JPIC
The name JPIC stands for Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation. The name itself witnesses to the connection between these three issues. Thus, we cannot properly work for justice, peace and care for Earth without caring for all three.
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free… (Luke 4:18).
•JPIC is the conscious prayer and action to transform the world in the spirit of the Gospel through lives of justice, peace and care for the integrity of creation.
•SPIRITAN JPIC project is an attempt to live out the charism and identity of the Congregation’s Founders as well as our Congregation’s Spirituality.
How JPIC arose in Church
•Scripture Values
•Vatican Council II
–Pontifical Commission on Justice and Peace
•Catholic Social Teaching
Scripture Values
•Mission of Jesus (Lk 4)
–Preach good news poor, set captives free, sight to blind,…
•Judgment Scene (Mt 25)
–Give drink to the thirsty, feed hungry, clothe naked, visit sick in those in prison
*Jesus Washes Disciples Feet (Jn 13)
Vatican II: Church in the Modern World
•Solidarity of the Church with the whole human family
1. The joy and hope, the grief and anguish of all in our time, especially the poor or afflicted in any way,
Paul VI—Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace
•“You represent for us the realization of the last vote of the Council (GS 90). Today, as in the past, once the construction of a Church or bell tower is finished, a rooster is placed on the top as a symbol of vigilance, for the faith and for the entire program of Christian life.
•“In similar fashion the Committee has been placed on top of the spiritual building of the Council, and its mission is none other than that of keeping the eyes of the Church open, its heart sensitive and its hand prepared for the work of charity which it is called upon to realize in the world…”
Mission to the Church
Eyes Open
•We are called to be attentive to what is happening around us, to hear the cries of the world in which we live and to see life with the eyes of God.
A Sensitive Heart
•The work of seeing, becoming acquainted with and getting to know the reality of the poor, it must have an effect on us, it must reach down to the depths of our being, to the heart, and move us to compassion.
Hand ready for work of charity
•Charity is the love of God which we are called to make present in the world. Charity has different dimensions depending on the relationships:
•Interpersonal
•“political charity” expresses itself in social, structural or political relationships
Political Charity
•JPIC has a special calling to promote political charity, which seeks to eliminate the causes of poverty and violence. Its ready hand should foster the integral development of those sectors of society that are weakest and most marginalized, and work to transform the existing “structures of sin” which impoverish the lives of so many people.
Catholic Social Teaching
•Catholic Social Teaching has highlighted the dignity of people as the basis for promotion and defense of their human rights, solidarity and care for creation.
spiritanssouthwestnigeria 
Ugwo Boniface
January 15, 2014 at 12:26 pm
COMMUNIQUE ISSUED AT THE END OF ONE WEEK VIVAT INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP HELD AT DIVINE WORD CATHOLIC CONFERENCE CENTRE, ADOAGYIRI- NSAWAM, GHANA FROM DECEMBER 01 TO 07, 2013.
1. VIVAT International, a Non-Governmental Organization in consultative status with United Nations (UN), is a consortium of twelve (12) religious congregations with its membership of thirty thousand (30,000) religious women and men working in one hundred and thirty (130) countries .
2. VIVAT International shares in the vision of a world of justice and peace where the intrinsic goodness and dignity of every human being is honored and promoted. The protection of biodiversity is an essential component of this respect. VIVAT International is committed to making this unconditional love of God for the totality of creation, a reality in our world, through the ministry of Advocacy at the UN.
3. The theme of the workshop was: Working for Justice, Promoting Peace and Preserving Lives. Five member Religious Congregations from Ghana and Nigeria namely Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit (SSpS), Society of the Divine Word (SVD), Congregation of the Holy Spirit (CSSp), Missionary Sisters of the Holy Rosary (MSHR) and Missionary Sisters of the Holy Spirit (CSSp) participated in the workshop. After deep reflections on the Scriptural Foundations of Justice Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC), The Social Teachings of the Church, The UN documents on Human Rights and the Principles of Advocacy and Case studies, we the members of VIVAT International and participants at the workshop make the following statement:
We are committed to realizing the values of the Kingdom of God as proclaimed by Jesus Christ through the Advocacy of VIVAT International. We affirm that VIVAT International is a practical tool in working for justice, peace and preservation of the integrity of creation for ourselves and the future generations.
We recognize with deep sadness the violations of Human Rights in our countries. We are at this moment particularly concerned about charcoal burning and witch camps in Ghana, and corruption/injustice in the educational sector and water and sanitation issues in Nigeria. These impoverish the lives of our brothers and sisters and our ecosystem.
We believe that God created enough resources to serve everybody on earth. The abject poverty and injustice which our sisters and brothers are suffering from are as a result of structural problems created by human beings and can be addressed, trusting in God. In the same vein, we are facing an ecological crisis as a result of unbridled plundering of the natural resources of the Earth and the need is now more urgent than ever, to make an option for life, preserve our natural resources and biodiversity from total collapse. We will support and promote `sustainable development as an alternative.
It has now become imperative to have a VIVAT International national office in Ghana and a similar workshop and a national office in Nigeria to give more energy to JPIC ministry in our countries.
4. We realize that building the kingdom of God is synonymous with creating a just society and this task is enormous. We are equally very conscious of our fragility on this faith journey. However, we are confident that we certainly have something to offer and we are committed to these issues for the next three years. We therefore give our hands in fellowship to the different Governments of our countries, the International community, other NGOs, women and men of good will to collaborate with us on this noble project.