immigration

Many attended one of several informational forums taking place at parishes around the diocese intended to educate and inform Mexican citizens of their civil and human rights.

Pope Francis speaks to the defense of the life, dignity and human rights of migrants and refugees and the current global migration crisis requires international cooperation and policies that “respect both those who welcome and those who are welcomed.”

As Christians, we know we don’t arrive at the joy of Easter until we walk with Christ in his suffering on Good Friday.

This year especially, before we unthinkingly put on our green shirts for the Irish March 17 or our red sweaters for the Italians March 19 or 20, we should pause to remember the past and the lessons it teaches us.

In a time of personal crisis, immigrants in the country without documents are turning in large numbers to their church for spiritual counsel and practical legal assistance through Catholic Charities.

Within hours of President Donald Trump’s new executive order March 6 banning refugees from six majority-Muslim nations, Catholic and other religious groups joined secular leaders in questioning the wisdom of such a move, with others vowing to oppose it outright.

Recalling that Pope Benedict XVI once said that those who live with hope live differently, Auxiliary Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville of Washington said faith communities have a lot to offer immigrant, refugee and other communities currently experiencing fear.

The breadth of President Donald Trump’s authority to limit refugees entering the United States will be fought in federal court and some of the legal challenges ultimately may end up before the U.S. Supreme Court.