Faith 'compels us' to fight scourge of opioid crisis, says bishop

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GREENSBURG,
Pa. (CNS) — Bishop Edward C. Malesic of Greensburg in a pastoral letter called
the opioid crisis in this country a scourge and urged the people of his diocese
to take action against it.

In
“A Pastoral Letter on the Drug Abuse Crisis: From Death and Despair to Life and
Hope” issued June 29, he addressed the epidemic that last year killed more than
300 people in the four counties that comprise the Diocese of Greensburg and
outlined the Catholic Church’s local response to the crisis.

Besides
efforts that focus on prayer and education, he also discussed the church’s cooperative
efforts with government and social service agencies that are already engaged in
the fight against addiction.

Noting
that rarely a day goes by without news of a death from a drug overdose, he wrote,
“One especially deadly expression of the crisis of addiction, which is becoming
more and more prevalent in our communities, is the current opioid epidemic.”

In
the four counties of the diocese — Armstrong, Fayette, Indiana and Westmoreland
— 319 deaths in 2016 were directly related to opioid addiction, he said.

“This
is a plague that has come into the homes and families of every city, town and
even the rural areas of our diocese,” he wrote. “It has touched the very hearts
and souls of our parishioners in the pews and the people living in our
communities; it has affected men and women of every age, profession and state
of life. Even more tragic is the reality that every one of those 319 deaths was
preventable and did not have to happen.”

He
said a series of seven “Summer Diocesan Drug Education Evenings” will
be held around the diocese in coming weeks. Each one will include a prayer
service.

Paul
Niemiec, director of counseling for Catholic Charities of the Diocese of
Greensburg, will lead the education component, which will include a
presentation about the facts of the crisis, a discussion and questions.

After
the presentation, Bishop Malesic, who will attend every session, will lead the
prayer service, which will include his comments. The evening will conclude with
a light reception.

“Our
Christian faith compels us to choose hope” in the face of a crisis, Bishop
Malesic wrote.

And
the Catholic Church offers hope by accompanying people who are in the grip of
the crisis — including addicts and their family, friends, co-workers and
others — with “courageous faith.”

“We
offer them the comforting presence and power of Jesus Christ, risen from the
dead,” Bishop Malesic said in the pastoral. “Jesus will provide.”

In
addition to the education sessions and prayer services this summer, Bishop
Malesic said the diocese will continue to work with the recently formed
Bishop’s Advisory Group on the Drug Crisis to continue developing and
implementing a pastoral response to the opioid crisis and to work with existing
programs rather than create new ones.

The
diocese’s pastoral response will include: ongoing educational opportunities for
parish and school staffs; continued counseling, education and referrals by
Catholic Charities for people and their families caught up in addiction;
assistance in the development of family recovery groups; and helping people
advocate with governmental entities to provide resources to prevent and treat
drug abuse.

Bishop
Malesic urged parishes to:


Work with existing neighborhood, nonprofit and governmental organizations to
promote safe communities and drug-free neighborhoods.


Have priests and deacons continue to offer spiritual support and, when
appropriate, speak about drug abuse in homilies and at formational
opportunities.


Consider developing support groups and maintain a list of treatment centers and
contact information for referral purposes when needed.


Use resources from the diocese to educate and form parishioners and community
members to combat the opioid addiction epidemic in homes and families.


Consider holding ongoing opportunities for prayer and healing related to the
addiction crisis.

“The
church must be present to all who suffer in any way,” he wrote. “Jesus can and
wants us to use his church to move our communities from being places of death
and despair to places of life and hope.”

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