NEW YORK – Replacing the U.S. Bishops’ Conference Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development (JPHD), the new Secretariat of Justice and Peace has a slightly different structure but similar mandate “to share Catholic social teaching and to advocate for justice and peace.”

The USCCB unveiled the Secretariat of Justice and Peace on August 6, a little more than a month after the American bishops were informed via memo the change would take place to better align it with other conference departments. The announcement followed the conference’s controversial decision to let go of four staff within JPHD, and three staff within the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD).

The Secretariat of Justice and Peace will serve four USCCB committees – the Committees on Domestic Justice and Human Development, International Justice and Peace, Religious Liberty, and the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism. The Secretariat has 13 staff, compared to 17 when it was the department.

Whereas JPHD also housed CCHD, with the new changes CCHD is now under the Office of National Collections with three staff instead of six. The Secretariat of Justice and Peace, however, will continue to collaborate with CCHD and support its poverty education mandate “by helping Catholics learn about the root causes of poverty and join CCHD’s efforts to help low-income people address poverty in their own communities,” according to the USCCB.

Jill Rauh, the former director of education and outreach for JPHD, is the Secretariat’s executive director.

“We are a team of 13. We serve the U.S. Bishops to share Catholic social teaching and to advocate for justice and peace in the United States and around the world. The work of justice is essential to the proclamation of the gospel to a world in need,” Rauh said in a video message.

“When we affirm the dignity of every person created in God’s image, when we work to end racism, when we advocate to address poverty and to care for our common home, when we support the Church’s ability to live her mission, this work is a reflection of the love and mercy of Jesus Christ,” Rauh continued. “As we go forth please join us. There is much to be done. Let us proclaim the kingdom together.”

In late June, the decision to let go staff and reorganize JPHD set off a firestorm in both media and Catholic circles, with some observers, both bishops and laity, viewing it as a retreat from the Church’s social commitment, while others agreed that it was time for change.

Many bishops were also surprised by the changes and disappointed by the lack of process that went into the decision – there were not votes taken on the department’s future – especially because there was broad support for JPHD and specifically CCHD at their June plenary assembly in Louisville, Kentucky.

The late June memo to American bishops that the biggest reason for the changes were funding challenges.

All 13 staff within the Secretariat were all employed by the conference prior to the changes. There were no new hires made. The USCCB’s August 6 announcement introduces each of the 13 staff and details their roles. It also acknowledges the staff who were let go because of the changes.

“Finally, we wish to honor and acknowledge those esteemed former colleagues whose absence is strongly felt in the new Secretariat,” the statement reads. “Please join us in praying for those colleagues of the former Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development who are transitioning to new opportunities, that the Holy Spirit may lead them in the next steps of the journey.”

The USCCB has 10 other Secretariats that serve various committees, according to its website: The Secretariat of Catholic Education, the Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, the Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church, the Secretariat of Divine Worship, the Secretariat of Doctrine and Canonical Affairs, the Secretariat of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, the Secretariat of Evangelization and Catechesis, the Secretariat of Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, the Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection, and the Office for the Biblical Apostolate.

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