Election season is here, and to support you and your commitment to be a Catholic engaged in the betterment of our community, we will be doing a weekly article until November 6 on issues that are important to consider as you decide for whom you will vote. We’ll be drawing heavily from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ document, Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (www.faithfulcitizenship.org), and we invite you to check out the full document and the many helpful supporting materials.
Last week, we looked at the issue of the life and dignity of every human person. In this week’s article on forming our consciences for the upcoming election, we look at the issue of immigration.
While our Wisconsin bishops acknowledge that the rule of law is essential to maintain a stable society, we must admit that some of our domestic and international policies have contributed to the rising tide of immigrants. The USCCB calls for comprehensive immigration reform that includes a broad and fair legalization program with a path to citizenship; a work program with worker protections and just wages; family reunification policies; access to legal protections, which include due process procedures; refuge for those fleeing persecution and violence; and policies to address the root causes of migration. When we assist the countries from which migrants and refugees leave, we demonstrate that solidarity, cooperation, international interdependence and the equitable distribution of the earth’s goods are essential to eliminate imbalances which lead people, individually or collectively, to abandon their own natural and cultural environment.
