Holiday shopping looks different with a Passionist heart.
Before any gift purchase, pause and ask yourself, “Who carries the cross for this item?”
Think of each gift as a way to stand with the Crucified in today’s world by supporting workers with fair wages and avoiding waste that wounds creation.
Aim for fewer but more meaningful presents, choosing items that are fairly made, environmentally responsible, secondhand or locally crafted.
Consider shopping at businesses like
- ReConnectNYC – a collection of five small businesses founded by Fr. Jim O’Shea, CP, Provincial Superior of St. Paul of the Cross Province, and Efrain Hernandez that doubles as a safe space for a vulnerable population of young men in Jamaica, NY.
- Café Papamín – a family-owned coffee bean business in Puerto Rico founded by a Passionist alumnus, Jamie Gonzalez.
And when the best choice is not to buy, give time, presence, a handwritten note or a donation in someone’s honor.
This makes your holiday joy a means of standing in solidarity rather than contributing to the cycle of consumption.
Consider each gift you purchase as an opportunity to uplift human dignity and protect creation by shopping mindfully and ethically.
