The Catholic Church proclaims to the world that human life is sacred and has intrinsic value because every human person is fashioned in the image and likeness of the Creator. God created mankind in his image; in the image of God, he created them; male and female he created them. (Gen 1:27) This fundamental belief propels the Catholic Church to speak on issues of life, not for political ends, but rather to shed light on the beauty and mystery of our shared humanity.
Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, often speaks of our need to be cognizant of the poor and marginalized in our midst. In addressing a recent conference entitled “For World Balance,” His Holiness remarked, “The poor and the sick, the young and the elderly, migrants and displaced people, even those deprived of their freedom, must be at the center of our considerations, so that no one is excluded and everyone's human dignity is respected.” Especially during this Jubilee Year, we are called to unite as Pilgrims of Hope to focus on our relationship with Jesus Christ, who is our ultimate and everlasting hope for the future.
As there is much discussion today about immigration, we, the Catholic Bishops of the State of Georgia, want to bring attention to the plight of the refugee and migrant who have come to our country and are living in our midst. The current rhetoric regarding the topic of immigration often demonizes all immigrants, causing anxiety, fear, harassment, and intimidation. Unsubstantiated and uncharitable comments about our brothers and sisters who have immigrated here from other countries do not respect our call to recognize human dignity and must be condemned.
As spiritual leaders, we recognize the diversity of the flock entrusted to us and are concerned about the welfare of those who have immigrated to Georgia seeking a better life for themselves and their families through honest work. Many industries in our state – including agriculture, construction, and residential services – rely on the presence of immigrant labor and would be negatively affected by proposed immigration policy changes. The immigrants we meet every day in our ministry are faithful people who are dedicated to God, the Church, family, and community. They put a human face on the immigration crisis. However, we also understand and agree that those who come to our country with previous criminal records and those who commit crimes after their arrival must be held accountable and deported to their home countries.
We wish to affirm the recent statement by Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio (Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA), President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Bishop Mark J. Seitz (Diocese of El Paso), Chair of the USCCB Committee on Migration, which expresses concern regarding the negative consequences recent executive orders will have on the most vulnerable among us, including immigrants. Our hope, especially during this Jubilee Year, is attaining immigration reform that is faithful to three basic principles of the Church’s teaching on immigration: People have the right to migrate to sustain their lives and the lives of their families. A country has the right to regulate its borders and control immigration. A country must regulate its borders with justice and mercy. (USCCB, “Catholic Social Teaching on Immigration and the Movement of Peoples”)
As Catholics we share one faith and one baptism. As creatures fashioned by the same God, we share in the same sanctity of human life. The call and desire of every Catholic, regardless of national origin or legal status, is to worship the Almighty, and we pray that our churches may be places of peace through solemn prayer, places of grace afforded by the celebration of the Sacraments, and places of compassion provided by fellowship and accompaniment. We invite you to join us in prayer for our country and her leaders, that they may be blessed with wisdom, compassion, and openness to collaboration. We also lift in prayer our immigrant brothers and sisters and all who are marginalized, that the light of Christ will guide them to peace. During this Jubilee Year and always, may we have the desire to journey together as Pilgrims of Hope.
7 comments:
When the Vatican, Pope Francis and his minions open up their wallets, wake me up! Whether you choose to believe me, I have an intense love for the Catholic Faith, stolen from me by the leftwing loons and apostates who "implemented" Vatican II. I gave over 40 years of my life as an organist, cantor, soloist and choir member" even though I knew we had been lied to about Sacrosanctum Concilium. Thanks be to God that young Catholic faithful and priests no longer listen to these evil loons
Father McDonald:
Thank you for this post!
Mark J.
All Catholic bishops and priests are invited to accept all illegal aliens and pay for their cost out of their OWN pocket and risk jail. Render under to Caesar the Things that are Caesars and to God the things that are God's. Of course, they are more holy and knowledgeable than Jesus Christ!
Father McDonald, thank you for having posted the wonderful "Statement on Immigration, Georgia Catholic Conference." The outstanding statement in question established immediately the pro-life aspect in regard to the topic at hand.
In line with that, Pope Benedict XVI noted 15 years ago that teachings related to refugees/migrants pertain to the right-to-life. Pope Benedict XVI declared:
"Can we remain indifferent before the problems associated with such realities as climate change, desertification, the deterioration and loss of productivity in vast agricultural areas, the pollution of rivers and aquifers, the loss of biodiversity, the increase of natural catastrophes and the deforestation of equatorial and tropical regions?
"Can we disregard the growing phenomenon of “environmental refugees”, people who are forced by the degradation of their natural habitat to forsake it – and often their possessions as well – in order to face the dangers and uncertainties of forced displacement?
"All these are issues with a profound impact on the exercise of human rights, such as the right to life, food, health and development."
In regard to the second paragraph of the statement from the bishops of Georgia: The bishops made it clear that their teachings in regard to "migrants and displaced people" have been issued in communion with Pope Francis.
The bishops of Georgia then noted their communion with their brother bishops throughout America. The bishops of Georgia declared:
"We wish to affirm the recent statement by Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio (Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA), President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Bishop Mark J. Seitz (Diocese of El Paso), Chair of the USCCB Committee on Migration, which expresses concern regarding the negative consequences recent executive orders will have on the most vulnerable among us, including immigrants."
The statement in question from the bishops of Georgia is
holy and uplifting.
Pax.
Mark Thomas
Mark Thomas,
How many illegal aliens are you supporting on your dime?
Should the US admit the entire world population into the US?
TJM:
I am certainly prepared to believe you. My cradle Catholic mother, who was a teenager and then a young woman in Hitler’s Germany until she married my Anglican English father in 1947, was estranged from the Catholic Church for many years, in part because of the changes wrought by Vatican II and in part because they were married by the British army, outside the Catholic Church. Why they had to marry outside the Church is a long story, but it has a happy ending. When my father became a Catholic in the late 1970s, at about the same time I did (although for different reasons), the Church blessed their marriage and my mother returned to the Church, attending weekly Mass, etc. My point is that although she was still unhappy about the changes made by Vatican II, she made the best of it. Perhaps you can too.
Mark J.
Mark J,
That must have been chilling for your mother, growing up in Hitler's Germany. Her faith journey is similar to my paternal grandmother's who eventually returned to the Church.
Even though I objected strenuously to most of the liturgical changes (the only one I liked was dumping the Last Gospel) I gave over 40 years to the Church as an amateur musician, starting at age 8 in a Gregorian Chant Schola, being pulled out of the altar boys at age 12 to serve as a Cantor, then on to choirs and being a soloist, as well as an organist. So even though I did not care for the initially changed Mass and eventually the Novus Ordo, I still offered my musical talents to the Church. It was not without its benefits because I was able to interject Latin hymns and chants at Mass and even liberal pastors did not object because they appreciated what I was otherwise providing to the Church. I am a much happier older Catholic, because the TLM and Novus Ordo is available to me in Latin along with the treasures of our Sacred Music and my little country parish church uses the Propers on Sunday and the Roman Canon, sometimes in Latin. Our pastor is in his mid-thirties and is able to celebrate the TLM and offers the Novus Ordo with tremendous dignity and style. He kind of laughs when Francis' name comes up but never says anything disrespectful (pastor is a West Point graduate). Frankly, if things had not begun changing for the better under Pope Benedict, who knows what would have happened to me. I view Pope Francis as the last gasp of the doubleknit dinosaurs in the Church which interprets Vatican II in a mostly offensive way. He should have stuck with Pope Benedict's plan for the liturgy. At least in the 3 parishes I belonged to over those years there was peaceful co-existence between progressives and traditionalists.
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