Reaction to Benedict XVI in Brazil: Our Lady of Guadalupe Bridges the Gap
By Mark and Louise Zwick
Pope Benedict XVI was criticized when he said at the V General Conference of CELAM in Aparecida, Brazil, that the evangelization of Latin America did not impose a foreign culture, but brought to fullness and purified the indigenous religions, where God had already been present. While there has been in recent years an emphasis on respect for all religions, including indigenous religions, one can hardly deny the need for purification of old religions in terms of some practices, e.g., human sacrifice.
Benedict was not speaking in a positive way of the cruel practices of the conquistadores, just as the defenders of indigenous religions would not defend the enslavement of some tribal peoples by other indigenous groups. Rather, he expressed in theological terms the relationship between faith and culture: Christ, being in truth the incarnate Logos, "love to the end", is not alien to any culture, nor to any person; on the contrary, the response that he seeks in the heart of cultures is what gives them their ultimate identity, uniting humanity and at the same time respecting the wealth of diversity, opening people everywhere to growth in genuine humanity, in authentic progress. The Word of God, in becoming flesh in Jesus Christ, also became history and culture.”
It is easier for us to understand the Holy Father's remarks when we reflect on the key to the evangelization of Latin America, Our Lady of Guadalupe, who appeared in “New Spain” in 1531 and transformed the whole religious and cultural landscape. The bishops and priests had been trying to bring Christianity to the people, in this case notably the Franciscans in the area of what is now Mexico City, but the efforts of these good men were hampered by the cruel practices of the conquistadores. They failed miserable. There were very few converts. History is a witness of the allergy to conversion of the people in the early years of the conquest.
The evangelization was perpetrated by God through Our Lady of Guadalupe. She is the one who brought the faith to millions—and without military might. Where Spaniards had failed in attempting to convert Mexicans, the Blessed Mother who appeared to Juan Diego succeeded. If there was any force, it was on her part—the force of love for the poorest, for those who suffer.
If anyone forced evangeli-zation, it was Our Lady of Guadalupe who impacted the Mexican people so strongly that they could not escape her mantle. The force of conversion was provided through God's love when the force of conquistadores failed who tried baptism by blood.
At the time of the conquest, when Juan Diego lived, many of the invaders thought the indigenous people did not even have souls and that therefore did not have the right to own anything and should be subject. They were treated badly and enslaved. They were forbidden to speak their own language. With the conquistadores, however, came missionaries who wanted to share their faith with them. It was hard going, of course, because of the terrible treatment they were receiving. Only a very few natives had become Christian.
One of those who had become Catholic was Juan Diego, who had been baptized and frequently received the sacraments. Devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Mother of God, was very much a part of the evangelization in Christ which Juan Diego had received.
The missionaries defended the natives, especially Franciscan Bishop Zumárraga of Mexico City (The book by Eduardo Chavez Sanchez, Juan Diego, Una Vida de Santidad que Marcó la Historia; Mexico City, Editorial Porrúa, 2002 recounts in detail this history). Eduardo Chavez Sanchez was the postulator for Juan Diego's cause, and he presented research from original sources from the time of Juan Diego.
According to Chavez, Hernán Cortés and the other conquistadores attended Mass where Bishop Zumárraga celebrated. When he began to denounce the cruel behavior of the conquistadores week after week, Cortés and the others simply stopped going to Mass. Because of his strong critique of injustices on the part of those in charge of the government, the Bishop was threatened and lies were made up about him to discredit him and to try to have him replaced.
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Pope Benedict XVI was criticized when he said at the V General Conference of CELAM in Aparecida, Brazil, that the evangelization of Latin America did not impose a foreign culture, but brought to fullness and purified the indigenous religions, where God had already been present. While there has been in recent years an emphasis on respect for all religions, including indigenous religions, one can hardly deny the need for purification of old religions in terms of some practices, e.g., human sacrifice.
Benedict was not speaking in a positive way of the cruel practices of the conquistadores, just as the defenders of indigenous religions would not defend the enslavement of some tribal peoples by other indigenous groups. Rather, he expressed in theological terms the relationship between faith and culture: Christ, being in truth the incarnate Logos, "love to the end", is not alien to any culture, nor to any person; on the contrary, the response that he seeks in the heart of cultures is what gives them their ultimate identity, uniting humanity and at the same time respecting the wealth of diversity, opening people everywhere to growth in genuine humanity, in authentic progress. The Word of God, in becoming flesh in Jesus Christ, also became history and culture.”
It is easier for us to understand the Holy Father's remarks when we reflect on the key to the evangelization of Latin America, Our Lady of Guadalupe, who appeared in “New Spain” in 1531 and transformed the whole religious and cultural landscape. The bishops and priests had been trying to bring Christianity to the people, in this case notably the Franciscans in the area of what is now Mexico City, but the efforts of these good men were hampered by the cruel practices of the conquistadores. They failed miserable. There were very few converts. History is a witness of the allergy to conversion of the people in the early years of the conquest.
The evangelization was perpetrated by God through Our Lady of Guadalupe. She is the one who brought the faith to millions—and without military might. Where Spaniards had failed in attempting to convert Mexicans, the Blessed Mother who appeared to Juan Diego succeeded. If there was any force, it was on her part—the force of love for the poorest, for those who suffer.
If anyone forced evangeli-zation, it was Our Lady of Guadalupe who impacted the Mexican people so strongly that they could not escape her mantle. The force of conversion was provided through God's love when the force of conquistadores failed who tried baptism by blood.
At the time of the conquest, when Juan Diego lived, many of the invaders thought the indigenous people did not even have souls and that therefore did not have the right to own anything and should be subject. They were treated badly and enslaved. They were forbidden to speak their own language. With the conquistadores, however, came missionaries who wanted to share their faith with them. It was hard going, of course, because of the terrible treatment they were receiving. Only a very few natives had become Christian.
One of those who had become Catholic was Juan Diego, who had been baptized and frequently received the sacraments. Devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Mother of God, was very much a part of the evangelization in Christ which Juan Diego had received.
The missionaries defended the natives, especially Franciscan Bishop Zumárraga of Mexico City (The book by Eduardo Chavez Sanchez, Juan Diego, Una Vida de Santidad que Marcó la Historia; Mexico City, Editorial Porrúa, 2002 recounts in detail this history). Eduardo Chavez Sanchez was the postulator for Juan Diego's cause, and he presented research from original sources from the time of Juan Diego.
According to Chavez, Hernán Cortés and the other conquistadores attended Mass where Bishop Zumárraga celebrated. When he began to denounce the cruel behavior of the conquistadores week after week, Cortés and the others simply stopped going to Mass. Because of his strong critique of injustices on the part of those in charge of the government, the Bishop was threatened and lies were made up about him to discredit him and to try to have him replaced.
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Vatican Stresses Migrant Rights And Their Families Must Be Protected
By Santificarnos.com
The Vatican made public Tuesday afternoon a speech delivered by Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, during the Global Forum on Migration and Development, held in Brussels, Belgium from July 9 to 11.
Speaking English, the archbishop recalled how "migrants contribute to their host country's well-being, and also because of this their human dignity must be respected and their freedoms guaranteed: the right to a dignified life, to fair treatment at work, to have access to education, health and other social benefits, to grow in competence and develop humanly, to freely manifest their culture and practice their religion.
"But rights and duties go together," he added. "Therefore, at the same time, migrants have the duty to respect the identity and the laws of the country of residence, strive for proper integration (not assimilation) into the host society and learn its language. They are to foster esteem and respect for their host country, even to the point of loving and defending it.
"Unfortunately, among them there are immigrants in an irregular situation, who, however, independently of their legal status, have inalienable human dignity. Therefore their rights must be safeguarded and not ignored or violated. An irregular migration status, in fact, does not mean criminality. The solution is better international cooperation that discourages irregularity, with increased legal channels for migration."
Archbishop Marchetto concluded his talk by renewing the call made by the Pope in his Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees for "governments who have not yet done so, to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and the Members of their Families."
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The Vatican made public Tuesday afternoon a speech delivered by Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, during the Global Forum on Migration and Development, held in Brussels, Belgium from July 9 to 11.
Speaking English, the archbishop recalled how "migrants contribute to their host country's well-being, and also because of this their human dignity must be respected and their freedoms guaranteed: the right to a dignified life, to fair treatment at work, to have access to education, health and other social benefits, to grow in competence and develop humanly, to freely manifest their culture and practice their religion.
"But rights and duties go together," he added. "Therefore, at the same time, migrants have the duty to respect the identity and the laws of the country of residence, strive for proper integration (not assimilation) into the host society and learn its language. They are to foster esteem and respect for their host country, even to the point of loving and defending it.
"Unfortunately, among them there are immigrants in an irregular situation, who, however, independently of their legal status, have inalienable human dignity. Therefore their rights must be safeguarded and not ignored or violated. An irregular migration status, in fact, does not mean criminality. The solution is better international cooperation that discourages irregularity, with increased legal channels for migration."
Archbishop Marchetto concluded his talk by renewing the call made by the Pope in his Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees for "governments who have not yet done so, to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of the Rights of all Migrant Workers and the Members of their Families."
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San Diego Minutemen Gin Up Catholic Bashing
By William Donahue
Yesterday, the Catholic League criticized the anti-Catholic bigotry displayed by the San Diego Minutemen against St. Peter's Church in Fallbrook, California. The anti-illegal immigrant group is protesting the cooperation that the church's pastor, Father Edward "Bud" Kaicher, has shown in helping day laborers find employment in the San Diego suburb.
Today, the group accused the Catholic League of creating "hatred amongst Catholics nationwide against Americans standing up for what’s right and legal." It also accused the illegal immigrants of increasing "crime and disease in our communities," and said that the "corrupt Catholic church" was committing "outrageous crimes and deeds."
We have learned that the San Diego Minutemen are unaffiliated with either the Minuteman Project or the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps. As such, our comments are solely directed at the San Diego Minutemen.
The Catholic League is calling upon non-Latino Catholics in Southern California to join with Latino Catholics to condemn the flagrant anti-Catholic bigotry of the San Diego Minutemen.
Regardless of whether one is sympathetic or not to the plight of illegal immigrants -and/or the grievances of legal immigrants - there is one issue that all fair-minded persons should be able to agree upon: there is no role for bigotry in this dispute.
We are prepared to work with other Catholic organizations in the San Diego area to put an end to the Catholic bashing. To think there can be a realistic chance of achieving reconciliation without first addressing the issue of anti-Catholicism is pure nonsense.
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Yesterday, the Catholic League criticized the anti-Catholic bigotry displayed by the San Diego Minutemen against St. Peter's Church in Fallbrook, California. The anti-illegal immigrant group is protesting the cooperation that the church's pastor, Father Edward "Bud" Kaicher, has shown in helping day laborers find employment in the San Diego suburb.
Today, the group accused the Catholic League of creating "hatred amongst Catholics nationwide against Americans standing up for what’s right and legal." It also accused the illegal immigrants of increasing "crime and disease in our communities," and said that the "corrupt Catholic church" was committing "outrageous crimes and deeds."
We have learned that the San Diego Minutemen are unaffiliated with either the Minuteman Project or the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps. As such, our comments are solely directed at the San Diego Minutemen.
The Catholic League is calling upon non-Latino Catholics in Southern California to join with Latino Catholics to condemn the flagrant anti-Catholic bigotry of the San Diego Minutemen.
Regardless of whether one is sympathetic or not to the plight of illegal immigrants -and/or the grievances of legal immigrants - there is one issue that all fair-minded persons should be able to agree upon: there is no role for bigotry in this dispute.
We are prepared to work with other Catholic organizations in the San Diego area to put an end to the Catholic bashing. To think there can be a realistic chance of achieving reconciliation without first addressing the issue of anti-Catholicism is pure nonsense.
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Europe Faces The Challenge Of An Ageing Population
By Santificarnos.com
According to U.S. Census Bureau estimates, the world population as a whole will experience a slowdown in growth (down from 1.23% per year in 2000 to 0.46% in 2050) and an ageing process (the proportion of over-65s is predicted to increase from 6.9% of the total in 2000 to 16.4% in 2050).
The outlook for Europe is particularly worrying. The EU-25 is fast approaching negative natural growth -which immigration will not be sufficient to counteract- and a rapidly ageing population. The prospects for the United States are more encouraging. Despite some ageing, the U.S. has its population growth guaranteed by the birth rate and immigration.
It is calculated that the U.S. population will increase by 67 million between 2000 and 2025, and by a further 70 million between 2025 and 2050, whereas the EU-25 will grow by only 6 million to 2025, and then lose 31 million by 2050. At the same time, the ageing of the population will be much more marked in Europe than in the United States. By 2025, the average age of Europeans will increase by seven years, compared to three or four years in the United States.
How will population ageing affect the economies of the two great powers? Is it a threat to Europe's economic growth? These are some of the issues addressed by Professor Antonio Argandoña of IESE in the article "Europa frente a Estados Unidos: el factor demográfico" ("Europe vs. the United States: the demographic factor"). The results of his comparative analysis of the impact of demographic change in the United States and Europe are clearly unfavorable to Europe.
According to Argandoña's diagnosis, the ageing of the European population will have a double negative effect on the economy. on the one hand, it will lead to a shrinking of the labor force. By 2025, the EU-25 will lose 13 million citizens in the 15-64 age bracket, and a further 47 million by 2050, compared with increases of 30 and 34 million in the United States. That will result in a dwindling, and eventually negative, contribution to GDP growth, and a steeper increase in wages. Furthermore, Argandoña fears that the ageing of the population may undermine job creation and weaken the entrepreneurial spirit. That would hinder the adoption of the innovations that are vital in order to ensure productivity growth. In his view, "the possibility of long-term low economic growth in Europe cannot be ignored".
At the same time, population ageing will increase the dependency rate. The population over 65 is predicted to increase, as a proportion of the labor force, from 24% in 2000 to 35% in 2025, and to 52% by 2050, compared to 19%, 29% and 35%, respectively, in the United States. Owing to the increasing number of retirees and the fact that people live longer, health care costs and the total pension cost in Europe will rise. And on top of all that, because the working age population that sustains the growing retired population will shrink, the pressure on the public purse will be even greater.
Added to these demographic effects are other, structural factors that widen the productivity gap between the EU-25 and the United States. They include a lower activity rate, a smaller number of hours worked per year, and early retirement. What adjustments and changes will Europe have to make if it wants to avoid becoming even less competitive compared to the United States?
Argandoña suggests extending private pension schemes, raising the retirement age, and cutting state pension benefits. Even so, lower growth may reduce capital market returns, or the funds may end up coming from other countries, which would entail a transfer of ownership of Europe's financial and productive capital into foreign hands. Population ageing may also reduce the savings rate and so reinforce Europe's reliance on foreign capital, which in turn would push up interest rates.
In short, the demographic and economic outlook for Europe is anything but rosy, particularly compared with the United States. Nevertheless, although these changes "are very likely to take place, because demographic movements have considerable inertia", Argandoña remains optimistic and does not believe that the looming crisis is insurmountable. He does, however, urge the EU not to sit back and wait for it to happen, but instead to rise to the challenge of population ageing, even if it demands certain sacrifices.
This article was published in Spanish in the book "Europa-Estados Unidos: flexibilidad, crecimiento y bienestar" by Círculo de Empresarios, Madrid, December 2004, pages 13-25.
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San Diego Minutemen Harass Catholics
By William Donahue
The San Diego Minutemen have chosen to target St. Peter's Church in Fallbrook, California, and some of the protests have been accompanied by anti-Catholic bigotry.
Father Edward "Bud" Kaicher, pastor of the suburban San Diego parish, has extended a helping hand to day workers seeking employment in the area, and for this he has been displayed in effigy as Satan.
Worse, the right-wing brigade of Minutemen has harassed Catholics going to church, used bullhorns to spout their invective, have uttered patently anti-Catholic remarks at parishioners and have even stooped so low as to intimidate little kids on the day of their First Communion.
Showing how incredibly debased and uncivil they are, the San Diego Minutemen have sought to paint all priests as pedophiles and have pledged to continue their incivility all summer long.
To top it off, the xenophobes are illiterate. "With all the pediphelia [sic] problems going on in the church," a posting on its Internet site says, "it makes no sense to have 50 loitering men watching little children playing on the playground each morning."
There are legitimate ways to protest. This is not one of them.
By succumbing to anti-Catholic bigotry and harassment, the San Diego Minutemen have discredited their cause and have no moral grounds upon which to make their appeal. They should be opposed not only by Latino Catholics, but by all Catholics.
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Integrating Immigrants Into Society: A Task For Companies?
By Santificarnos.com
The integration of immigrants into the Spanish labor market depends more on what companies do than on the initiatives of central and local government, NGOs, unions, or employers' associations, although that is not to say that the latter do not also have an important role to play, as "all involved will have to make a major effort, given the likely scale of immigration in the foreseeable future. What seems certain, however, is that if they play their role in collaboration with companies, be they state-owned, private or non-profit, their activities will be that much more effective and efficient."
That is the main conclusion reached by Professor José Ramón Pin, Luis López Soriano and Ángela Gallifa in the "Libro Blanco sobre las Mejores Prácticas para la Integración del Trabajador Inmigrante en las Empresas Españolas" ("White Book on Best Practices for the Integration of Immigrant Workers in Spanish Companies"). In this study, the authors not only analyze the general state of immigration and the associated labor market problems; they also describe the experience of several companies that hire or organize the hiring of large numbers of immigrants and have made efforts to help them integrate in Spanish society.
The authors scrupulously avoid presenting immigration as a "problem". Not only do they consider it a "fact of life", they also insist that it can make significant contributions to the host country, to the extent that immigration could even be seen as "enlightened self-interest". The authors affirm that "immigrants contribute significantly to the national economy and will be important in the labor market. Between 2002 and 2004, Social Security number applications by immigrants grew at a rate of 8.13% (IRCO-IESE Labor Euroindex), while the rate for the system as a whole was 6%. Also, immigrants pay into the system more than they get out of it". Some indicators show that certain sectors have discovered new business opportunities, such as language schools for learning the local language, banks for transferring migrants' remittances to their home countries, temporary agencies, rental housing, telephone companies for communicating with their families, transportation companies, and others.
Legislation and law enforcement are not enough
Pin, López Soriano and Gallifa argue that the citizens of a country that receives immigration should be pleased, as it is a sign that they are in an enviable position, and that others are coming to their country to escape the difficulties or underdevelopment they have to endure in their own countries. At the same time, they acknowledge that in all receiving countries, including Spain, there is a large number of irregular immigrants, and that this disturbs the labor market and gives rise to a type of social exclusion that is difficult to overcome.
For the authors of the White Book, "legislation and law enforcement as means of containing irregular immigration, though necessary, will never be sufficient. The pressure on migrants to leave their countries of origin is too great, due to prevailing economic, social and political conditions. Every so often, therefore, there will have to be a legalization process." They add that "only when conditions in the countries of origin are improved will immigration become a regular, controllable process." They therefore advocate giving development aid to poor countries, arguing that "it is not just a show of solidarity, but also an investment", as indirectly it helps to bring immigration under control.
They further point out that government and NGO-backed initiatives in legislation, health care, education and social welfare in host countries are necessary but insufficient, as "although they alleviate some of the harmful effects of the social exclusion that sometimes accompanies immigration, they do not go to the root of the problem. To do that they would have to offer immigrants employment and a career future. After all, that is the main reason why they have immigrated."
The authors also criticize the fact that, although the European Union, through its directives and the "Green Book", promotes labor market policies of non-discrimination and non-exclusion, the Member States are not interested enough in actually applying them.
Decentralization improves effectiveness
The White Book pays particular attention to immigration policy and the situation of immigrants in Spain, although it also reviews the situation in other European Union countries and Switzerland. Substantial differences exist between countries. The most extreme cases are Austria, with its greater protection of nationals compared with immigrants; and Holland, which (until the latest government took power) was the country most open to immigration, placing immigrants on an equal footing with nationals. In any case, all the European countries are now taking measures to curb and control the flow of immigrants. Strictest in this respect is Switzerland.
Generally speaking, the terms of employment for immigrants in low-skilled jobs are worse than for nationals. Wages among immigrants are lower, the proportion of temporary employment is higher, and job insecurity is greater. The fact that the countries of the Mediterranean Basin have large grey economies encourages high levels of illegal immigration.
Not all immigrants are uneducated, quite the contrary. They include many highly educated and highly trained individuals who are unable to find employment in their home countries, although in their host country often they are confined to relatively unskilled jobs. In the medium term, bringing these people into the formal labor market is particularly important for the host country.
According to Pin, Gallifa and López Soriano, experience shows that "decentralizing decision making to the level of the region -in Spain, that means the Autonomous Community- or municipality, or to the level of the industrial sector or individual company, makes for more efficient hiring and integration of immigrant workers. Integration appears to work best when it is handled at individual company level. Nonetheless, decentralization needs to go hand in hand with rigorous inspection by the public authorities to prevent abuses."
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Church Organizations Meeting To Discuss Impact Of Migration On Mediterranean Region
By Santificarnos.com
Representatives of churches, church-related organisations and ecumenical bodies associated with the World Council of Churches (WCC) from Africa, Europe and the Middle East will be gathering in Brussels from 6-9 July 2007 for a meeting on migration in and between these regions.
The participants from sending and receiving regions will focus on the issue of oordinating advocacy work directed towards the European Union and the African Union and develop advocacy strategies to be implemented in the regions with a particular emphasis on "being church together".
Current migration streams across the Mediterranean region particularly affect Africa, Europe and the Middle East and have a strong impact on the contexts in which churches live, organizers of the event argue.
In light of this, the All Africa Conference of Churches (AACC), the Churches' Commission for Migrants in Europe (CCME) and the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) have joint forces building a regional network on migration.
For the WCC and its partners, migration in today's globalized world raises questions about the issue's correlation with development, remittances, regional and inter-regional mobility, removals and readmission agreements as well as refugee protection and resettlement.
WCC Regional Networks Meeting provides a platform for the partners to identify the connections between migration and its effects on the changing ecclesial landscape. It offers a chance for wider participation both from Eastern and Western Europe.
The July gathering is hosted by the CCME. The Christian Conference of Asia attends in an observer status. Discussions will build on decisions made at the WCC Global Ecumenical Network on Migration conference held in Nairobi, 6-8 June 2007.
The meeting ends on Monday, with participants joining the Civil Society Dialogue on Migration and Development, an event organised by the Belgian King Baudouin Foundation. It brings together a broad range of non-governmen tal actors to discuss the migration and development nexus and give input to the inter-governmental Global Forum on International Migration and Development, 10-11 July.
Original source: WCC
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US Bishops Decry Failure Of Immigration Reform
The U.S. bishops decried the failure of comprehensive immigration reform legislation to move forward in the U.S. Senate.
“As a nation, we cannot continue to employ an immigration system that leads to the exploitation of millions of our fellow human beings,” said Bishop Gerald Barnes in a June 29 statement. Bishop Barnes is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration.
“We cannot accept the toil of a large underclass which does not have full rights in our society. This strikes at the very character of our nation and lessens us as a people,” he continued.
The bishop lauded those senators who worked for comprehensive reform legislation and urged all Congress members to return to this issue as soon as possible.
“The status quo is morally unacceptable and should not be allowed to stand,” Bishop Barnes said. “The U.S. bishops shall continue to point out the moral deficiencies in the immigration system and work toward justice until it is achieved.”
Source: CNA
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“As a nation, we cannot continue to employ an immigration system that leads to the exploitation of millions of our fellow human beings,” said Bishop Gerald Barnes in a June 29 statement. Bishop Barnes is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration.
“We cannot accept the toil of a large underclass which does not have full rights in our society. This strikes at the very character of our nation and lessens us as a people,” he continued.
The bishop lauded those senators who worked for comprehensive reform legislation and urged all Congress members to return to this issue as soon as possible.
“The status quo is morally unacceptable and should not be allowed to stand,” Bishop Barnes said. “The U.S. bishops shall continue to point out the moral deficiencies in the immigration system and work toward justice until it is achieved.”
Source: CNA
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Lutheran Leaders Continue To Demand US Immigration Reform
By Santificarnos.com
Ralston H. Deffenbaugh Jr., president of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and several Lutheran bishops call on Congress and the White House to renew efforts to achieve fair immigration reform.
"Now is the time for President Bush and Congress to enact a bill that is truly humane and pro-family," said LIRS President Ralston H. Deffenbaugh Jr. "LIRS has long supported comprehensive immigration reform, but the Senate bill that stalled last night fell far short of what is needed. Reform must protect family unity, secure the rights of immigrants, allow immigrant workers to come out of the shadows and live with dignity, and provide a path to permanence for those who are undocumented.
"After painstaking deliberation, we opposed the Senate bill," said Deffenbaugh. "While it would have had some positive impact in the short term, such as providing documentation to undocumented people and reducing the family backlog, the long-term consequences would have been to abandon family unity as a cornerstone of U.S. immigration law. That would have had a devastating impact on family unity. Overall, it was not the comprehensive fix that our broken immigration system requires."
"I'm disappointed with the current Senate bill," added the Rev. Gerald L. Mansholt, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America's Central States Synod. "I hope that our leaders in the Senate, the House, and the office of the president can come together to find a way to bring about comprehensive immigration reform in such a way that it lifts up the importance of the family and keeps families united, which is what the current proposal is missing this year."
"Core spiritual values unite us in this diverse cultural and religious place called America," noted the Rev. Stephen P. Bouman, bishop of the ELCA Metropolitan New York Synod. "Central to these shared values is the family. Senate Bill 1348 failed to speak to our common spiritual foundations."
"Our nation is founded on strong families that stand at the center of our communities," observed the Rev. H. Gerard Knoche, bishop of the ELCA Delaware- Maryland Synod. "The Senate's proposal turned away from that long-standing tradition and from the Christian principle that we should welcome the stranger in our homes and families."
"This proposal was very problematic," said the Rev. Paul Stumme-Diers, bishop of the ELCA Greater Milwaukee Synod. "The family is the first community for us as human beings, and is the strongest building block for creating stable, productive societies."
"Under the Senate bill U.S. citizens would have completely lost the ability to petition for adult children and siblings and would have to have waited years to unify with their parents," explained Deffenbaugh. "LIRS applauds Senators Clinton, Menendez and others for their efforts to put the principle of 'families first' back into this legislation, and we commend Senator Joseph Lieberman for an amendment that would afford greater protection to asylum seekers. That kind of resolve gives us hope that the day of truly comprehensive immigration reform will come. We call on the White House and Congress to revive real immigration reform and, in good faith, achieve a truly workable compromise."
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Ralston H. Deffenbaugh Jr., president of Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) and several Lutheran bishops call on Congress and the White House to renew efforts to achieve fair immigration reform.
"Now is the time for President Bush and Congress to enact a bill that is truly humane and pro-family," said LIRS President Ralston H. Deffenbaugh Jr. "LIRS has long supported comprehensive immigration reform, but the Senate bill that stalled last night fell far short of what is needed. Reform must protect family unity, secure the rights of immigrants, allow immigrant workers to come out of the shadows and live with dignity, and provide a path to permanence for those who are undocumented.
"After painstaking deliberation, we opposed the Senate bill," said Deffenbaugh. "While it would have had some positive impact in the short term, such as providing documentation to undocumented people and reducing the family backlog, the long-term consequences would have been to abandon family unity as a cornerstone of U.S. immigration law. That would have had a devastating impact on family unity. Overall, it was not the comprehensive fix that our broken immigration system requires."
"I'm disappointed with the current Senate bill," added the Rev. Gerald L. Mansholt, bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America's Central States Synod. "I hope that our leaders in the Senate, the House, and the office of the president can come together to find a way to bring about comprehensive immigration reform in such a way that it lifts up the importance of the family and keeps families united, which is what the current proposal is missing this year."
"Core spiritual values unite us in this diverse cultural and religious place called America," noted the Rev. Stephen P. Bouman, bishop of the ELCA Metropolitan New York Synod. "Central to these shared values is the family. Senate Bill 1348 failed to speak to our common spiritual foundations."
"Our nation is founded on strong families that stand at the center of our communities," observed the Rev. H. Gerard Knoche, bishop of the ELCA Delaware- Maryland Synod. "The Senate's proposal turned away from that long-standing tradition and from the Christian principle that we should welcome the stranger in our homes and families."
"This proposal was very problematic," said the Rev. Paul Stumme-Diers, bishop of the ELCA Greater Milwaukee Synod. "The family is the first community for us as human beings, and is the strongest building block for creating stable, productive societies."
"Under the Senate bill U.S. citizens would have completely lost the ability to petition for adult children and siblings and would have to have waited years to unify with their parents," explained Deffenbaugh. "LIRS applauds Senators Clinton, Menendez and others for their efforts to put the principle of 'families first' back into this legislation, and we commend Senator Joseph Lieberman for an amendment that would afford greater protection to asylum seekers. That kind of resolve gives us hope that the day of truly comprehensive immigration reform will come. We call on the White House and Congress to revive real immigration reform and, in good faith, achieve a truly workable compromise."
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Paradise Lost: The Toll Of Illegal Immigration In Spain
By Robert Duncan
On the southernmost tip of Tarifa's Santo Cristo de las Animas Catholic cemetery, almost two dozen illegal Muslim immigrants have found their final resting place overlooking the sea with the African mountains forming a backdrop upon the horizon.
Nearby a marble plaque lies on the ground: "In memory of the immigrants who died in the waters of the Strait of Gibraltar." Throughout the cemetery are niches marked with the singular phrase "Moroccan Immigrant."
It is said that a local Catholic priest has in the past arranged for the immigrants to be buried according to Muslim customs.
For others, however, there will be no funeral.
Such as the 11 sub-Saharan immigrants that died from cold and dehydration in 2005 while trying to raft to Spain's Canary Islands. Their bodies were tossed into the water, according to the one woman and 12 men who survived them in rickety craft. Spanish authorities began searching for the raft after finding the bodies of a man and a six-month pregnant woman that had washed up on the Canary Island coasts.
But theirs, sadly, is also the story of many more.
Immigration And The New Global Plantation
By Judith Moriarty
The real issue of the immigration crisis is lost in the orchestrated media hype of intolerance and charges of racism should anyone dare try to discuss this in a rational, coherent manner.
Small rust belt towns with their echoing factories shipped overseas are suddenly overwhelmed, and thus their tax base (meeting medical, welfare, housing, education needs) goes through the roof. Many in these small towns, absent the auto job, meat packing job (now overtaken with foreign workers), textile plants etc, have citizens working at two or three service sector jobs to survive or are on fixed incomes. They are made to support the ever escalating costs of government employees (state and local) and to pay for the obscene medical costs (ever rising) for these employees, while they are unable to afford their own basic medical needs.
None of this is discussed in the theater of these ridiculous election debates (really scripted sound byte nonsense). Why should it be? These government officials are well cared for in their medical coverage - again by taxpayers. They are afforded the best of (instant) care in the finest of hospitals. Dick Cheney's numerous heart operations - medications - and an specially equipped hospital room, in his residence is easily paid for ---by us.
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Bishops’ message for Migration Day:
Madrid (Agenzia Fides) - “You are 44 million members of one family... "you are members of the family of God " (Eph 2,19)", is the title of a message issued by the Catholic Bishops of Spain on the occasion of Migration Day in Spain Sunday 14 January. The Bishops hope the day “will be an opportunity to increase awareness of the situation and let it challenge us in the light of the word of God to make a new start with greater commitment to fulfil our duty as citizens and believers all through the year". The Bishops endorse concern for the "the migrant family", expressed in Pope Benedict XVI’s Message for International Migrants Day (18 December 2006) and his homilies on the occasion of the 5th World Meeting for Families held in Valencia, and they urge Catholics and all men and women of good will in Spain “to adopt an attitude of cordial welcome and fraternal relations with immigrant families”.
The Bishop underline the Church’s efforts with regard to Catholic immigrants and their families to make them feel at home with the same rights and duties as Spanish born individuals and families. The Bishops calls on parishes to "welcome immigrant families, help their progressive integration in parish life and grow in mutual knowledge and participation with local families". Catholic schools and other ecclesial institutions must help immigrants feel they are members of the family of God. The Bishop say the same attitude must be adopted towards Christians of other traditions such as Orthodox and Anglican Christians because "we are brother and sisters in the faith and this must be clearly seen from our fraternal behaviour".
The Bishops recall that the Church’s concern and social charity services are also offered to immigrants of other religions or no religion and they call on public administration to "adopt just and adequate measures to defend and guarantee the dignity and rights of immigrants and their families". Society must see "immigrants and their families not as a danger or a burden but as an enriching presence to be warmly welcomed and cared for as brothers and helped towards peaceful and enriching integration."
"In Spain - the Bishops write - people continue to arrive without legal requisites to guarantee work and housing and a future of hope". Noting that many immigrants are exploited the Bishops thanks those involved in arranging reception, assistance and guidance and concrete solutions to their needs. The Bishops conclude addressing immigrants, thanking them for being "a valuable contribution for society and the Church" expressing the wish that immigrants "may quickly feel at home, part of the family, so that with the help of the Lord and in a spirit of mutual respect everyone may work together to build a society of more justice, concern for others and peace, showing to the world a Christian community of children of God and brothers united despite difference of origin, culture, race, religion or nation".
The Bishop underline the Church’s efforts with regard to Catholic immigrants and their families to make them feel at home with the same rights and duties as Spanish born individuals and families. The Bishops calls on parishes to "welcome immigrant families, help their progressive integration in parish life and grow in mutual knowledge and participation with local families". Catholic schools and other ecclesial institutions must help immigrants feel they are members of the family of God. The Bishop say the same attitude must be adopted towards Christians of other traditions such as Orthodox and Anglican Christians because "we are brother and sisters in the faith and this must be clearly seen from our fraternal behaviour".
The Bishops recall that the Church’s concern and social charity services are also offered to immigrants of other religions or no religion and they call on public administration to "adopt just and adequate measures to defend and guarantee the dignity and rights of immigrants and their families". Society must see "immigrants and their families not as a danger or a burden but as an enriching presence to be warmly welcomed and cared for as brothers and helped towards peaceful and enriching integration."
"In Spain - the Bishops write - people continue to arrive without legal requisites to guarantee work and housing and a future of hope". Noting that many immigrants are exploited the Bishops thanks those involved in arranging reception, assistance and guidance and concrete solutions to their needs. The Bishops conclude addressing immigrants, thanking them for being "a valuable contribution for society and the Church" expressing the wish that immigrants "may quickly feel at home, part of the family, so that with the help of the Lord and in a spirit of mutual respect everyone may work together to build a society of more justice, concern for others and peace, showing to the world a Christian community of children of God and brothers united despite difference of origin, culture, race, religion or nation".