Many of us Vincentians are familiar with collaboration. We help our neighbors in need by working with many different agencies in order to get their needs met. Paying the rent or utilities often requires working with our state’s Department of Health and Human Services, the Salvation Army, Coalition for the Homeless, TruNorth, Catholic Charities, and so many others. This can be linked to the Biblical teaching of going out “two by two” (Mark 6:7-12; Luke 9:1-6). These passages are the inspiration for going out in pairs during Home Visits, which serves both our neighbors in need and ourselves by making sure we have two sets of eyes and ears to help others. I tend to also think of these passages as giving us another core Vincentian value: collaboration.
There has always been a lot of collaboration with the Voice for the Poor. We often sign letters to Congress concerning funding for SNAP, housing, child tax credits, or FEMA funding, alongside the USCCB, Catholic Charities, Catholic Rural Life and others. Adding our voice to others amplifies our ability to advocate for our neighbors. We do the same thing as webinar speakers when we have worked with the U.S. Census Bureau, Fairfield County Ohio, St Louis Catholic Charities, Cook County Citizen’s Sheriff department, and others. Their expertise and new ideas are great to share with other Vincentians.
At the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering happening January 25 – 28, close to 500 Catholics will gather in Washington D.C. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul will be collaborating with Catholic Climate Covenant, Bread for the World, Catholic Charities, and the USCCB in various breakout sessions. It was exciting to work with Catholic Climate Covenant — I wasn’t even aware there was a Catholic agency so deeply concerned about preserving our common home. As part of another CSMG committee, I met with Glenmary Home Missioners and learned about their mission to rural America and creating Catholic communities. It was exciting to learn there is a Catholic group out there specifically focused on growing Catholic communities throughout the U.S.
Collaboration takes a lot of work, but it’s often worth the effort. We can do more with others than we can do alone. While we Confirmed Catholics boast of the graces of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit works through many people other than us. As Scripture says, “Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophetic utterances. Test everything; retain what is good. Refrain from every kind of evil” (1 Thes 5:19-22). In that vein, it’s good to mention we cannot collaborate with everyone. The USCCB has been burned in the past by collaborating with a project for feeding people that Planned Parenthood was also participating in, and we cannot make that mistake. We must seek the good while refraining from evil.
For advocacy, one of our strongest collaborators on a state level are the state Catholic Conferences. Our Michigan Catholic Conference is a great resource for bills happening in the state that affect those in need. The Missouri Catholic Conference has pointed to legislation that may be of interest to us. Our newest Voice for the Poor regional leader Pat Brown met with Texas Catholic Conference and talked about affordable housing and ways of improving “landlord and management practices.” You can also join our advocacy efforts here.
Recently, a large family came to our food pantry and asked me for help. We were able to provide some food for them, but they needed much more than our Conference could provide. Because I had those local connections, we were able to meet the needs of this family. Collaboration was the key.
Rarely are we disappointed when we turn to Blessed Frédéric or St. Vincent for inspiration. St. Vincent de Paul was famous for creating houses after getting one million pounds from King Louis of Francis — we Vincentians have been dealing with housing for a long time! Blessed Frédéric turned to Blessed Rosalie Rendu for help training the first home visitors.
Collaboration is part of what we do as Vincentians. Be prayerful to the Holy Spirit, be bold — and collaborate!
Your servant In Christ,
Bobby Kinkella
Chair, Voice for the Poor