Reclaiming Social Justice Catholic Social Teaching Podcast

Juan Miguel Alvarez was born in Jalisco, Mexico, and raised in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He is the director of Haciendo Caminos, an initiative at the University of Notre Dame that seeks to identify and empower the next generation of Catholic Latino ecclesial leaders in the United States. He earned his B.A in theology and his M.Div. degrees from the University of Notre Dame. Juan Miguel previously ministered in the Archdiocese of Chicago for six years; his positions included director of faith formation at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church and theology teacher at St. Rita of Cascia High School and Cristo Rey Jesuit High School.

In this episode, we talk about the models of faith in his family, being the only Catholic at a protestant school, his education in theology and experience ministering in a church where everyone, regardless of their job title, was responsible for worship and justice work. He shares a powerful story of the parish’s response to gun violence and gang activity. We also get into the growth of the hispanic community in the united states and how the haciendo caminos initiative is trying to respond.

 


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In this episode, I speak with Ana Chavarin. Ana Chavarin is a member of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Tucson, Ariz., and formerly an organizer for Pima County Interfaith. During her over 10 year tenure as an oganizer, she was awarded the 2019 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award from the U.S. bishops’ Catholic Campaign for Human Development. In 2018 she won a US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) award for Hispanic Catholic Leaders and was also recognized by the Arizona Daily Star for her community achievements. Ana has helped the immigrant community address issues of community safety, drug abuse, rights of the undocumented, and how to become a citizen. Most recently she helped launch the first printing of parish identification cards in Tucson. In our conversation we talk about her religious upbringing and the influential roles her grandparents paid in her youth. Additionally, she shares the story of how she originally came to the United States. Other themes our conversation touch on includes the importance of getting involved in your community, speaking up when you see injustice, and not just that, taking concrete steps to change those conditions.


Learn more about the parish ID project here.
Want to connect with me? ReclaimingSJ@gmail.com
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In this episode, I speak with Isaac Cuevas. Isaac is the director of the Office of Immigration Affairs for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The Office of Immigration Affairs was created as part of Archbishop Gomez’ vision for helping parishes and people in the LA community with immigration issues. Hiis office has developed a network of community leaders that implement workshops, develop programs, and provide resources for the largest immigrant community in the country. In addition to community outreach, Mr. Cuevas works as an immigration advocate, serving as the voice for the Archdiocese among policy leaders and civil rights groups. Prior to this, he worked in the Entertainment industry making movies and television shows. In our conversation, we talked about walking away from his successful career in holywood. By listening to this episode you will hear the first person account of someone who works directly with migrant bus arrivals. We will talk about how the immigrant experience has changed over the decades and what Catholics should consider when thinking about this issue during the coming general election.


Learn more about Catholic Social Teaching on immigration here, here, here, and here.


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In this episode, you will meet William Becerra, the Bilingual Advisor for national Hispanic engagement with Catholic Relief Services. We talk about his upbringing in Colombia, his experience as a religious missionary, and more!


Word of the day: Discernment
Catholic Social Teaching Theme: Solidarity



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Today’s episode features a special guest, Jack Jezreel. If you a passionate social-justice-oriented Catholic, then you have probably heard of JustFaith. JustFaith Ministries creates transformative programs that inspire action to address the root causes of injustice while serving with love. Jack is the founder of JustFaith Ministries and was the first Executive Director of the organization. Jack is a popular speaker and author of the book, A New Way to Be Church: Parish Renewal from the Outside In. His work now focuses on presentations, workshops and training to introduce JustFaith programs and local leadership & networking.



Word of the day: Love

Catholic Social Teaching Theme: Option for the poor



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Ever wonder, what, if anything, do Catholic seminarians learn about social justice? Tune in to this episode to find out. You might be surprised at the answer!



Themes from the interview that connect to the themes of Catholic Social Teaching:


The universal destination of goods
Right to private property
Subsidiarity





Word of the day: Distributism



Source: Does the Church Teach Distributism? By Dr. Jared Staudt



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