Letter: LI lay Catholics work for justice

Regarding "Catholic Church gets it right on nuclear arms" [Opinion, Aug. 16], Bob Keeler got it right when he wrote that the sex-abuse scandal has overshadowed what the Catholic Church has to say on other matters.

While Keeler focused on issues of war and peace, the church has also been a powerful voice on poverty and economic justice. The Catholic Church has long called for a "preferential option for the poor," captured by Pope John Paul II when he wrote that this must apply to personal acts of charity as well as our social responsibilities in political advocacy for economic justice. As Pope Benedict XVI put it, "the pursuit of justice must be a fundamental norm of the State . . . to guarantee to each person . . . his share of the community's goods."

These profound teachings have translated into personal decisions by Catholics all over the world to enter the political arena as advocates for the poor. Using the lens of their church's teachings, Catholic laypeople were a mainstay in Long Island Jobs with Justice's successful interfaith campaign in March of this year to prevent Nassau County from eliminating 25 bus routes that are a lifeline for working poor people.

Similarly, this summer, they successfully raised their voice with us against New York State's decision to cut $19.5 million from Suffolk County's health centers that serve uninsured people. Here, politics and faith met, in the spirit of Pope Benedict's goal that care for the poor should animate "the entire lives of the lay faithful," including their political activity.

Richard Koubek, Dix Hills

Editor's note: The writer is the community outreach coordinator for Long Island Jobs with Justice, a workers' rights advocacy organization.