Campus Ministry is committed to Social, Racial, and Climate Justice. There are a number of different justice issues where you may feel called to learn more and engage in solidarity and activism. We in Campus Ministry are committed to empowering you in fostering the "faith that does justice" as well as connecting you with opportunities to balance action and reflection, both within and outside the Santa Clara University community.
Anti-Racism Resources
It is our goal as Campus Ministry, to gather across differences to worship, pray, and celebrate together as a community of diverse religious, spiritual and secular traditions. We have heard the pain and anguish present in our Black community in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and many other Black Americans. We recognize that Campus Ministry has not always been a place of welcome that we hope it would be for our diverse Santa Clara community. We want to publicly state that we are committed to being a spiritual and physical home where people are welcomed and celebrated.
We, in Campus Ministry, are in the active process of discerning what is needed. We are attentive to the work of the Spirit as it calls us individually and as a team to further justice and equity. We hope to continue this work by listening to the stories of our BIPOC voices on campus and around the nation. Through engagement with Campus Ministry, we hope that students, staff, faculty, and alumni will be better equipped to discern their needs and the needs of the community as we accompany one another on the path to a more just world.
Campus Ministry is engaged in the work of transforming our hearts and communities. Our personal and departmental transformation occurs in tandem with Santa Clara’s commitment to being an anti-racist university. Our Jesuit, Catholic identity informs our commitment to create a space where all are welcomed, recognizing that every member of our community is created in the image and likeness of God. We acknowledge that this will require on-going work as transformation is an active and on-going process that requires individual and communal participation. Our own hearts have been transformed by our conversations, educational programs, diverse liturgies, and continued collaborations with student organizations, departments on campus, and local community members. We recognize our transformation is unceasing and pray that it is ever-increasing.
We hope to join you on your own journeys’ of transformation, and invite you to influence ours.
Equal Justice Initiative
Bryan Stevenson
Ignatian Solidarity Network
Civic Engagement
Created by the US/Canada Jesuit Conference, the Ignatian Guide to Civic Engagement is a reflection on how our faith and Ignatian values might guide our pursuit of the common good in the public square.
Ignatian Guide to Civic Engagement
Voting Guidelines
The Unites States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) has a curated list for Catholics to consider during an election year. Check out their English and Spanish Guides:
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
Migration
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued continued statements on the injustice to migrants along the USA/Mexico border and in the United States, in strong support of Dreamers and DACA and decrying the human rights violations, trafficking and slavery associated with migration in the US and around the world. In his annual message, Pope Francis states "God's plan is essentially inclusive and gives priority to those living on the existential perpheries. Among them are many migrants and refugees, displaced persons, and victims of trafficking."
The Santa Clara University Undocumented Students and Allies Association is a supportive network of SCU allies advocating for undocumented students and mixed-status families who are impacted by unjust policies in the United States. Their goals include connecting undocumented students and students from mixed-status families to support systems, educating the SCU community about migration-related issues and ways to get involved, and fostering a community that emphasizes empowerment and solidarity.
A community center of the Santa Clara University School of Law, the KGACLC provides pro bono legal representation to low income individuals in the areas of consumer law, immigration law, workers’ rights and certain tax-related matters, and helps low income individuals understand and enforce their legal rights; The center increases community awareness about consumer law, immigration law and workers’ rights and effects social change by working with legislators and law reform committees to improve the rights of low-income individuals.
Kino Border Initiative is a Jesuit apostolate advocating for "humane, just, workable migration" along the Arizona/Sonora border. SCU's Ignatian Center provides student immersion experiences at Kino Border Initiative to learn about their mission to "respond to the most critical needs by respecting the God-given dignity of the human person and by fostering bi-national solidarity through humanitarian assistance and holistic accompaniment of migrants, education and research/advocacy."
Spectrum
Campus Ministry commits to advocating and fostering a Safe Space for students, faculty, and staff. With this commitment, we affirm all persons within the LGBTQ+ community and celebrate how they contribute to our mission. We believe our Jesuit and Catholic identity compel us to listen, accompany, and support all persons in their holistic, authentic self.
Physically located in the lower level of Benson Memorial Center, and is a program that operates out of the Office for Multicultural Learning.
A Catholic outreach that educates and advocates for equity, inclusion, and justice for LGBTQ+ persons, equipping leaders to build bridges of dialogue within the Church and civil society.
By Fr. James Martin, SJ
Fr. James Martin, S.J., asks his audience to bridge the chasm between the church’s response to its L.G.B.T. members and the rejection and hurt that response has caused.
Climate
Laudato Si': On Care for our Common Home
Pope Francis made history within the tradition of Catholic Social Teaching in 2015 when he promulgated this encyclical focused on the environment. It represents a contemporary, comprehensive reflection on "integral ecology" where he synthesizes the Church's teaching on creation from scriptural, theological, socio-economic, environmental, and spiritual perspectives. The encyclical is a call to action addressed to "every person living on this planet."
SCU tUrn Project
SCU tUrn is an interdisciplinary collaborative extending an invitation to all members of higher education institutions and partner networks, alumni & community members to lean into the climate crisis with urgency, creativity, and efficacy. Two key weeks of SCU tUrn engagement happen annually in October and April.
SCU Land Acknowledgement
We acknowledge that SCU sits on the land of the Ohlone and Muwekma Ohlone people, who trace their ancestry through the Missions Dolores, Santa Clara, and San Jose. Daily, we must acknowledge and remember their connection to this region and give thanks to them for allowing us to live, work, learn, and pray on their traditional homeland, not only here but across the United States by all Native American people. Please take a moment of silence to pay respect to their Elders and to all Ohlone people of the past and present.
