As Asia’s population approaches four billion, or more than half of the world’s population, the continent presents startling contrasts of wealth and poverty. While its governments range from the autocratic to the democratic, Asia has the potential for exponential economic growth and significant advances in science, health and technology. But the cost of development must take social justice and environmental values into account. In Asia the U.S. encounters ancient cultures and values from which it could learn much, as well as markets and trade opportunities that could benefit both Asia and the U.S. At the same time, robust Asian economies are potential competitors that could challenge the U.S.’s economic dominance in the world. With the U.S., Europe and giants such as China and India competing for critical natural resources, the globalized economy will demand political considerations – and concessions – of the U.S.
The Office for Global Concerns depends on the experience of Maryknoll missioners in Asia, who are deeply involved in many aspects of their hosts’ lives – religious, social, political and economic. Maryknoll personnel act as partners in diverse apostolates – in parish ministry, health work and education. Missioners work with persons with HIV and AIDS and with special needs. They support those living on the margins – people who are displaced, refugees, foreign workers – as they seek to promote peace, social justice and the integrity of creation.
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 38 other faith and civic organizations in a letter to President Trump urging him to work on improving relations with North Korea, including by formally ending the Korean war. Read this letter as a PDF. January 29, 2025 Dear President Trump, The undersigned coalition of national organizations write to…
Peace Advocates from around the United States gathered in Pennsylvania to discuss goals and strategies for bringing about an end to the Korean War and peace with justice on the Korean Peninsula. The following article was published in the January – February 2025 issue of NewsNotes. Korea peace advocates are organizing for an uncertain future….
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined a letter to the leadership of the House of Representatives, organized by Asian Americans Advancing Justice with the partnership of fifty faith and civil society groups, in opposition to the reauthorization of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party,…
The Nobel Committee’s recognition of the Japanese hibakusha organization Nihon Hidankyo comes at a crucial moment for addressing the nuclear threat. The following article was published in the November-December 2024 issue of NewsNotes. The Norwegian Nobel Committee announced on October 11 that it has awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 2024 to the Japanese organization…
Hiroshima and Nagasaki hold their annual ceremonies memorializing the 1945 bombings by the United States in a particularly fraught year for peace.
Setting out priorities in front of diplomats and UN representatives, the new leader of Bangladesh vows continuity on two biggest policy challenges.
Benedict Rodgers writes in his column published in UCANews on Aug. 26, 2024, that Rohingyas are facing the gravest threats since 2017 when more than 750,000 were forced to flee to Bangladesh.
Maryknoll Fr. Joy Tajonera served as the lead organizer and host of the three-day International Conference on Fisher’s Welfare in the Chinese city of Taichung this past May.
A UN expert visited the Philippines and called on Pres. Marcos Jr. to speak out against red-tagging and disband an anti-communist task force.
As international negotiators work out the details of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, key victories in the Digital Trade sphere of negotiations have already been achieved.
The UN Security Council held its first open meeting on Myanmar since 2019 in New York on April 4, 2024.
Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns joined 40 human rights and faith-centric organizations in a “Thank you” letter to President Biden and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai for withdrawing U.S. support for extreme digital trade proposals in the ongoing negotiations in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity.
Maryknoll Father Joseph Thaler asks what we are called to sacrifice in the face of the changes he has witnessed in the Kathmandu Valley.
Maryknoll Affiliate Kathy Morefield sees the fruits of the Kingdom of Heaven in the economic model of collaboratively-run restaurant.
A new book is available about the life of Maryknoll Fr. Gerard Hammond, a missioner with more than 60 years in ministry on the Korean Peninsula.
Fr. John McAuley, MM, considers the call to stewardship in the readings and how they apply to the twenty-first century.
Next week marks the somber anniversary of the nuclear bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The death toll from the two bombings has been estimated to be as high as 210,000….
The unresolved state of war is the root cause of tensions and militarism in Korea. Decades of pressure-based tactics — in the form of sanctions, isolation, and military threats — have failed to achieve US goals.
