Event encourages students to foster a change in attitude about controversial issue

 

Immigration, one of the most debated and controversial topics in American politics, received special contemplation on campus last Tuesday, September 28.  It appeared not in a heated discussion but rather in a prayerful ceremony in the O’Neill Hall chapel with the theme, “I was a stranger and you welcomed me” (Mt 25:35).

According to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), low-skilled jobs are in high demand in the United States, but only 5,000 green cards are available annually for low-skilled workers.  A large majority of immigrants, therefore, have used illegal measures and risked their safety in order to seek new opportunities here.  Others come to the United States fleeing violence in their home countries.

The USCCB reports that 11.2 million unauthorized people currently live in the United States.  Church leaders have called upon governments and people everywhere to foster a more welcoming, supportive spirit towards immigrants.

Students concerned with the Catholic response to this important national issue initiated the prayer service in an effort to spread awareness about the need for immigration reform and to pray for those who are suffering.  In the context of the service, the meaning of such reform referred not to a political ideology but to a change in attitude towards immigrants.

Flor Flores, vice president for the Student Coalition for Immigration Reform (SCIA) and a reader at the service, told the Rover, “For me, immigration reform is not only a change in the current policies, but a change in the perception of undocumented immigrants as being … outsiders … to that of hard-working people who are willing to sacrifice everything they have to come to the United States.”

In the pastoral letter “Strangers No Longer,” the USCCB puts this change into perspective by identifying the two major duties of a government in terms of immigration policy.

“The first duty is to welcome the foreigner out of charity and respect for the human person,” the document states, “[and] the second duty is to secure one’s border and enforce the law for the sake of the common good.”

The letter goes on to highlight methods such as earned legalization and family-based immigration to reconcile these two duties, improve the immigration system, and increase moral character.  In the prayer service, the charitable, unified spirit for which the Church calls was evident as students sang together, prayed in solemn silence before the Blessed Sacrament, and expressed heartfelt and reverent petitions.

Father Ed Shea, OFM, class of ’78 and visiting this semester on sabbatical, opened the service with the simple yet heartfelt song “All Will Be Well.”  Written in 14th century England in a time of famine, Fr. Shea applied the verse’s hopeful message to the hardships that immigrants face today.

“I am part of a group called Priests for Justice for Immigrants (PJI) and have been working and praying for Comprehensive Immigration Reform for many years,” Fr. Shea told the Rover.  He pointed to the uncertainty and fear that immigrants face today and encouraged those at the prayer vigil to replace the common aversion towards foreigners with a welcoming spirit.

The service continued with a reading from Pope Francis’ address for the 2015 World Day of Migrants and Refugees.  In the letter, His Holiness asserted the need for charity and compassion in order to improve immigration conditions: “More decisive and constructive action is required, one which relies on a universal network of cooperation, based on safeguarding the dignity and centrality of every human person.”

The Holy Father has also urged governments to work for the protection of child immigrants, tens of thousands of whom have already ventured alone across the US border this year.

Later in the service, Fr. Shea related a story about one of his close friends, Jesús “Chicles” Trujillo.  After being robbed and shot in October 2006, Trujillo, an undocumented immigrant, has worked to recover and support his family without insurance, a job, or legal compensation.  Fr. Shea hopes Trujillo’s story will serve as an inspiration to students.

“Throughout his whole ordeal,” he said, “Chicles has never been resentful or angry with God or felt sorry for himself in the least.  It is such a powerful witness to me of faithfulness.”

The prayer service also included a time of silent prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, setting the focus on Christ and His words from the passage that Flores had read earlier: “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me” (Mt 25).

When students shared prayer intentions with each other later in the service, they were reminded to remember not only undocumented persons but all those who seek security, comfort, and peace for themselves and their families, such as those in Syria and Africa.  Fr. Shea then concluded the ceremony with a hopeful prayer and a sign of peace.

Prayer services for comprehensive immigration reform are being planned on a monthly basis, with the next on October 28 at 8 p.m. in the O’Neill Hall chapel.

Sophia Buono is a freshman who plans to pursue either English or the Program of Liberal Studies as a major.  She enjoys singing, reading, and writing, and hopes to publish her first novel soon.  Contact Sophia at sbuono@nd.edu.