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Redefine Immigration Debate
As we have been telling you, the immediate future looks a bit grim for those who work on trying to improve the lot of immigrants in the United States.
After all, the presidential candidates are trying to outdo each other in espousing harsher approaches to handling illegal immigration.
There’s essentially no chance of a comprehensive immigration bill moving through Congress until after the presidential election in November.
In New York State, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio was just about the only one who agreed with Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s proposal not to use immigration status as a criterion for a driver’s license. Even the governor, who was steamrolled by public opinion, pulled back on that one.
Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City, the new chairman of the U.S. bishops’ migration committee, recently spoke with Catholic News Service. He was optimistic that the Church’s faith-based position on aiding immigrants will eventually win the day. His approach is one of changing hearts and minds.
Teachings based upon the words and actions of Jesus and the Catholic Church’s history of welcoming immigrants go a long way in giving the Church an edge in trying to shape attitudes and public policy, said Bishop Wester.
That starts with leadership at the parish level, with Catholics being reminded that Jesus Himself was a child refugee when His family fled to Egypt to avoid persecution and that He lived His years of ministry as a migrant, moving from place to place. That point was brought home beautifully last weekend in East New York where the parish family of St. Fortunata’s reenacted the Flight Into Egypt (see story on Page 8).
Bishop Wester rightly points out that one of the most frustrating aspects of changing hearts and minds is the competition from the shock-jocks of talk radio who dismiss the complexities of the issue with sound bites like “what part of illegal don’t you understand,” or “send them back to their own countries.”
A great deal of popularly accepted misinformation further complicates the debate, he said.
“People have come to believe they take away jobs and cause crime to go up,” said Bishop Wester. “That’s simply not true and we have the statistics to prove it, but it helps create an atmosphere.”
Another suggestion comes from former Ambassador and former Assistant Secretary of State Princeton Lyman who suggested one approach the Church might take in trying to change the tone of the immigration debate is to replace the word “amnesty” with “forgiveness.”
To many, amnesty is a bad word but its root is in forgiveness.
Lyman also recommended that the U.S. bishops make a point of linking the flawed U.S. immigration system and the growth in human trafficking and other crimes.
“There is a link between the broken immigration system, human trafficking, the drug trade and criminality,” he said. “You need to draw the connections.” We agree.
Immigration is one of the most volatile issues of our time. That’s mainly because many people link undocumented immigrants with the terrorists who brought havoc to our nation on 9-11-01. That’s another misconception. Perhaps it would help to recognize that the accused terrorists were not here illegally but were all in this country legally. That’s something to think about! There goes that excuse!
Even More Alive
Generous giving is a deep tradition in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
Since the founding of the Diocese of Brooklyn in 1853, we have grown in our understanding of what it means to be stewards of God’s gifts.
Ten years ago, that heritage evolved with a great leap forward known as the Alive in Hope Campaign. Thus was born the Alive in Hope Foundation, the Catholic Community Foundation that breathes life into the goings on of the Diocese of Brooklyn.
Together, friends and family have established a lasting foundation for our diocese, its parishes, schools and various ministries.
This generosity continues today, as individuals make restricted and unrestricted donations in memory and honor of loved ones, and in support of the foundation’s mission.
This week, we have printed a list of who received the grants this year from the Alive in Hope Foundation. Click here to see list
The listing is a cross section of the daily life of the Church in Brooklyn and Queens. It is also a reassurance that the money that was donated 10 years ago was invested wisely and continues to pay dividends that enriches church life today.
We invite you to read the listing of those who benefitted from this year’s grants. The Holy Spirit works in strange ways but sometimes the Spirit needs a few bucks to make a program work, to inspire a student, or to get the most from a lay leader.
The Diocese is wise to make such a list available. This also is an opportunity to say thank you to everyone who believes in the mission of the Church and is willing to commit some dollars to it. Alive in Hope keeps us Alive in the Spirit.
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