The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph

The mission of the Office of Peace and Justice of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph "is to root our lives in the Gospel of Jesus with a preferential option for the poor, guided by Catholic Social teaching." The Office of Peace and Justice advocates changes in economic, political and social structures. The mission of the Peace and Justice office is carried out by groups who participate in spiritual formation, education, action and advocacy. The main groups are Parish Social Contacts, Catholics for Justice, and Task Forces.

Parish Social Justice Contacts is an organization of parish leaders (Parish Justice Coordinators) who are designated to help promote peace and justice events, classes, alerts or action opportunities. Parish Justice Coordinators are individuals who receive information and materials from the Peace & Justice Office and circulate them to the proper parish communities and parish staff members. They also engage themselves in ongoing education of Catholic Social Teaching and its applications.

Catholics for Justice is a group of individuals and grass-roots organizations, guided by the Biblical message of justice and Catholic Social Teaching. Members recognize that they are called to a deeper conversion to Christ and to a more active discipleship in establishing the Reign of God in this world; they engage in education, analysis, prayer and action.

Task Forces are groups who work on specific issues. Through research and education, they raise awareness on broad issues of concern. The two current active task forces are the Latin American Task Force and the Racism Task Force. The Latin American Task Force disseminates information about issues of social justice and peace concerning Latin American countries, including Mexico. Along with a variety of other activities, it supports the on-going work of building "Sister Parish Relationships," including helping to form delegations to Latin America and Mexico to better understand root causes of poverty and experience being in solidarity. The Racism Task Force is a group that serves to raise awareness about the systemic racism that exists within our society. This task force promotes education on issues of racism and sponsors racial justice events.