TO
SEE THE IMMIGRANT THROUGH THE EYES OF FAITH
May
1, 2008
The
Roman Catholic Bishops of Connecticut, acknowledging the current
federal laws and following the failure of Congress to enact immigration
reform and the continuing debate within our nation and state,
feel compelled to speak from a position of faith and pastoral
leadership on this contentious matter. Because migration is such
a highly complex global phenomenon, people of good will can reasonably
differ on what constitutes the best public policy and law. We
approach the issue, however, with a focus on faith, human dignity,
and natural law. We try to see immigrants through the eyes of
Christ and with the help of faith to understand better what is
required of us as Catholics and citizens in addressing the challenges
of immigration. We recognize the God-given worth of every person,
despite their legal status, and thus the basic human dignity to
which they are entitled.
Welcoming
the stranger - a characteristic of the Church from the beginning
- remains essential to the Church and society today. When Jesus
told us to love our neighbor, a lawyer asked him to clarify whom
he meant by neighbor. Instead of giving him a legal distinction
between who is a neighbor and who is not a neighbor, Jesus told
the story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25). Jesus teaches that
our neighbor is the person who needs us.
Seeing the
immigrant through the eyes of faith must begin with the explicit
teaching of Christ himself: "I was a stranger and you welcomed
me" (Matthew. 25:35). Jesus identified himself personally with
the alien and challenged His followers to see Him in the stranger.
Care for the immigrant thus becomes more than a matter of personal
kindness, tolerance, or social justice; to welcome a stranger
expresses our faith in Jesus Christ.
CAPTION:
BECOMING A U.S. CITIZEN is the dream of every immigrant to America,
no matter how they arrive. Bill Hoey, vice president of Catholic
Charities, discusses the barriers to citizenship with Alex Arévalo,
immigration counselor, and Sister Nancy Charlesworth, S.S.M.N.,
director of immigration services. The Catholic Bishops of Connecticut
have issued a major statement on immigration. (Photo by Pat
Hennessy)
We call on
all Catholics to distance themselves from viewing immigrants to
our nation, including undocumented immigrants, in terms and actions
that reflect hate, racism and popular misconceptions. Most immigrants
to our nation, especially those who are undocumented, flee their
homeland because of extreme poverty, violence, persecution, or
natural disaster. This movement of people from one place to another
has remained a constant feature of human history. From a person's
human dignity flow basic human rights, including the right to
leave one's country and find a new place to live and work. In
Catholic social teaching, these rights are not given by a government;
they are inherent in the human person. In the United States, such
immigration has shaped and will continue to shape significantly
our economic, political, and cultural development. We are all
well aware that our own nation is one built by immigrants fleeing
poverty and searching for new opportunities.
To uproot
oneself from a familiar nation and community is full of risks
and dangers. That is why Pope John Paul II called migration a
"necessary evil" (Laborem Exercens: On Human Work, para.
23, 1981). Nor should we minimize the grave problems that accompany
illegal immigration: the use of criminal smuggling networks, death
in the deserts, human trafficking, exploitative working conditions,
the detention of immigrant children, and the separation of families.
The notion
that undocumented immigrants are as human beings inferior to legal
citizens can have no justification in Christian life. Consideration
of human dignity should also prevent a person from being crudely
reduced to the anxious status of "illegal alien" or being treated
only as an economic object or a unit of labor, with no regard
for family unity or the person's social, cultural, and religious
needs. Supporting the dignity of the human person must begin at
a very local level - in the family, in the parish, and in the
community.
The Federal
Government has the right to make the difficult decisions about
who is allowed to enter our country. The President and Congress
have a responsibility, in the name of the common good, to enforce
security at our nation's borders. Politics may divide the Catholic
community on specific policy choices to meet this need, but faith
must unite us to the more important values of love, hospitality,
keeping families together, and respecting every person's human
dignity. Children of immigrants, many of whom are born in this
country and have American citizenship, should not find themselves
left alone and separated from their parents who are jailed or
deported as part of an enforcement action. Citizens can and should
press the government to temper its actions with mercy, in order
to reduce suffering and humanize public policy toward immigrants.
Nationally,
our immigration policies and procedures must be comprehensively
reconstructed in a manner that (1) secures our borders from the
entry of undocumented migrants, (2) greatly improves the visa
process for people seeking legal entry into our country, and (3)
creates a path toward the legalization of undocumented workers
currently living and working in the United States. Our federal
government should also take stronger steps to encourage positive
social, economic, and political changes within the nations that
are a major source of undocumented immigrants. If the causes of
illegal immigration are reduced, so will be the number of undocumented
immigrants.
We believe
that all legal action, legislatively or in the area of law enforcement,
should respect the dignity of the millions of undocumented men,
women, and children within our borders. Federal authorities, not
state or local law enforcement personnel, should be responsible
for the enforcement of immigration laws. State and local law enforcement
should be primarily concerned with maintaining order in our cities
and towns. Undocumented immigrants within our communities should
not be fearful of local and state authorities should a need arise
to report a crime, a case of domestic abuse, or other illegal
activities. Our state and local governments should act to ensure
that a "shadow" community does not continue to grow within our
state, due to the fear of immigration enforcement, where a segment
of our population remains fearful of cooperation with state and
local authorities. Criminal activities would surely flourish in
such an environment. State authorities should also halt the exploitation
of undocumented immigrants by employers when and wherever it may
occur.
A valid concern
does exist about the ability of our nation to secure its borders
against those who wish us harm. The vast majority of undocumented
immigrants, however, seek only a better life for themselves and
their families, and pose no threat to our national security. They
seek to be law abiding and contributing members of our society.
They enrich our society culturally and share many of the same
values most Americans hold in high regard: family, faith, the
importance of education, and entrepreneurship. Activities that
seek to deny undocumented immigrants basic human rights; for example,
the arrest of workers seeking employment to sustain themselves,
and the denial of housing and fuel assistance based on immigration
status, do not reflect the understanding and compassion our Catholic
faith calls us to practice.
As Bishops
of Connecticut, our main task is to help our people follow in
the footsteps of Jesus Christ. There is no place in the Catholic
family for racism, hatred of foreigners, exaggerated nationalism,
or discrimination against immigrants. In the name of Jesus Christ,
we must welcome the stranger at our door. He or she is a reflection
of Jesus himself. We close with the words of Saint Paul, who urged
the Christians of Rome to "welcome one another then, as Christ
welcomed you, for the glory of God." (Romans 15:7).
Most
Reverend Henry J. Mansell
Archbishop of Hartford
Most
Reverend William E. Lori
Bishop
of Bridgeport
Most
Reverend Michael R. Cote
Diocese of Norwich
Most
Reverend Paul P. Chomnycky
Bishop of Ukrainian Diocese of Stamford
Most
Reverend Peter A. Rosazza
Most Reverend Christie A. Macaluso
Auxiliary Bishops of Hartford
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