NATIONAL MIGRATION WEEK: January 8-14, 2006

Bishop Paul S. Coakley

 

Immigration has become a hot political and economic issue in the United States.  We can expect that it will loom large in the debates leading up to the next round of elections.  But long before the question of immigration was being framed merely in terms of jobs, social services and border security there was another reality.  Immigration is perhaps the most distinctive element shaping our national identity. Successive waves of immigration have regularly presented new challenges and opportunities for America and Americans.  Today it is coming from the south, particularly from Mexico.

 

“From its founding to the present, the United States remains a nation of immigrants grounded in the firm belief that newcomers offer new energy, hope and cultural diversity.” This statement from the pastoral letter, “Strangers No Longer,” written in 2003 by the U.S. bishops in collaboration with the bishops of Mexico continues with an important challenge: “Our common faith in Jesus Christ moves us to search for ways that favor a spirit of solidarity.”   Our common faith transcends borders and challenges us to overcome all forms of discrimination.   It challenges us to build a just society that welcomes strangers and affords them protection in the pursuit of their most basic human rights. 

 

The spirit of solidarity of which the bishops speak also transcends important political, economic and security concerns.  It is rooted in the dignity of the human person.  Every person is created in God’s image and has the same basic human rights and aspirations regarding home and family, the need to work and the right to worship. 

 

Pope Benedict XVI recently called migration one of the “signs of the times”.  It is a worldwide reality fueled by wars, oppressive poverty, political and social unrest.  Today one of the principal immigration concerns in the United States is the challenge of responding to undocumented workers and their families. 

 

There is general agreement that the immigration laws in the United States are badly in need of reform.  But how do we evaluate proposed legislation and the many public policy proposals which touch on this and other matters concerning migration? 

 

Catholic social teaching which is rooted in the natural law and God’s revelation offers a direction.  The following five principles from the U.S. bishop’s pastoral letter “Strangers No Longer,” apply Catholic social teaching to the questions raised by migration. 

 

  1. Persons have the right to find opportunities in their homeland.
  2. Persons have the right to migrate to support themselves and their families.
  3. Sovereign nations have a right to control their borders.
  4. Refugees and asylum seekers should be afforded protection.
  5. The human rights and the human dignity of undocumented migrants should be respected. 

 

These principles give us a starting point from which we can help shape a just public policy based on the spirit of solidarity.

 

The theme for the 25th anniversary observance of National Migration Week is Journey to Justice.  National Migration Week affords individuals, families, parishes and schools an opportunity to become more informed about this crucial “sign of the times” facing the Church and society.  If you wish more information you will find the following website very helpful: www.justiceforimmigrants.org