We are one human family whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences. We are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they may be.  Loving our neighbor has global dimensions in a shrinking world. At the core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of justice and peace. Pope Paul VI taught that “if you want peace, work for justice.”1 The Gospel calls us to be peacemakers. Our love for all our sisters and brothers demands that we promote peace in a world surrounded by violence and conflict.

• Genesis 12:1-3 - God blessed Israel so that all nations would be blessed through it.
• Psalms 72 - Living in right relationship with others brings peace.
• Psalms 122 - Peace be with you!  For the sake of the Lord, I will seek your good.
• Zechariah 8:16  - These are the things you should do: Speak truth, judge  well, make peace.
• Matthew 5:9  - Blessed are the peacemakers, they will be called children of God.
• Matthew 5:21-24 - Be reconciled to one another before coming to the altar.
• Romans 13:8-10  - Living rightly means to love one another.
• 1 Corinthians 12:12-26 - If one member of Christ’s body suffers, all suffer.  If one member is honored, all rejoice.
• Colossians 3:9-17  - Above all, clothe yourself with love and let the peace of Christ reign in your hearts.
• 1 John 3:16-18  - The love of God in us  is witnessed to by our willingness to lay down our lives for others as Christ  did for us

Developing countries, where the most important reserves of the biosphere are found, continue to fuel the development of richer countries at the cost of their own present and future. The land of the southern poor is rich and mostly unpolluted, yet access to ownership of goods and resources for meeting vital needs is inhibited by a system of commercial relations and ownership which is structurally perverse. . . . As the United States bishops have said, greater attention must be given to "the needs of the poor, the weak and the vulnerable, in a debate often dominated by more powerful interests". We need to strengthen the conviction that we are one single human family. There are no frontiers or barriers, political or social, behind which we can hide, still less is there room for the globalization of indifference. (Pope Francis, On Care for Our Common Home [Laudato Si'],no. 52, quoting United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Global Climate Change: A Plea for Dialogue, Prudence and the Common Good).

 To be continued