We seek justice, educate for peace and care for creation rooted in a profound belief that all life is sacred because God is the creator of life and all forms of life are interconnected and interrelated with one another and with God.

We have come to realize that working toward establishing a just society is not a special ministry for some of us, but a particular concern in all our ministries.

A longing for oneness of all in God is a vision we share with Blessed Theresa. As educators we go to the heart of all that diminishes, impoverishes and separates us from one another and our good Earth and find ways to respond. Our responses are based on our vision, the Gospel message and Catholic Social Teaching.

“The world is the concrete situation in which we carry out Christ’s mission.” (School Sisters of Notre Dame Constitution)

What does it mean to educate and work for justice, peace and the integrity of creation in our world today? For us it means:

• to love, to believe that the world can be changed through the transformation of persons including us;
  
• to let our faith and prayer move us to seek justice from structures that oppress and de-humanize those as close as home and as far as half a world away;
  
• to hope in a provident God as Blessed Theresa did but always in a new and ever changing world context.

How do we choose among the many issues of injustice in our world?
Our choices are guided by a special sensitivity to youth and women, the poor, and a reverence for creation — the community of all life. What helps us accomplish the work of justice and peace is SHALOM our international network, and the relationships we have in solidarity with groups dedicated to making positive changes in society. The groups vary from international ones like the United Nations to local ones such as Metropolitan Congregations United for St. Louis.

For more, go to School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND) SHALOM International Network and CURRENT INVOLVEMENTS.

Sister Paulette Zimmerman, SSND 
Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Coordinator and
SHALOM North America Contact
School Sisters of Notre Dame, St. Louis
Phone: 314-633-7009
Fax: 314-633-7057
pzimmerman@ssnd-sl.org