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Christ's Mission Is Source of Church's Care for Migrants
Source: Catholic News Service
Published: Tuesday, October 20, 2009
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A man waves a flag during an immigration rally in front of the U.S. Capitol Oct. 13.
MALVERN, Pa. (CNS)—Those who care for migrants and refugees are not motivated "simply by good will or a commitment to justice," but by the fact that the Son of God was "a stranger in a foreign land" and reached out to the marginalized, Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia said in an Oct. 8 homily.

Christ's mission "is the source and strength of our work on behalf of forced migrants and refugees, asylees and immigrants, and victims of human trafficking," the cardinal said.

In his public ministry, Christ "sought out the marginalized and those who were on the outskirts," Cardinal Rigali said. "And he went even further: He suffered, died and was buried. He went down among the dead to seek out the lost and he rose again victorious."

The cardinal gave the homily during a Mass in Malvern, in the Philadelphia Archdiocese, that was celebrated during a regional convening of Justice for Immigrants: A Journey of Hope, the U.S. bishops' campaign for comprehensive immigration reform.

The campaign's goals are to educate the public and Catholic community about migration and immigrants; create political will for positive immigration reform; work for enactment of legislative and administrative reforms based on the bishops' principles; and organize Catholic networks to help qualified immigrants obtain the benefits of reform.

Cardinal Rigali said the church's mission to migrants and refugees anticipates the time described in the Gospel of Matthew when Christ "comes in his glory" and "all the nations will be assembled before him."

"Our gathering here this morning and your work every day anticipate that gathering of the nations, that unity of the peoples, that assembly of all the citizens of the world," he said.

"There will be no walls or fences, no camps or detention centers, no raids or human smuggling, no dishonesty or violence, no exploitation by employers, and no downtrodden classes or unrecognized status," he continued. "And from that vantage point, the Lord Jesus will call together, gather into an even greater unity, those who ... have fed the hungry, given drink to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked and visited the imprisoned."

The church's welcoming of the stranger and those in need "is more than polite manners or proper etiquette," he said, because "Jesus calls us to love those who suffer" and he "abides with those who are suffering."

Cardinal Rigali continued: "When we care for victims of human trafficking, when we assist refugees in resettlement, when we advance the work of children's services, when we uphold the human dignity and human rights of those who are undocumented, when we offer haven and protection to those seeking asylum, when we offer safe passage, respect and opportunities to immigrants, we also welcome the Lord Jesus."

He said that "the work of organizing, advocacy, communication and Catholic moral teaching in social justice is our response to the voice of Jesus."

"Our moral status as a nation, as citizens and as believers is founded immediately on our ability to welcome and care for the weakest among us," he added.

He said it was no accident that the author of the day's reading from the Book of Deuteronomy used "the alien, the orphan, the widow" four times.

"In fact," he said, "the laws of worship of the Deuteronomic Code are closely aligned with caring for the poor and acting with justice. The ancient pilgrimage feasts of the Israelites required the participation of the poor for validity as worship."

Cardinal Rigali also referred to what Pope Benedict XVI said about migration in his social encyclical, Caritas in Veritate ("Charity in Truth"), released in June. He said the pope emphasized that international collaboration and cooperation are essential to human migration policies.

He quoted from the 2002 joint pastoral letter of the Mexican and U.S. bishops, "Strangers No Longer: Together on the Journey of Hope": "Conversion of mind and heart leads to communion expressed through hospitality on the part of receiving communities and a sense of belonging and welcome on the part of those in the communities where migrants are arriving."

The cardinal affirmed the church's work on behalf of "migrants and refugees, immigrants and those who seek asylum, and to victims of human trafficking and children who are orphaned, displaced and suffering."

"We seek to secure adequate medical care and nutrition, to advance education and the recognition of rights, to provide resettlement and regularization," he said." As we offer these works of charity and justice in their various forms, the Lord Jesus recognizes them and sends the Holy Spirit so that our work may help advance and deepen the unity of the children of God."

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