Article 1 in the series
Starting this week, a series of articles on the topic of immigration can be found in our bulletins and on our website and Facebook pages. The issue of immigration and refugees is one of the most difficult topics facing our world, and we – the people called by Jesus to love our neighbor and welcome the stranger – must work to support the people affected by the tragedies happening around the world, standing in solidarity with our suffering brothers and sisters.
The issue of immigration has long been a difficult topic in our country and in our Church, and it has reached a fever-pitch in recent times. Tens of thousands of people are displaced by violence, oppression and poverty every single day (one estimate suggests 34,000 people each and every day). If you add this to the 65 million who are already forcibly displaced, you’ve got a crisis.
How do we, as people of faith, and how does our Church respond to this reality? The first and easiest response comes from Jesus: love your neighbor and welcome the stranger. Unfortunately, it’s far more complicated to apply that idea than to simply say it.
To that end, over the next several weeks we will delve into the topic of immigration. We’ll look at Church teachings (both current and past, scriptural and from tradition), address some of the tough questions and think about how we can move forward. To begin, we’ll list a few issues that must be held in holy tension:
- Persons have the right to find opportunities in their homeland.
- Persons have the right to migrate to support themselves and their families.
- Sovereign nations have a right to control their borders.
- Refugees and asylum seekers should be afforded protection.
- The human rights and the human dignity of undocumented migrants should be respected.
Please watch the bulletin and our parish websites and Facebook pages for the upcoming articles, keep the people forced to leave their homes in your prayers, and contact Andrew Musgrave if you have any questions at musgravea@archmil.org or 414-271-6577.
