Eastern Oklahoma Catholic July/August 2010 : Page 3
But that said, we also must remember that everything which is political also touches upon the moral. This is obvi-ously so, since every human act has a moral dimension. For this reason, the truths of our Faith must be brought into our political conversations. Bishops – the teachers of the faith – have a serious obligation to elucidate the Christian morality of our contemporary political and social concerns. They do this in order that our political conversa-tions be brightened with the light of Christ, and our political decisions reflect Christ’s fundamental law of love. This is why when we consider the question of illegal immigration and bor-der control, as we should if we are to be responsible citizens, we should remem-ber that, before all else, we are disciples of Jesus, who said, “Inherit the Kingdom of my Father, for when I was a stranger, you welcomed me.” (cf. Matthew 25:43) It is the clear teaching of the Catholic Church that sovereign nations have the right to control their borders. Illegal im-migration is wrong and harms everyone involved in it. But the corollary of this teaching must also be upheld: When our nation’s demand for labor attracts a massive number of potential immigrants, the United States must do what it can to establish an orderly process whereby needed workers can enter the country in a legal, safe and dignified manner to obtain jobs, or to reunite themselves with family members. However, during recent years when there was a steady demand for labor, the federal government allowed mil-lions of immigrants to enter the country illegally for the sake of our economy. Neither did it protect the sovereignty of our borders, nor did it provide a realis-tic means for these needed workers to enter the country legally. Instead, the federal government left it to state and local governments to deal with the resultant chaos of millions of valuable workers who have no legal identity, no automobile insurance (and are unable to obtain it), no health cov-erage (nor funds to pay for it) and no means of acquiring legal residency. These workers are not unknown to us. They live in our neighborhoods and pray with us at Mass. We benefit every day from their labor in framing and painting our houses, roofing our office buildings, finishing our cement walks and drive-ways, harvesting and processing our food and serving us in our restaurants. These men and women broke the law by entering the country illegally; but they did this with the tacit permission of the federal government. Most have since become part of the fabric of everyday life in America, contributing by their indus-try and intelligence (as well as by their taxes) to the common good. Without detailing the deficiencies either of the new law in Arizona or of the proposed legislation in Okla-homa, let me propose five prin-ciples that might s our work in imple prehensive immigr • First, the federal g must find a way t our borders. • Next, some way m be found to give the 11-12 million undocumented workers present-ly in this coun-try some form of legal status. Legal residence is not the same as citizenship and not include the rig vote; but it would low those who are some measure of s curity from the fea detection and dep tion. Legal residen should not be gran to those convicted felony. • The federal gover ment must under critical reforms of immigration proc which would incl the creation of va avenues for migra to enter the count legally based upo formalized agreem between employers and the immigra-tion office. • Due process protections for illegal im-migrants should be restored. • Our approach to the problem of il-legal immigration must be bipartisan and, as far as possible, non-political, so as to avoid the temptation of pro-moting immigration reform in such a way as to gain political advantage over one’s legislative opponents. Civilizations and cultures always have been enriched by the peaceful movement of peoples – languages en-rich one another with new expressions and greater vocabulary, new ways of cooking are learned and enjoyed, reli-gious and cultural customs educate – and the human spirit becomes enlivened and excited in the ocess. America has benefit-om every wave of immi-grants that has come to these es. Whether brought e in slave ships or in the fevered holds of the Irish Famine Ships, whether they come as refugees from political and religious oppres-sion or as men and women who flee extreme poverty, each immigrant group has strengthened this country. The same is true today for the illegal immigrants who have come from Ireland, Honduras, Mexico or Poland. These are my sug-gestions, but, in the meantime, we must ecognize that all men and women are equal, whether they are Unit-ed States citizens or not. The command of Christ is that we love one another – and He meant this to be universal. hop Edward J. Slattery apostle July 3 | St. Anthony Mary Zaccaria, priest July 5 | St. Maria Goretti, virgin and martyr July 6 | St. Augustine Zhao Rong, priest, and his companions, martyrs July 9 | St. Henry July 13
Publication List
