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April 6, 2008 Cathedral of the Assumption, discussion on poverty. Ron Crouch, U of L researcher on Urban Systems, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, Sister Mary Kathleen Sheehan, SCN


As many of you know, St. John Center which is located at corner of Clay & E. Muhammad Ali Blvd. has been in service to Homeless men since April 14, 1986.

Some of you may be wondering why men & not women. Space is the biggest reason.

Everyone agreed back then after a year long study that a day center was needed for the homeless after they leave the night shelters to keep them from walking the streets during the day. But no one wanted it near their establishment. Thanks to the late Fr. Vernon Robertson, who was administrator of St. John Church at the time, had the compassion and the foresight to offer the church as the new center.

The Archdiocese leased building for a $1 a year and in 1999 sold it to St. John’s for the same price. While St. John’s is no longer a church, it is a daily sanctuary opened 7 days a week from 7 am to 3 pm and where we encounter the Living Christ by providing peace and an affirming place for homeless men living on the streets or leaving night shelters early each morning. After the men sign in, they have access to hot shower, hot coffee, phone, fax & mail service and many other services. By reaching out with these basic needs the staff begins to develop relationships that support and encourage men to move from crisis to stability.

For a brief time back in the 80’s, homelessness was in front of us daily. It was the cover story in many newspapers and magazines. Then in the 90’s we started reading, “Battle Fatigue Saps Troops Fighting To Aid The Homeless and Poor, Cities Are Acting Out Of Frustration And Desperation.”

My experience over the years has been as a nation we do well responding to today’s catastrophes BUT if they linger on and one, we tune them out and move onto the next one. Katrina disaster is a good example of that. As you know many are now homeless and poorer than before the tragedy. What so many of us could have done with the monies wasted with hundreds & hundreds of trailers sitting idle while people were begging for shelter.

Can you image living each day without an address or a home? Not having an ID? Not having access to a phone or a place to receive mail or searching for shelter from the heat, rain or bitter cold. If anyone would ask or guests coming in daily what they wanted to be when they grew up, not one of them would tell you, “I want to be homeless & poor, I want to be mentally ill or a substance abuser, I want to be a disabled veteran.”

The hopelessness associated with poor education, no job skills, working two or three jobs and receiving minimum wage with no benefits, no health insurance, the many well paying jobs being outsourced to other countries are just a few of the real weapons of mass destruction that lead so many to our doors. And they are getting younger & younger. We are now seeing young men who were school age when homelessness became a critical national issue in the 80’s or who have aged out of the foster care system. I refer to them as “Yesterday’s Children.”

When we as a nation turn our backs on our children they feel written off and see no hope. If they are not shown continued love and support as they are growing, they feel afraid, confused as to where to go and what to do and eventually are living on the streets and succumb to drugs, alcohol or criminal activity.

These are the kinds of struggles that the homeless face daily who come to St. John’s asking for assistance or who come in just to feel safe. Many of the men we see have been disconnected from family and the basic necessities of life due to struggles with alcohol, drugs and mental illness. Some have experienced abuse, neglect or abandonment as children and are still wrestling with the effects of those experiences. We also have seen men who had it all, successful business, beautiful home and family, cabin cruiser, lived the American dream and lost it all due to a tragedy that they were not able to over come and tell you, “I never thought I would end up in a place like this.”

St. John’s is blest to have dedicated staff of 13 and over 100 volunteers who come daily to help us to provide a safe environment, nurture trust with the men to try and help them put their life back on track.

St. John’s has evolved significantly over the years to meet the growing need. In addition to providing day shelter, we provide a recovery program for men addicted to drugs and alcohol in collaboration with St. V.de P., JADAC and Phoenix Health Center. The program works with ten men at a time providing transitional housing up to 18 months while the men recover from their addiction, obtain a steady income, increase their job and life skills and improve their physical and mental health. Upon completion of the program, they move to permanent housing, leaving homlessness for good. The housing case management program has placed men in stable housing. St. John’s partners with the men as they learn to live independently. Our social worker helps them with grocery shopping, budgeting and other life skills. We provide space to Legal Aid Society, Veterans Affairs and Seven Counties Outreach Team for guests to access mainstream social services.

We sign in a total of 160 to 180 guests daily. Last year we signed in 2,102 individuals, 674 had never been to St. John’s, with all the good being done, we cannot keep up with the growing number coming in whose lives have simply fallen apart. We have locked our doors due to overcrowding more this past year than all the years we have been here.

In the past when needed services were unavailable or difficult to access we acted as advocate for the men. Back in 1996, we found out that the homeless could not obtain an ID because they had no address.

After months of having many meetings trying to resolve the problem, St. John’s with the assistance of Legal Aid sued Jefferson Circuit Court Clerk on behalf of one of the men. The problem was cleared up by hammering out an amendment that would allow the homeless without an address to obtain an ID.

Today, it is not uncommon for those of us who have been working with the poor and marginalized to have strong feelings of frustration, helplessness and yes sometimes anger as we realize the magnitude and scope of the problem that forces people to become homeless and watching so many of them go into a state of depression knowing the resources to get back on their feet are not available. We must stop blaming the victims and look at the sinful structures and systems we have that force people to stay homeless and poor.

Right now today, we cannot fix the cancer of homlessness with the resources we have nor can we afford to throw away what we are doing. Grants to take care of daily chronic homeless are almost obsolete. Most organizations giving grants want to see successful outcomes and our dilemma is that we take care of many who will remain homeless the rest of their lives. We are seeing more and more who are physically sick and cannot care for themselves.

I read not long ago that Ottawa Canada has a hospice care home that is connected to a shelter for the homeless. It serves persons facing life threatening illness who asked to be allowed to die at the mission where they felt at home. Now that our people are getting older and sicker and knowing the shelters are not set up to take care of those with complex health problems, could we not dream of having such a place??

We are over whelmed by the number of young adults coming out of jails or prisons who cannot find jobs or the many who have lost jobs because of alcohol or drug abuse and at times are very difficult to deal with especially when they are belligerent and hostile.

Everyone who has entered our doors have not been happy the way we run the center. I was told by one disgruntle man, “I intend to go immediately to the Human Relation Commission to file a formal civil rights violation for race and age discrimination against a very prejudiced white nun. He continued, my uncle is a circuit court judge so we will see about it.” Another time I received a post card telling me, “Stick your dirty nose in a prayer book, not in politics, you and your kind contribute nothing to society.”

We are overwhelmed by the many who are homeless and mentally ill and the systems that have given up on them and are getting sicker and sicker by the day. They spend their day talking to voices who disturb them day in and day out. At times they are asked to leave shelters including St. John’s because we do not have the professional resources to take care of them knowing they should be in the hospitals and not on the streets.

At times, we have to take time and step back and see the fine things that happen and thank God for allowing us to witness the many over 22 years moving into better lives and being able to connect loving relationships again with their families due to the compassion and love they felt while at St. John’s.

The beauty of God creating you and me was to have us on different journeys in life in order to carry out the gospel teachings in whatever role we choose with compassion and love. As Christ preached the good News, He also was overwhelmed ministering to the poor and marginalized. So what did He do? He went off by himself to the desert or went up to the mountain top to be quiet to pray, to gain strength to continue his mission of preaching and performing good works.

So as we journey down the path of life performing good works, we need to continue being a voice for those who have no voice. Archbishop Oscar Romero who was murdered for preaching the gospel in El Salvador made a statement that fits well with what we are about at St. John’s, “We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of realizing that we may never see the end results. This enables us to do something and do it well. It may be incomplete but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for the Lord’s grace to enter and do the rest.

Dr. Ron Crouch provided us with links to his website, which includes all the information from his talk, videos of other talks he's given, etc. The link for that information is: http://ksdc.louisville.edu

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Connected by faith. Enriched by diversity.

Cathedral of the Assumption
2007 - 2010 Strategic Plan
Adopted September 17, 2007

Mission
The parishioners of the Cathedral of the Assumption, in communion with the Archbishop of Louisville, are disciples of Jesus Christ and stewards of God’s gifts to us. We commit ourselves to giving thanks and praise to God in Word and Sacrament, to engaging in life-long spiritual formation in the Roman Catholic tradition, to embracing the unique role of a cathedral in the local Church and civic community, and to responding to God’s unconditional love by reaching out in hospitality and service to all.

Goals
To this end the Cathedral Parish will:

Engage in worship that is carefully prepared, reverent, and participative, for the glorification of God and sanctification of God’s people;

Embrace stewardship as a grateful response to God’s gifts;

Serve the Archdiocese and metropolitan Louisville as a responsive, creative spiritual center;

Nurture a spirit of community among its members;

Strive for social justice and serve those in need;

Engage in and promote lifelong spiritual growth.






Goal 1 Engage in worship that is carefully prepared, reverent, and participative, for the glorification of God and sanctification of God’s people
Objective 1.1 Study current liturgical documents, norms, and trends, and implement as appropriate.


Objective 1.2 Continue development of liturgical music ministry.

Objective 1.3 Maintain and enhance the sacred space and furnishings.

Objective 1.4 Work for greater involvement of youth and young adults in the liturgical life of the Cathedral parish.

Goal 2 Embrace stewardship as a grateful response to God's gifts

Objective 2.1 Educate parishioners in a better understanding of the concept of stewardship – time, talent and treasure.

Objective 2.2 Collaborate with other committees and the Cathedral staff, to provide input regarding the expansion of the parish’s membership, along with increasing parishioner involvement in fulfilling the mission of the parish.

Objective 2.3 Implement master plan for future capital improvements.

Objective 2.4 Develop master plan for the annual Stewardship Campaign.

Objective 2.5 Increase effectiveness of the Bishop Flaget Society.

Objective 2.6 Implement new chart of accounts and centralize the Cathedral’s payroll system.

Goal 3 Serve as a responsive, creative spiritual center for the Archdiocese and metropolitan Louisville.

Objective 3.1 Implement a plan to reach out to area visitors, downtown employees and downtown residents.

Objective 3.2 Revise the Cathedral website.

Objective 3.3 Intensify collaboration with groups that foster ecumenical and interfaith relations and civic partnership.

Objective 3.4 Strengthen relationship with Archdiocesan agencies and parishes.

Objective 3.5 Develop Phase II of the exhibit area in the Archdiocese of Louisville History Center.

Objective 3.6 Support the celebration of the Archdiocese’s Bicentennial Celebration.

Goal 4 Nurture a spirit of community among its members.

Objective 4.1 Enhance an atmosphere of mutual care and support for all.

Objective 4.2 Increase focus on caring for the sick and homebound of the Parish.

Objective 4.3 Explore ways to encourage more participation in ongoing parish life activities.

Objective 4.4 Develop additional activities and programs to involve parishioners in the life of the parish.

Goal 5 Strive for social justice and serve those in need.

Objective 5.1 Enhance awareness of social justice issues through a comprehensive approach to social justice education.

Objective 5.2 Maintain a connection with our sister parish, Cathedrale de St. Louis in Jeremie, Haiti.

Objective 5.3 Respond to the needs of those served in the Sandefur Dining Room.

Objective 5.4 Strengthen our response to other social needs through partnerships with community agencies.

Objective 5.5 Explore the effects of the Archdiocesan clustering plan on our social concerns ministry.

Goal 6 Engage parishioners and others in lifelong spiritual growth.

Objective 6.1 Continue offering opportunities for lifelong faith formation within intergenerational events.

Objective 6.2 Enhance education and training for personal enrichment and empowerment of the laity.

Objective 6.3 Augment adult faith formation programs to meet ongoing faith needs.

Objective 6.4 Provide opportunities for young people in the practice of their faith.

Objective 6.5 Create opportunities for faith sharing with our covenant churches, Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral and Fourth Avenue United Methodist.

Objective 6.6 Create formation opportunities involving people of all faiths.

Objective 6.7 Investigate approaches to engage with the downtown community.

For corrections or further information,
please contact the Cathedral of the Assumption
502.582.2971 voice
502.582.3919 fax

administrator@cathedraloftheassumption.org