As Trump talks deportation, bishop sends message on immigrants' dignity
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&view=post&articleid=146909&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
By Rhina GuidosBALTIMORE (CNS) -- In a letter read Nov. 14 during the fall general assembly of the U.S.Conference of Catholic Bishops, the chairman of the bishops' Committee onMigration, Auxiliary Bishop Eusebio Elizondo of Seattle, called on President-electDonald Trump "to continue to protectthe inherent dignity of refugees and migrants."In a television interview Nov. 13, Trump said he islooking at a plan to deport 2 million to 3 million people whom he described as "criminal and have criminal records" and entered the country without permission. A day later, the U.S. bishops, meeting in Baltimore, affirmed Bishop Elizondo's letter encouraging efforts"to work together to promote the common good, especially those to protect themost vulnerable among us."In the letter, first released late Nov. 11, Bishop Elizondo said he was praying for Trump, "all electedofficials and those who will work in the new administration. I offer a specialword to migrant and refugee families living in the Un...
By Rhina Guidos
BALTIMORE (CNS) -- In a letter read Nov. 14 during the fall general assembly of the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops, the chairman of the bishops' Committee on
Migration, Auxiliary Bishop Eusebio Elizondo of Seattle, called on President-elect
Donald Trump "to continue to protect
the inherent dignity of refugees and migrants."
In a television interview Nov. 13, Trump said he is
looking at a plan to deport 2 million to 3 million people whom he described as "criminal and have criminal records" and entered the country without permission. A day later, the U.S. bishops, meeting in Baltimore, affirmed Bishop Elizondo's letter encouraging efforts
"to work together to promote the common good, especially those to protect the
most vulnerable among us."
In the letter, first released late Nov. 11, Bishop Elizondo said he was praying for Trump, "all elected
officials and those who will work in the new administration. I offer a special
word to migrant and refugee families living in the United States: Be assured of
our solidarity and continued accompaniment as you work for a better life."
Bishop Elizondo asked for the protection of the family unit, as "the cornerstone of
society," and asked that the new administration recognize the contributions of
refugees and immigrants "to the overall prosperity and well-being of our
nation."
He said the migration committee would continue to work to protect
human policies for refugees and immigrants and their inherent dignity.
"Serving and welcoming people fleeing violence and conflict in various regions
of the world is part of our identity as Catholics," he said. "The church will
continue this life-saving tradition."
With more than 65 million forcibly displaced around the
world, he said, "the need to welcome refugees and provide freedom from persecution is
more acute than ever, and 80 of our dioceses across the country are eager to
continue this wonderful act of accompaniment born of our Christian faith."
Trump, during his campaign, vowed to build a
wall at the U.S.-Mexico border and have Mexico pay for it and deport 11 million immigrants who have entered the country illegally by using a "deportation force." He also said he would ban
Muslims from entering the country and he called for a "pause" in allowing refugees into the country until some form of "extreme vetting" of their background could be put in place.
During his interview with CBS, he told interviewer Lesley Stahl: "What
we are going to do is get the people that are criminal and have criminal
records, gang members, drug dealers. We have a lot of these people, probably
2 million, it could be even 3 million. We are getting them out of our
country or we are going to incarcerate. But we're getting them out of our
country, they're here illegally."
Bishop Elizondo said the bishops' committee was willing
to work with the new administration "to continue to ensure that refugees are
humanely welcomed without sacrificing our security or our core values as
Americans," adding that "a duty to welcome and protect newcomers, particularly
refugees, is an integral part of our mission to help our neighbors in need."
- - -
Follow Guidos on Twitter: @CNS_Rhina.
- - -
Copyright © 2016 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. www.catholicnews.com. All rights reserved. Republishing or redistributing of CNS content, including by framing or similar means without prior permission, is prohibited. You may link to stories on our public site. This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. To request permission for republishing or redistributing of CNS content, please contact permissions at cns@catholicnews.com.
Full Article
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275467&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Pope Francis waves while traveling by boat in Venice, Italy, for a meeting with young people at the Basilica della Madonna della Salute on April 28, 2024. Earlier in the day he met with inmates at a women's prison. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 08:00 am (CNA).Pope Francis opened his one-day visit to Venice on Sunday morning with a meeting with female inmates where he reaffirmed the importance of fraternity and human dignity, noting that prison can be a place of new beginnings. "A stay in prison can mark the beginning of something new, through the rediscovery of the unsuspected beauty in us and in others, as symbolized by the artistic event you are hosting and the project to which you actively contribute," the pope said to the female inmates gathered in the intimate courtyard of the Women's Prison on the Island of Giudecca. Pope Francis left the Vatican by helicopter at approximately 6:30 in the mo...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275466&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Pope Francis prays in front of the tomb of St. Mark the Evangelist inside St. Mark's Basilica in Venice on April 28, 2024. / Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNARome Newsroom, Apr 28, 2024 / 09:35 am (CNA).Pope Francis had a full slate of events Sunday during his day trip to Venice, a trip that tied together a message of unity and fraternity with the artistic patrimony of a city that has been a privileged place of encounter across the centuries. "Faith in Jesus, the bond with him, does not imprison our freedom. On the contrary, it opens us to receive the sap of God's love, which multiplies our joy, takes care of us like a skilled vintner, and brings forth shoots even when the soil of our life becomes arid," the pope said to over 10,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Mark's Square. Framing his homily during the Mass on the theme of unity, one of the central points articulated throughout several audiences spread across the morning, Pope Francis reminded Christians: "Remaining ...
http://www.myspiritfm.com/apps/articles/default.asp?blogid=0&url=10&view=post&articleid=275461&link=1&fldKeywords=&fldAuthor=&fldTopic=0
Prayer house at San Simeone, Italy, September 2012. / Credit: Courtesy of Ricostruttori nella preghieraRome, Italy, Apr 28, 2024 / 06:00 am (CNA).Across Italy there are houses of prayer run by the Ricostruttori (Reconstructors) community, a Catholic movement dedicated to people who are far from the Church but attracted to spirituality, particularly Eastern meditation and Buddhist practices. The Reconstructors was founded in 1978 by Jesuit Father Gian Vittorio Cappelletto. "During the postconciliar period, the Church was faced with the need for new forms of evangelization and apostolate, to reach out to people who were drifting away," Don Roberto Rondanina, priest and superior of the Ricostruttori, explained to CNA. "It was a time when Eastern meditation, Hinduism, Buddhism, the New Age ... were beginning to spread in Europe." "Father Cappelletto, who lived in Turin, sought to understand the meaning of this 'flight to the East' and felt the need to find new forms of sp...