenge for Christian Social Movements 148

Movement Discernment and the Wider Church 152

Discerning the Dangers of Identity, Mission, and Organization 155

Discerning the Effects of Grace 165

Chapter 8 Conclusion: Movement Self-Care 171

Resources for Mission 176

Movements of the Reign on Good 186.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781626981201

1626981205

OCLC:

891609550