Forty years ago, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development began its mission of breaking the cycle of poverty and educating Catholics about the causes and effects of being poor. Since then, Catholics in the Archdiocese have donated millions of dollars to the campaign, money that has been given to organizations and programs in the archdiocese and across the United States to help poor people end the conditions that perpetuate poverty. This year, the Archdiocese of Chicago announced that more than $287,000 was awarded to 21 agencies that work in the areas of economic development and community organizing; life initiatives and family enhancement; human development; and access to justice for the poor. The money comes from the collection taken up in November 2009. Thirty percent of the money collected went to local grants, 8 percent went to archdiocesan grants, half went to the national Catholic Campaign for Human Development and the rest paid for administrative expenses and justice-education programs and materials. Honors given In his homily, Bishop Kane lauded the campaign for reminding Catholics that “the poor deserve justice, not just charity.”The groups were recognized at a Mass and dinner Sept. 1 at St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish, 1255 N. Noble Ave. Father James Moriarty, an early director of the Chicago Catholic Campaign for Human Development was honored, as was the main celebrant of the Mass, Auxiliary Bishop Francis Kane. Bishop Kane was director of the campaign after Moriarty. In his remarks at the dinner, Moriarty congratulated the organizations for their work. “Your grant survived a very tough screening process,” Moriarty said. “These are some great projects and they have the best chance of succeeding.” Some of the programs already have long histories of success. The Chicago Legal Clinic, for example, was started in 1981 by now-Springfield Bishop Thomas Paprocki and Ed Grossman to provide direct legal services to people who could not afford to hire private attorneys. Grossman still serves as executive director of the clinic, which operates 15 different programs ranging from help desks at Cook County Circuit Court facilities to representing domestic violence victims to assisting with wills and probate matters. Access to the legal system is very much a social justice issue, said Grossman. “There are over 80,000 attorneys in Illinois, and fewer than 350 do what I do for a living: provide civil legal services to the poor,” Grossman said. “We live in a world where the legal system comes into play in people’s lives far more than they would ever expect. We prize our rights and freedoms, but what good are those rights and freedoms if you cannot access them?” Facing critics The Catholic Campaign for Human Development has faced criticism in recent years, both on the local and national levels, especially from conservative critics who objected to some of the groups that received funding because either the groups themselves or other organizations with which they were associated engaged in direct political campaigns — something CCHD prohibits — or espoused positions in violation of Catholic teaching. In the Archdiocese of Chicago, CCHD director Rey Flores responded by reviewing all the groups receiving funding. While none had their grants rescinded, some found that their grants were not renewed “because we found better programs to fund,” Flores said. The grant list this year includes a new emphasis on pro-life projects, Flores said, some of them recommended by former critics. Catholic social teaching hinges on the right to life and human dignity, said Father Francis “Rocky” Hoffman, executive director of Relevant Radio and the dinner’s master of ceremonies. The list also includes more organizations with direct ties to the Catholic Church, including the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels in West Humboldt Park, the San Toribio Immigrant Center and the Chastity Education Initiative of the Respect Life Office of the Archdiocese of Chicago. The Chastity Education Initiative will use its grant money to buy curriculum materials to teach Theology of the Body for teens to students in underprivileged schools, said Margie Breen of the Respect Life Office. Teaching teens about the virtue of chastity directly attacks poverty because most children of unwed teen mothers grow up in poverty, she said. In its early days under Moriarty, the campaign funded both pro-life and church-related organizations more often than it has done in recent years, Flores said. Flores said that the church as a whole must work together to alleviate the effects of poverty. “We are all the body of Christ,” he said. This year’s CCHD collection will be taken up at Masses Nov. 20-21. CCHD grant Recipients Abstinence & Chastity Initiative, $20,000 (Respect Life Office) Aid for Women, $15,000 Catholic Family Library & Learning Center, $16,320 St. Stanislaus Kostka School Centro de Trabajadores Unidos, $15,000 Chicago Legal Clinic, $20,000 Chicago Workers Collaborative, $15,000 Emmaus Ministries, $10,400 Family Wellness DV Program, $15,000 (Most Blessed Trinity Parish, Waukegan) lllinois Coalition for Justice, $5,000 Mission of Our Lady of Angels, $15,000 M.O.V.E., (Mothers Opposed to Violence Everywhere) $15,000 P.A.S.O., $15,000 (West Suburban Organizing Project) Polish Initiative of Chicago, $5,000 Pro-Life Action League, $15,000 Project Ultrasound, $15,000 (The Women’s Centers of Chicago) Restaurant Opportunities Center – Chicago, $15,000 St. Toribio Romo Immigrant Center, $20,000 Women’s Sewing Cooperative, $15,000 (Women for Economic Justice) Working Hands Legal Clinic, $10,400 The Village TJW Inc., $10,400 Zacchaeus House, $15,000