THE PHENOMENON OF MIGRATION AND THE MAGISTERIUM OF THE CHURCH: NOTES FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF CATHOLIC
SOCIAL THOUGHT1
INTRODUCTION
I. SOME BACKGROUND AND DEFINITIONS
1. Mobility and migration
2. Mobility implies uprooting
3. Migration in America
4. What moves a person to migrate?
5. Migration in the context of globalization
II. WHY AND TO WHOM DOES MIGRATION CONCERN?
1. To the Church
a. Background on the question
b. Why is the Church concerned with migration?
c. Pastoral care of migrants
2. To people of good will
3. To the State
III. DOCTRINAL APPROACH
1. Biblical background
a. In the Old Testament
b. In the New Testament
c. Christians as guests in the promised land
2. Eclesiological dimension
3. Some questions from the social doctrine of the Church
a. The right to migrate
b. The right to migrate is not absolute
c. Solidarity and migration
d. The universal destiny of wealth
e. Families and migration
f. The rejection of discrimination
g. Migration and inter-religious dialogue
h. The right to just coexistence
i. Migration and human labor
j. The problem of illegal immigration
k. Crime and immigration
IV. CONCLUSIONS
1 Most of this work has been developed using as a reference the Instruction Ergamigrantes caritasChristi, from the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, Vatican City, 2004. I would like to acknowledge here Rev. Fr. Michael A. Blume, S.V.D., Undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. His paper entitled "Migration and the Social Doctrine of the Church", published in "People on the Move" nº 88-89 (April-December 2002) was a determining factor to undertake this project.
INTRODUCTION
According to Cohen2 during the next 50 years international migration is likely to remain an important component of population dynamics. In the mid-1990s, about 125 million people (2% of world population) resided outside of their country of birth or citizenship. In 1990, only 11 countries in the world had more than 2 million migrants, and they collectively had almost 70 million migrants. The larger number of migrants were found in the US (19.6 million), India (8.7 million), Pakistan (7.3 million), France (5.9 million) and Germany (5 million). The countries with the highest percent of international migrants in the total population were countries with relatively small populations. In the United Arab Emirates, Andorra, Kuwait, Monaco and Qatar, 64-90% of the population were immigrants.
UN predictions posit migration from less to more developed regions of 2.6 million people annually during 1995-2000, declining to about 2 million by 2025-2030, and remaining constant at that level until 2050. The US is anticipated to increase annually by 1.1 million of these 2 million migrants, more than 5 times the number expected to be added annually to the next largest recipient, Germany (211,000). The major sending countries are expected to be China, Mexico, India, the Philippines and Indonesia.
“In the course of these last decades, humanity has more and more taken on the features of a large village, where distances have become shorter and the network of communications more compact. The development of modern means of transportation makes it easier for people to move from one country to another, from one continent to another. Among the consequences of this significant social phenomenon is the presence of about a hundred and fifty million immigrants spread all over the different parts of the world. This fact obliges society and the Christian community to reflect in order to be able to adequately respond to these emerging challenges, at the beginning of the new millennium, in a world where men and women of different cultures and religions are called to live shoulder to shoulder with one another.”3
The examination of immigration has been a subject of particular interest in Catholic social thought. Previous Popes have emphasized the right to emigrate, but today the stress is placed on the right to immigrate. Both aspects are flip sides of the same coin, since the right to emigrate is worth nothing if no country guarantees the right to immigrate. To include both aspects, I will use preferently the term ‘migration’. From the very begining, Catholic teaching has addressed the question of migration from the perspective of the immigrant, who is usually poor and vulnerable. In today's era of globalization, where
2 Joel E. Cohen, Human population: the next half century. Science 302:1172-1175, 2003.
3 John Paul II, Message for the 88th World Day of Migration, July 25, 2001, no. 1.
communication and economic integration have brought so many benefits, it is alarming to see new barriers being erected to discourage the ordered movement of people, and increased intolerance towards immigrant populations, even those who may have been resident in a country for many years and have contributed to the prosperity and peace of that country. Thus, it is becoming more important that all people understand the phenomenon of migration. The Church, ‘expert in humanity’, is particularly well placed to offer a framework consistent with the protection of the human person. The purpose of this monograph is to offer a starting point for further study, and to illustrate the wealth of ideas and moral resources that Catholic thought has to offer.
I. SOME BACKGROUND AND DEFINITIONS
Migration has been a characteristic of human societies throughout history. The history of humankind has been marked by the movement and the integration of peoples. No country can deny that its history has been enriched through the encounter with other peoples. In general, all countries have experienced the wealth of the encounter between cultures, all have experienced the positive contribution which migrants have brought to their economy and to their societies. It is inevitable that migration will become one of the most typical dimensions of the era of globalization.
1. Mobility and migration
The United Nations Population Division reported in 2002 175 million people currently residing in a country different from their country of birth. They constitute about 3% of the world's population (ca. 5.8 billion). Sixty percent of these 'migrants' (104 million) are found in developed regions and only 40% (71 million) in less developed regions. Europe hosts 56 million, Asia 50 million, and North America 41 million. On their part, Africa hosts 16 million migrants, Central and South America 6 million, and Oceania another 6 million. We could say that approximately one of every 10 persons living in the more developed regions is a migrant, while they are one out of every 70 in developing countries. Some 2.3 million migrants move from less developed to developed regions annually, or nearly 12 million individuals during the 5-year period from 1995 to 2000.
Yet, the phenomenon of movement of peoples is not the same as migration: mobility that is chosen freely is one thing; mobility caused by ideological, political or economic constraint is an entirely different thing. Today, distinguishing between voluntary and involuntary migration and between migrants and refugees has become more difficult since the element of free choice is hardly the principal reason for people deciding to move abroad:
economic differences between countries4 as well as human rights abuses and the existence of conflicts are what force people to leave their land.
When we use the term 'migration', it is not immediately clear what is meant. Traditionally, it has been associated with some notion of permanent settlement, or at least long term sojourn. As such, the term "migrant" is intended first of all to refer to refugees and exiles in search of freedom and security outside the confines of their own country. However, in the documents of the Magisterium of the Catholic Church and its relevant institutions, this term is also used to refer to young people who study abroad and all those who leave their own country to look for better conditions of life elsewhere.
In reality, the term 'migration' is a sub-category of a more general concept of 'movement', embracing a wide variety of types and forms of human mobility. Voluntary migration has been closely associated with labor migration, which is often temporary by nature. This type of migration includes seasonal and frontier workers but also highly skilled corporate staff. There are also crossborder commuters, 'tourists' for labor purposes and petty traders. Then, there are forced migrants, including asylum seekers, refugees and those in need of temporary protection. There are also students and ‘working holiday-makers’5 . Still another group that belongs to the mobility continuum are tourists and business travelers who have the characteristics of temporary migrants and also facilitate migration since they sustain a global network of travel infrastructures. Thus, migration data, or, more properly, mobility data, examined by scholars in their analysis of international trends today, may include any one or combination of the aforementioned players of human mobility. Migration streams, seen as dynamic and pliant mobility streams, involve different types of people and motivations, have different roles and methods of insertion into host societies, and are influenced and managed by different agencies and institutions. In this context, long before academics posed this question, the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People6 had already taken all these
4 In this regard, a recent monograph by Andrew M. Yuengert: Inhabiting the land. Acton Institute, Christian Social Though Series, no. 6, 2003 sheds light on the problem. The author states that “people become immigrants because the marginal costs of immigration are greater than the marginal benefits of staying in the home country.” (p. 24).
5 Working holidaymakers refers to an arrangement where a Commonwealth citizen aged between 17 and 30 can go to the UK for an extended holiday of up to 2 years during which they can work, as long as working is not the main reason of their stay (the holiday is). http://www.britainusa.com/visas/articles_show_nt1.asp?i=65027&L1=41000&a=41059
6 In 1912, following the reform of the Roman Curia by Pope St Pius X, the first Office for Migration Problems was set up within the Consistorial Congregation. In 1970 Pope Paul VI instituted the Pontifical Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migration and Tourism, which, in 1988, with the Apostolic Constitution PastorBonus, became the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. It was entrusted with the care of all who have been forced to abandon their homeland, as well as those who have none (refugees and exiles), migrants, nomads and circus people, seafarers both aboard ship and in port, all who are away from home and those working in airports or on airplanes. The estabishment of the Pontifical
categories - and other mobile groups - as recipients of its pastoral care. The Council divides them into two groups: Migrants (migrants, refugees, international students) and Itinerant People (nomads, gypsies, circus and fair people, seafarers, air travelers and airport workers, road travelers and workers, people living on the streets, tourists and pilgrims).
The multiplicity of reasons for human mobility has been addressed by John Paul II in a variety of occasions. As an example: "The migratory phenomenon emerges today as a mass movement which largely involves the poor and needy, driven from their own countries by armed conflicts, precarious economic conditions, political, ethnic and social conflicts and natural catastrophes. But those who leave their country for other reasons are also numerous. The development of the means of transport, the rapidity of the spread of information, the multiplication of social relationships, more widespread prosperity, more free time and the growth of cultural interests have caused the movement of persons to acquire macroscopic and frequently uncontrollable dimensions, bringing a multiplicity of cultures to almost all the metropolises and giving rise to new social and economic conditions."7
All these distinctions are more important than they may seem, because of legal and political repercusions. Indeed, the political response and the legal framework that protects refugees is often different than the one that applies to labor migrants.
"Today the already high number of refugees - about seventeen million - who fall under the strict definition given by international law is doubled by the number of "displaced persons" who do not leave their own countries and are thus not legally protected. There is also a constant rise in the number of those leaving their countries in order to flee from extreme and almost crushing poverty. Although we must always distinguish between refugees and migrants, the dividing line is sometimes difficult to draw, and certain arbitrary
Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People thus responded to the desire of the Church to share the plight of migrants and refugees, and be there where they are, not to be a mere by-stander and passive observer, but to be with them in their search for a dignified human life, worthy of children of God, as Christ wishes for the world today. In this spirit, a series of World Congresses on the pastoral care of migrants and refugees were organized, and will be cited along this paper. The Fourth World Congress, which took place in 1998, dealt with "Migration at the Threshold of the Third Millennium." As a follow-up of the Congress, the Pontifical Council organized four Regional Meetings (Asia-Pacific, Africa, Europe, America) of National Directors for the Pastoral Care of Migrants, officially designated as such by their respective Episcopal Conferences. This concluded with a World Meeting. All these meetings aimed to find out how the local Churches were actually responding to the situation and determine ways by which they could be more effective in the pastoral field. The Fifth World Congress was held in Rome, November 18 to 22, 2003, with the title: "Starting Afresh from Christ. Towards a New Pastoral Care for Migrants and Refugees."
7 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, August 21, 1996, 1
interpretations support restrictive policies that are hardly in keeping with respect for the human person."8
"In the case of the so-called "economic migrants", justice and equity demand that appropriate distinctions be made. Those who flee economic conditions that threaten their lives and physical safety must be treated differently from those who emigrate simply to improve their position."9
2. Mobility implies uprooting
Mobility always implies an uprooting from the original environment, often translated into an experience of marked solitude accompanied by the risk of fading into anonymity. This situation may lead to a rejection of the new environment, but also to accepting it acritically. At times, there could even be a willingness to undergo a passive modernization, which could easily be the source of cultural and social alienation. Human mobility means numerous possibilities to be open, to meet, to assemble; however it is not possible to ignore the fact that it also brings about manifestations of individual and collective rejection, a fruit of closed mentalities that are encountered in societies beset by imbalance and fear. This rejection is often manifested in such actitudes as racism, xenophobia and nationalism. Thus, the increased mobility of peoples demands more than ever an openness to others.
"The movement of peoples, as previously stated, has accelerated in recent years for various reasons, which are often dramatic (wars, forced displacement, natural disasters, etc.). As the number of foreigners grows, some people become alarmed and demand, for instance, "zero immigration" laws, or indulge in still more violent forms of behaviour (cfr. Part II of the document published by the Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace ‘The Church and Racism: Towards a More Fraternal Society’ [cited henceforth as CR], no. 14). The Catholic Church is aware of these problems (cfr. CR, Part IV, no. 29), and has always paid special attention to refugees, migrants and expatriates. The Pope, for example, dedicates an annual message to migrants and refugees. On every occasion, he seeks to encourage everyone, and especially Christians, to be generous in their welcome, particularly through positive actions such as family reunification, and to recognize that immigrants bring with them the riches of their culture, history and traditions (see, among others, the Holy Father's Message for World Day of Migrants 1992 ‘To welcome the stranger with the joy of one who can recognize in him the face of Christ’, Insegnamenti, XV, 2
8 Pontif. Council Cor Unum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidarity", 1992, introduction 9 Pontif. Council Cor Unum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidarity", 1992, 4
[1992], 80-84)."10 When this openess is missing, the consequences can be very serious, and contribute to the following disorders:
(a) Racism:11
Racism refers to the belief that humans can be separated into various groups based on physical attributes, and that these groupings determine cultural or individual achievement. This can lead to prejudice against individuals based on perceived or adscribed “race”, and often breeds ignorance, fear and hostility toward people of “other races”12 .
"No one can deny that, today, the family of nations needs a concerted
10 Furthermore, “In its conclusions, CERD remarks: ‘The Committee notes with satisfaction that the laws and teachings of the Catholic Church promote tolerance, friendly co-existence and multiracial integration and that Pope John Paul II has, in a number of speeches, openly condemned all forms of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia manifested through racial tensions and conflicts around the world’. See also the activity of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerants, especially in the Holy See's Report to CERD, nn. 82 ff., see Note 16. In its conclusions CERD notes: ‘The Committee expresses its appreciation for the contributions made by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People through, inter alia, declarations and programmes of action to promote nondiscrimination against refugees and migrants in various parts of the world. In this context, the Committee notes the efforts undertaken by the State party to promote the rights of the Roma populations’. The local Churches, especially through the Episcopal Conferences, have not hesitated to enter into public debate in order to condemn racism and foster openness to immigrants (see for example the Message of the French Episcopal Commission on Migration to immigrants in France, published at a time when the movement towards a policy of "zero immigration" was in full swing, Nousavonsbesoindevous[20 May 1993]: Documentation catholique 2074 [1993], 569; the Message of the Japanese Bishops, SeekingtheKingdomof Godwhichtranscendsdifferencesofnationality, which addressed the increase of immigrants to Japan especially from poor countries and which encourages Christians to develop positive attitudes towards them. See also the documents published by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in the U.S.A., such as Whoaremybrothersandsisters?ACatholiceducational guideforunderstandingandwelcomingimmigrantsandrefugees, Washington, D. C., 1996, which is an educational programme for Catholic primary and secondary schools; and also Welcomingthestrangeramongus:unityindiversity, Washington, D. C., 2001)”. Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Contribution to World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, Durban, August 31 – September 7, 2001; n. 20.
11 A detailed description of the position of the Catholic Church on racism can be found in the document cited above, by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. Because of its incisiveness, I am copying here from St. Josemaria Escriva’s book Furrow: “The Apostle wrote that ‘there is no more Gentile and Jew, no more circumcised and uncircumcised; no one is barbarian or Scythian, no one is a slave or a free man; there is nothing but Christ in any of us.’ Those words are as valid today as they were then. Before the Lord there is no difference of nation, race, class, state ... Each one of us has been born in Christ to be a new creature, a son of God. We are all brothers, and we have to behave fraternally towards one another.” (no. 317)
12 Although beyond the scope of this work, I cannot let the opportunity pass to note that the scientific community has provided abbundant data to support the biological basis of mankind asasinglerace. As one example among many, see the opinion of Francis Collins, Director of the National Human Genome Research Institute, at the end of this document (Appendix 4).
programme of action to address Racism. We need to explore new ways to foster, for the future, the harmonious coexistence and interaction of individuals and peoples, in full respect of each other's dignity, identity, history and tradition. We need a culture, to use the words of Pope John Paul II, ‘in which we recognize, in every man and woman, a brother and a sister with whom we can together walk the path of solidarity and peace’ (Angelus, 26 August 2001). Our world needs to be reminded that humanity exists as a single human family, within which the concept of racial superiority has no place."13
- Racism and intolerance
In speaking of the causes of forced movement of people, the Durban Declaration noted how racial discrimination is one of the factors that contribute to forced displacement. The Programme of Action of the Durban Conference addressed those special forms of intolerance which refugees face as they endeavour to engage in the life of the societies of their host countries. It spoke of the need to take particular steps to protect refugees and internally displaced women and girls from forms of violence to which they are particularly exposed. The Durban Conference produced a strong reaffirmation of the commitment of States to respect and implement humanitarian obligations relating to the protection of refugees, asylum seekers, returnees and internally displaced persons. It underlined the urgency of finding durable solutions, in particular through voluntary return in safety and dignity to their own countries, or through resettlement or local integration. The Durban Declaration also stresses the fundamental concept that all people and individuals constitute one human family. Within that one family there can be no place for theories of racial superiority. It is much more the question of finding a way to overcome divisions of culture, civilization and of religion, to create an inclusive family of humankind, which has a special concern for its weakest and most excluded brothers and sisters, the world’s refugees.
Such a program must begin at the level of national legislation and practice. The World Conference urged all States to ensure that "their legislation expressly and specifically prohibit racial discrimination and provide effective judicial remedies and redress" (Programme of Action, n.163). Such legislation must address in particular the situation of refugees and migrants, who are often victims of discrimination. It must address the situation of indigenous peoples. It must address minority groupings. But legislation must be accompanied by education. Education on racial tolerance must be a normal part of the educational programs for children at all levels. The family, the basic social unit of society, must be the first school of openness and acceptance of others. Government agencies may never justify racial profiling and the mass media must be alert to avoid any type of stereotyping of persons on a racial basis.
13 Intervention of the Holy See at the United Nations Organization on Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and related Intolerance, New York, 28 January 2002.
(b) Xenophobia:
The term xenophobia is used to describe the fear or dislike of foreigners, or, in general of people different from one’s self. Racism is also considered a form of xenophobia.
Policies that unscrupulously exploit fear of migrants are not worthy of enlightened societies. "From bitter experience", Pope John Paul II has noted, "we know that the fear of difference, especially when it expresses itself in a narrow and exclusive nationalism which denies any rights to ‘the other', can lead to a true nightmare of violence and terror" (Pope John Paul II: Address to the 50th General Assembly of the United Nations, 9).
"Many countries make a considerable effort to welcome immigrants, many of whom, after overcoming the difficulties of adjustment, are well integrated into the host community. However, the misunderstandings that foreigners sometimes experience show the urgent need for a transformation of structures and a change of mentality, which is what the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 asks of Christians and every person of good will."14
(c) Nationalism:
Nationalism is an ideology that holds that (ethnically or culturally defined) nations are the "fundamental units" for human social life, and makes certain cultural and political claims based upon that belief. Nationalism sees most human activity as national in character. Nations have national symbols, a national culture, a national music and national literature; national folklore, a national mythology and - in some cases - even a national religion. In this context, individuals share national values and a national identity, admire the national hero, eat the national dish and play the national sport. Today, nationalism shares close ties with religious fundamentalism.
"We also need to heed the question which comes to us from the depths of this abyss: that of the place and the use made of religion in the lives of people and societies. Here I wish to say once again, before the whole international community, that killing in the name of God is an act of blasphemy and a perversion of religion. This morning I wish to repeat what I wrote in my Message for January 1: "It is a profanation of religion to declare oneself a terrorist in the name of God, to do violence to others in his name. Terrorist violence is a contradiction of faith in God, the Creator of man, who cares for man and loves him" (No. 7)".15
The Church has always preached that all citizens should practice patriotism and
14 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, 1
15 John Paul II, Address to the Diplomatic Corps, Thursday, 10 January 2002, n. 3.
love for their country together with loving other nations16 .
"From bitter experience", Pope John Paul II has noted, "we know that the fear of difference, especially when it expresses itself in a narrow and exclusive nationalism which denies any rights to ‘the other’, can lead to a true nightmare of violence and terror".17
3. Migration in America: a brief survey18
Although North Americans today consider their countries as examples of richly multicultural and multi-ethnic societies, up to the middle of the 20th century voluntary immigrants to North America (Canada and the United States) were essentially Europeans, considered as the most desirable group. Although earlier than New Zealand, it was, nevertheless, only in the 1960s that immigration policies based on ethnicity or country of origin were eliminated.19
Therefore, migration from Asian nations to Canada and the United States became significant only after the 1960s, when restrictive immigration legislation was liberalized.20 In the United States, approximately 1.3 million
16 Among many, St. Josemaria Escriva, who experienced first hand the effects of nationalism, insisted on the virtue of patriotism (love for country) as against nationalism (disordered love for country which leads to hating other people). For example, in TheForge, no. 879: “You must reject that form of nationalism which hinders understanding and harmony. In many moments of history it has been one of the most evil of barriers. You must reject it yet more strongly, since it would be all the more harmful, when it tries to set foot within the Body of the Church, where the unity of everyone and everything in the love of Jesus Christ ought to shine out most clearly.” And in Furrow: “Love your own country: it is a Christian virtue to be patriotic. But if patriotism becomes nationalism, which leads you to look at other people, at other countries, with indifference, with scorn, without Christian charity and justice, then it is a sin.”(no. 315) “It is not patriotism to justify crimes or to deny the rights of other peoples.” (no. 316)
17 John Paul II: Address to the 50 General Assembly of the United Nations, 9
18 This section is largely based on 'Recent Migrations to Canada and the United States' in University of Calgary Applied History Research Group, Peopling North America: Population Movements and Migration (Calgary, Alberta, Canada, 2001) for North America and on Adela Pellegrino, Trends in International Migration in Latin America and the Caribbean (Blackwell, Oxford, 2000) for Central and South America. These two papers are the sources of all statistical information in this section, unless otherwise stated.
19 This was partly because of a more liberal political climate within North America and partly because of the desire to embarrass communist countries by accepting streams of refugees from the USSR, Asia and the Caribbean. At the same time, developing third-world countries, with their booming populations, dramatic economic cycles and political instability, were sending more and more immigrants, temporary workers and refugees to the continent.
20 Among the factors causing this was dramatic labor shortages in the continent, allowing Asians to move into new sectors and increase their social and economic condition without being considered an economic threat. Another factor was the desire of the North American nations to prevent fledgling nations in the third world from becoming Soviet footholds abroad, at the time of the Cold War. In 1962, with the introduction of the 'points system', although the largest numbers of immigrants continued to come from Britain and Italy, Asian immigration began to rise immediately.
Asians arrived during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, numbering less than 4% of all immigration to America. After 1965, over four million immigrants have arrived in the country, comprising 25% of all legal immigration. Similar increases were observed in Canada. Throughout the 1970s and 80s the arrival of refugees, including numerous 'boat people', were increasing in numbers as they fled war, civil unrest and various oppressive regimes.21
Migration from Africa to North America in the period following the Second World War has been shaped for the most part by economic imbalance, refugee movements and international ties.22 The United States limited their entry to 7,000 per annum in the 1990s, although there was quite a big number of refugees in Africa in 1993. It should be noted that Africans living in North America are important in their home countries' economies because of their remittances. Even small amounts are significant for African countries.
The proximity of Central and South America and the Caribbean has made migration from these areas into the United States and Canada notable. More, of course, go to the United States because the U.S. border is closer than the Canadian one. Also, there is a longer history of migration from Latin America to the United States. On the whole, most migration from this area to Canada originates in the Caribbean, while those to the United States come mostly from Mexico, Chile, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua and Costa Rica, as well as from the Caribbean.23
21 Immigrant and refugee source countries were mainly the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Korea and India. More recently, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand have also contributed significant numbers of newcomers. The majority of these have settled in urban centers, forming concentrated communities in major cities. Unlike earlier migrations which were mostly single men, more recent migrations have a large family component. From Asia, more and more professionals and skilled workers are arriving and no longer predominantly laborers or farmers. They tend to live well above (the professionals or highly-skilled) or well below (the unskilled or those who entered under the family reunification scheme) the poverty line once in North America. Like other immigrant groups, Asian immigrants faced the barriers of linguistic, ethnic and religious differences with the North Americans. Aside from this, refugees were often extremely poor and had lived prolonged periods of traumatic experiences.
22 High levels of poverty within Africa have prevented many of the poorest from leaving, but those who can accumulate sufficient funds to migrate often do so in search of the much greater economic opportunities in North America. Ties with the United States also play an important role in African populations movements to the Federal Republic, as are the cases of those coming from Liberia and Cape Verde. The largest numbers of Africans migrating to the United States in the 1990s came from Egypt, Ethiopia, Nigeria and South Africa, all of them relatively industrialized and using English as an official language.
23 Caribbean migrants to North America come from the English-speaking nations, like Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Guyana. However, Quebec hosts migrants from French-speaking Haiti. It is worth noting that migration to the United States has a much higher illegal component than that to Canada.
Although the demographic effect of international migration today is not on the same scale as that experienced by the European countries in the nineteenth century, it can nevertheless be said that emigration from Mexico to the United States is one of the largest migratory movements in the world and the phenomenal growth of Hispanics in the country is becoming an important political as well as religious issue24 .
The United States is a destination dreamed by many Latin American migrants. Mexicans have often crossed the border shared by the United States in search of better opportunities. The high degree of unauthorized migration across the Mexican-US border is well-known. Even when the United States sealed the historical crossing points that undocumented migrants used through urban areas, irregular migration from Mexico continued in other parts of the country, less safe and more difficult to cross, but still a road of hope for many. Many deaths have been reported as a result. This has also encouraged the employment of 'coyotes' to lead migrants through mountains and deserts across the frontier.25 On the whole, for large sectors of the Latin-American population, the United States has become the centre of gravity and attracts those who look for personal advancement. It, in fact, hosts also 62 thousand Latin American students, of which 11 thousand come from Mexico.
The United States is a dream destination country not only for Latin Americans. The largest legal immigrant populations in the country are in fact Mexican, Chinese, Filipino and Vietnamese, in this order. There is also a relatively large number of undocumented migrants who enter the United States, some 40% of whom are Mexicans.26 Where there is irregular migration, human trafficking27 invariably arises. In the process, migrants are mistreated and their human rights violated not only by the coyotes, but also by some migration and police officers in transit countries. Oblivious of existing laws and their rights, migrants
24 An analysis of the economic impact of immigration in the US can be found (among others) in Chapter III of Yuengert, op. cit.; also in: “Mexican Immigrant Workers and the U.S. Economy. An Increasing Vital Role”, American Immigration Law Foundation, Immigration Policy Focus, Vol. 1, Issue 2, September 2002 (http://www.ailf.org/ipc/ipf0902.asp).
25 Cfr. Mexico and US Country Reports, American Meeting. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'
26 cf. US Country Report, American Meeting, Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'
27 For more details, see Susan F. Martin, 'Smuggling and Trafficking in Humans: a Human Rights Issue' and Jorge A. Bustamante, 'International Migrants as Subjects of Human Rights', Papers presented at the American Meeting. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'
are helpless in this situation. In the United States, the smuggling of persons into the country through organized, illicit trafficking schemes is on the increase. Persons being smuggled include quite a few unaccompanied minors.
4. What moves a person to migrate? IS THIS REPEATED?
In general terms, there are two main reasons to migrate:
(a) Because of a rejection from the country of origin: this factor is the most important one.
A migration expert of the International Labor Organization (ILO) recently pointed out that it is not so much the absolute differences between countries that make people move, but rather, when their situation and that of their families are such that they can no longer live according to local norms of safety, dignity and well-being.
28
Of course, there are different degrees of tolerability of the situation in one’s home country, bringing about the notion that the “classical” distinction between voluntary and forced migration29 are two poles of a continuum. It is true that at times migration is voluntary, as in the case, for instance, of high-skilled workers who go abroad for better opportunities or for specialization purposes. It is also voluntary, but maybe to a lesser extent, for seasonal and cross-border workers, or contract laborers for unskilled or semi-skilled jobs, who can earn more or get a job in another country, but not in their own. In the second case, voluntariness is somehow accompanied by a need that pushes them out of their homeland. Already, we can see that “voluntariness” is not always to the same degree for everybody. Further along the continuum are “those who flee economic conditions that threaten their lives and physical safety,”30 the so-
28 Patrick A. Taran, “Human Rights of Migrants: Challenges of the New Decade”, International Migration, Vol. 38, No. 6, Special Issue 2/2000, p. 13.
29 For example, The United Self-Defense Forces (AUC) of Colombia is an umbrella organization intended to consolidate the major local and regional paramilitary groups fighting against Colombia’s Marxist guerillas. The AUC claims to protect its sponsors—mainly economic elites and drug traffickers—from left-wing guerilla groups. However, far from being merely a defensive organization, the AUC is notorious for attacking perceived supporters of the insurgents, often wiping out whole villages. It has also displaced large sectors of the local population in order to gain control over drug-producing areas. According to the Human Rights Watch World Report 2001 (http://www.hrw.org/wr2k1/americas/colombia.html), Colombian government investigators contended that active duty and reserve officers attached to the army's Third Brigade in Cali had set up and actively supported the Calima Front. In the twelve months since it began to operate in July 1999, the Calima Front was considered responsible for at least 200 killings and the displacement of over 10,000 people.
30 Pontifical Council “Cor Unun” and for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, Refugees: A Challenge to Solidarity (Vatican, 1992), no.4.
called “economic migrants”. Their movement is obviously more forced than voluntary. In the event of ecological disasters, whether natural or man-made; violence, war, terrorism and violation of human rights, migration becomes forced. This produces refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced people and those in need of temporary protection.
"Violence sometimes obliges entire populations to leave their homeland to escape repeated atrocities; more frequently, it is poverty and the lack of prospects for development which spur individuals and families to go into exile, to seek ways to survive in distant lands, where it is not easy to find a suitable welcome."31
"In many regions of the world today people live in tragic situations of instability and uncertainty. It does not come as a surprise that in such contexts the poor and the destitute make plans to escape, to seek a new land that can offer them bread, dignity and peace. This is the migration of the desperate: men and women, often young, who have no alternative than to leave their own country to venture into the unknown. Every day thousands of people take even critical risks in their attempts to escape from a life with no future. Unfortunately, the reality they find in host nations is frequently a source of further disappointment."32
"The discussion concerning the causes that generate and aggravate political instability has focused on poverty, the imbalance in the distribution of the means of subsistence, foreign debt, galloping inflation, structural economic dependence, and natural disasters. It is not surprising that the majority of refugees at present come from developing countries.[5] However, restructuring of economic relations alone would not be enough to overcome political differences, ethnic discord and rivalries of other kinds. There will be refugees who are victims of the abuse of power so long as relations between persons and between nations are not based on a true capacity to accept one another more and more in diversity and mutual enrichment.[6]"33
31 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, 1
32 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, 4
33 Pontif. Council Cor Unum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidiarity", 8. In this quote the references are as follows: [5]The adoption in 1986 by the General Assembly of the United Nations of a Declaration on the Right to Development would require a specific reflection on the possibility of applying the juridical instruments actually in force to people who leave a country in which their right to development is not respected. Does this not establish a new form of "persecution" toward those who belong "to a certain social group," according to Article I, A.2 of the 1951 Convention? [6] John XXIII, Encyclical Letter Pacem in terris (11 April 1963) 104, in AAS, 55 (1963), 285. The phenomenon of refugees "show that there are some political regimes which do not guarantee for individual citizens a sufficient sphere of freedom within which their souls are allowed to breathe humanly. In fact, under those regimes even the lawful existence of such a sphere of freedom is either called into question or denied. This undoubtedly is a radical inversion of the order of human society,...."
(b) An attraction towards the lifestyle of the country of destination. This factor has a lot to do with globalization, and frequently this motivation is behind the "labor migration". To what extent this aspect is connected with poverty? The distinction is very often blurred.
In particular, for Latin America, the following causes of population mobility have been identified:34
* Population growth coupled with urbanization and industrial development.
* The proximity of inviting borders.
* Free market policies, which replaced policies of industrial development and import substitution, coupled with policies designed to reduce the role of the State. This has led to a rise in unemployment and cuts in welfare spending, bringing about worsened living standards for major sectors of the population. A response to the employment crisis has been the emergence of self-employment activities, ranging from highly specialized to unskilled functions. This has helped to generate mobility since people move to where opportunities are offered.
* Political instability, undemocratic forms of governments and violence.
* Globalization, which has rapidly universalized expectations and disseminated lifestyles and consumption patterns of developed countries. Although cultural and ethnic identities are being revitalized, large sectors of the population expect to live in the same way as those in the developed world. If opportunities for its realization is not available in the native country, then migration becomes a realistic alternative, for many.
5. Migration in the context of globalization35
The phenomenon of migration occurs today in the context of globalization, with all its positive and negative aspects, as reflected in the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation EcclesiainAmerica, nn. 20-2236 .
34 Archbishop A. Marchetto, Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People: "Flows of Human Mobility Worldwide: Consequences and Expectations", Congreso Nacional sobre la Pastoral de la Movilidad Humana, 2003, March 10-14, Veracruz, Mexico.
35 The relevance of this aspect is manifested, for example, in the following text : "We will hear much about globalization in this conference. I only wish to reflect on it from a standpoint of Church and migration. On the part of the Church, the concept of "globalization", in a certain sense, goes back a long way. Jesus Christ definitely had a global vision in mind when he prayed the Father that “they may all be one as you, Father, are in me and I in you, so that they may be one in us (Jn 17,21). It was the same when he commanded his disciples to go and “make disciples of all nations … teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Mt 28:1920). Since then the community of those who believe in Him has developed what today we would call a network, based not on the free flow of goods, services, and capital but on the free flow of God’s grace in unity with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This "network" has survived and spread over the last 2000 years despite persecutions and set-backs." H. E. Archbishop Stephen Fumio Hamao, President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. Address to the First International Conference on Migration and Theology: Migration and Religious Experience in the Context of Globalization, Tijuana, 24 January 2002.
International migration affects differently countries of origin, transit and destination, but their causes and effects bind them all closely together. It is necessary to combat the negative side of migration and encourage its positive aspects. Human mobility is, in fact, a right because it enables all men and women to venture into an unknown world and be enriched by new discoveries. At the same time, it allows them to move away from painful or frightful circumstances, even if the future will not always be sunny and bright. Wherever they go, they take with them their patrimony of culture and human endowments, capable of transforming and developing the places where they choose to stop and settle37 .
"The immediate reasons for the complex reality of human migration differ widely; its ultimate source, however, is the longing for a transcendent horizon of justice, freedom and peace."38
On the one hand, globalization accelerates flows of capital and exchanges of goods and services between people and inevitably influences human movement. Every important event that occurs in a specific part of the world tends to have repercussions on the entire planet, while the sense that all nations share a common destiny is increasing. The new generations have a growing conviction that the planet is now a ‘global village’ -- to use the term coined by P. Wyndham Lewis39 and popularized by Marshall McLuhan40-- and they make friendships that transcend the differences of language or culture. Living side by side is becoming an everyday reality for many people. At the same time, however, globalization produces new ruptures. Within the framework of a liberalism without adequate controls, the gap between the ‘emerging’ and the ‘losing’ countries is widening. The former have capital and technologies that allow them to enjoy the world's resources at will, a possibility that they do not always use with a spirit of solidarity and sharing. The latter, instead, do not have easy access to the resources needed for adequate human development, and sometimes even lack the means of subsistence; crushed by debt and torn by internal divisions, they often end up wasting their meagre wealth on war (cf. Encyclical Centesimusannus, n. 33). As I recalled in my Message for the 1998 World Day of Peace, the challenge of our time is to assure a globalization in solidarity, a globalization without marginalization (cf. n. 3)."41
36 see also the Conclusions of the IV World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, Vatican City, 5-10 October 1998, published by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.
37 A. Marchetto, “Flows of Human Mobility Worldwide: Consequences and Expectations”, address to the National Congress on Pastoral of Human Mobility, March 10-14, 2003, Veracruz, Mexico.
38 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, 1
39 America and Cosmic Man (1948), Nicholson and Watson, London.
40 The Gutenberg Galaxy: The Making of Typographic Man (1962), University of Toronto Press
41 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, 3
Today, the characteristics of migration under the conditions of globalization can be summarized as follows:42
1.) Labor migration is generally caused by the worker's need to find employment that is not met by the country of origin. This varies greatly from case to case. In some countries, it would mean massive unemployment and even the impossibility for the worker to secure the basic necessities for himself and for his family. In other cases, it signifies the incapacity of the country to provide employment corresponding to the qualifications and skills acquired by the individual. Between these two extremes, there is a whole range of degrees of need. However, labor migration also responds to a need in the destination country: for professionals and highly-skilled workers that its own population cannot adequately supply, for workers in labor-intensive occupations that its local population is not willing to supply, or for workers in general, of which its ageing population has insufficient or no supply. This brings up several issues:
(a) The need for high skills in technologically advanced countries has led to 'brain exchange' among them, to 'brain circulation' in some regions, and, unfortunately, to 'brain drain'43 in developing or poorly-developed countries that are badly in need of good human resources, but, alas, cannot provide them with adequate instruments or pay. There is also the 'brain hunt' by industrialized nations, to recruit and even keep highly-skilled people from developing countries. In this regard, there are organisms that are doing valuable work among international students, like the KAAD (the German Catholic Academic Exchange Service). They have programs to sensitize students regarding their countries' need for leaders who are willing to work for their people and their country's welfare despite minimum financial returns. Thus, they try to encourage them to return home in the spirit of positive nationalism. Another example is the work that Dr. Ricardo Miledi is doing on behalf of Latinamerican scientists. His response to the need of supporting the development of the younger generations of scientists brought him to set up, through the Society for Neuroscience, the SfN/RicardoMilediNeuroscienceTrainingProgram, a four-week training course in 2006 for 15 Latin American neuroscience fellows. The program, funded by The Grass Foundation, is open to any member working at an institution in Mexico.
42 see Archbishop A. Marchetto, Secretary, Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People: "Flows of Human Mobility Worldwide: Consequences and Expectations", Congreso Nacional sobre la Pastoral de la Movilidad Humana, 2003, March 10-14, Veracruz, Mexico, concluding section.
43 By ‘brain drain’ and similar expressions I mean human capital flight, the emigration of trained and talented individuals for other nations due to conflict or lack of opportunity. See W. J. Carrington and E. Detragiache, “How Extensive Is The Brain Drain?” in Finance & Development (quaterly magazine of the International Monetary Fund), June 1999, Volume 36, Number 2. See also http://www.scidev.net/dossiers/index.cfm?fuseaction=dossierItems&type=3&dossier=10.
(b) Replacement migration. In March 2000 the United Nations Population Division, Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs, published ‘Replacement Migration: Is it a Solution to Declining and Ageing Populations?’44 Its basic message is that the average age of the populations in developed countries will increase significantly in the next fifty years, that the population of working age people will decline while those of retirement age will increase. In some countries the decrease of the population of its citizens is irreversible in the medium term. One solution is increasing migration to these countries so that industries, services, social welfare, etc. can continue. The report offers different hypotheses for how this might happen, but the increase in migration, even in countries were some politicians dream of “zero migration”, is almost inevitable. In one hypothesis, just to give an example, the U.S.A. would need to accept more than eleven million a year as compared to the less than one million a year at present.
In November of 2001 at a meeting of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Geneva, this report was presented by its main author. Surprisingly, there was very little negative reaction. Even some European Union countries, which are most affected by this report, recognized its importance. Of the many issues raised in the report, I want to focus on a migration issue, the so called “brain drain”. The fact is that developed countries are already recruiting talent outside their borders. Before 9/11 changed the climate, the US had made an exception to its 1996 immigration law and authorized issuing 600,000 visas for information technology workers, most of whom come from India. The search for foreign talent sometimes even becomes a “hunt for brains”, not a brain drain. That raises questions of justice: Does anyone have the right to buy talent from developing countries simply on the basis of having money to do this? Is it right to attract people who have been educated and raised in their homelands at much cost to their own social and educational services, to serve the interests of businesses in other countries?"45
44 Ibidem
45 Archbishop Stephen Fumio Hamao, President of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People: "The Situation of Migrants and Refugees around the World and the Church’s Response". Address delivered at the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., on 13 November 2000. The quote is long, but worth the space. "I would like to draw this talk to a conclusion by mentioning a factor in migration that is not directly related to globalization but has started receiving more attention recently at the level of the United Nations and also in an international convention on migration held last July in Rome, in connection with the Jubilee. I refer to population ageing in most developed countries and the consequent need for ‘replacement migration.’ In Italy, for example, many industrialized areas of the north seek migrant labor, without which they will have trouble competing and surviving. In the U.S.A. too, there has been recent legislation that allows the issuing of six hundred thousand high tech visas over the next three years. Whatever scenario we wish to adopt for the next fifty years, there is no way to escape the fact that more migrants are needed in the developed world to keep the economies going and internationally competitive. Besides the serious ethical questions this raises regarding the “purchase” of labor from the developing world, developed societies are going to have to face larger inflows of migrants. Migration has often been a source of tensions
This is a serious moral question that also affects the personal capital available in many countries. A recent statement of the U.S. Bishops Conference raises the issue: “While we welcome all the new immigrants and recognize that our Church, like the United States as a whole, has come to depend upon the many talents and profound energy of newcomers, we must also remind our government that the emigration of talented and trained individuals from poorer countries represents a profound loss to those countries.”46 A current dimension of this issue is precisely the change in patterns of migration brought about by tighter immigration controls after 9/11, at least among scientists (see Appendix 1).
2.) In many countries, legal migration is encouraged, especially when it is a question of supplying lacking labor or skills, whereas irregular migration is combated. In reality, regular and irregular migration are two components of the same phenomenon, in the same way that it is often difficult to draw a distinct dividing line between economic migrants and refugees. It is enough to point out that many unauthorized migrants are relatives and friends of legal migrants who encourage the former to join them and provide them with logistic support. Facts demonstrate that tight border control, security checks and rigid immigration laws are not sufficient to keep under control migration, in general, and irregular migration, in particular.
3.) While migration is a right of every human person, it is also a right to remain in one's own country and cultural ambience. Migration, particularly forced migration, takes place especially when an individual finds it difficult, if not impossible, to survive according to local norms of safety, dignity and wellbeing. To a high degree then, migration would not take place if local conditions could guarantee the dignified life of a person and his/her family. Thus, rich industralized countries, that are afraid of irregular migration in their territories, have to contribute to the development (and not only economic) and security of migrant sending countries, so they can offer their citizens a better life.
4.) Fearing massive entry of migrants, worsened by the 9/11 syndrome, rich industrialized countries have tightened security controls on their borders and made immigration laws more severe. This has resulted in the thriving of employment agencies that make lucrative gains on the hopes of 'poor'
among cultures and even racist and xenophobic movements. It is difficult to imagine that the future will be exempt from such experiences. That calls for a special pastoral role of the Church, as mediator and place of dialogue among cultures. It is to be an agent of reconciliation, a central concern of the Great Jubilee, which will continue to be a need for the foreseeable future. The Church in the developed world will be able to carry out that role if the great concerns of the 1998 World Congress are taken seriously: a pastoral reading of the situation, institutions to support that reading, formation, cooperation among local Church and with our many partner organizations.”
46 U.S. Catholic Bishops, Welcoming the Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity (Washington DC, USCC, 2000) p. 8.
migrants. Even worse, it has triggered unauthorized migration for those who have no way of fulfilling legal pre-requisites. The result is an increase in the gains of smugglers and traffickers of human persons. Attempts have been made to combat this social plague on the part of the European Union by moves to introduce laws that punish not only traffickers and smugglers but also those who 'purchase' their goods47 .
5.) While migration in the past century very often involved single males, it is more usual for contemporary migration to be family migration, either by the whole family migrating together or through the family reunification scheme.
6.) Women have increasingly joined the ranks of international migrants, to the advantage of the families where they work and to the disadvantage of the families that they leave behind. Often hired as unskilled workers or in domestic services, women are more vulnerable to violence and violation of their human and labor rights, which are often not recognized. They also comprise a large component in refugee flows. Together with children, they are the more frequent victims of human trafficking for illicit trade.
7.) Poor countries of origin count on the remittances of migrant workers to be able to sustain their economies, but rich countries of destination count on cheap foreign labor to be able to continue producing and maintain their industries, as well as substitute in the domestic work of women who have entered their labor force.
8.) Severe economic crisis, natural disaster, violence, ethnic conflicts, political instability, wars, all have led to forced migration and generated refugees, internally displaced people and economic migrants. They, too, have contributed to the formation of multicultural and multi-ethnic societies that have enriched the cultural patrimony of the host countries. They have transformed even small and formerly isolated communities into pluralist and inter-cultural realities. However, they are often victims of racial discrimination, xenophobia or other forms of intolerance. This has added ulterior suffering to their already miserable lives. It is necessary to recognize in people of other cultures the handiwork of God, which is not an easy task, and to pass from mere tolerance of others to real respect for their differences. Nonetheless, respect must be reciprocal and immigrants are called to respect the laws of the country that welcomes them.
47 One of the wrost developments is the increase in child prostitution. A recent article by Eric Geiger in The San Francisco Chronicle, Monday April 2006, exemplifies this problem. About 120,000 preteens and teenagers from Easter Europe are taken annually to Western Europe to steal, beg and engage in prostitution. (http://www.sfgate.com/cgibin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2006/04/24/MNG3JIE6D91.DTL&type=printable)
9.) People will always move, perhaps less permanently and more temporarily, for migration is a natural human process, as history attests from ancient times. Whatever may be the case, societies are bound more and more to host people of different cultures and nationalities. Multiculturality, including a plurality of creed and nationalities, is destined to be a characteristic of our societies. A regulated presence of 'foreigners' has always been a sort of enrichment for the people of a given country. The human race being one, we all belong to one family, so that if we are to be worthy of our identity, it is necessary to treat everyone else, without distinction of nationality, race, creed or social standing, as our brothers and sisters. As a matter of fact, a necessary norm to guide the protection of migrants is the upholding of the common good. Consequently, we have to consider mankind a family of peoples, that are not barricaded within the fortress of their borders but are welcome in a free and reasonable circulation within and through national territories, making the earth a truly global home for all. An example - A UN study48 forecasts the entry of about 160 million immigrants in the countries of the EU in the next 50 years if Europe wishes to preserve its present economic dynamics. For that to happen peacefully and justly, the attitude of many has to change, and the Church's role and presence in that process is indispensable.
II. WHY AND TO WHOM DOES MIGRATION CONCERN?
1. To the Church
- Background: When the first efforts to organize the pastoral care of migrants took place, in the late 1800’s, migration streams flowed from Europe to the New World49. Many migrants were Catholics and the Church was greatly concerned regarding the preservation of their faith in a foreign land, especially when they did not speak the language of the destination country, and consequently, the Church of arrival. Later, during the early part of the twentieth century, efforts went beyond merely safeguarding the migrants' faith and sought to affirm their right to preserve their cultural heritage and traditions in expressing their faith.50 Obviously, the norms that were later developed for this
48 Population Division, Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs, U.N. Secretariat, Replacement Migration: Is it a Solution to Declining and Aging Populations? (New York, 21 March 2000). Also available at www.un.org/esa/population/unpop.htm.
49 Note that this movement is completely different from the evangelization of the new world that followed the arrival of Columbus in America.
50 Cfr. Loreto De Paolis, cs, 'Promozione della pastorale migratoria', Paper presented at the European Meeting (Strasbourgh, France, September 13-15,2000) and the American Meeting (Mexico City, September 17-20, 2000) on the Pastoral Care of Migrants organized by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Council, in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration', published in People on the Move, no. 84, December 2000.
specific pastoral care51 were meant to respond to these particular needs. It is worth mentioning, however, that Bishop Giovanni Battista Scalabrini himself, who strongly promoted the pastoral care of migrants during that period, envisioned a holistic care including a design of evangelization and integral human promotion.52 At the turn of the millennium, the migration phenomenon has practically assumed a new face. Western Europe has joined the New World in being a destination for migration flows. Migrants originate from countries in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe where cultures are often rooted in religions that are not Christian, if they are rooted in religion at all. Catholics no longer make up the majority of migrants.53 It goes without saying that it is
51 See Apostolic Constitution ExsulFamilia, Pius XII, August 1, 1952; Paul VI, Decree Christus Dominus(Concerning The Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church), 28 October 1965, no. 18; Paul VI, MotuProprioPastoralisMigratorumCura, 15 August 1969; Instruction of the Sacred Congregation for Bishops, DePastoraliMigratorumCura, 22 August 1969.
52 Cfr. Giovanni Cheli (Archbishop), 'La posta in gioco della pastoral specifica per i migranti', in People on the Move, no. 75, December 1997, pp.5-11.
53 Stephen Fumio Hamao (Archbishop), 'Saludo', Mexico Meeting. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'. In this regard, further information on this meeting is reported by Dr. Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People in the introduction to People on the Move – No. 86, September 2001 where she writes: "A preceding issue of "People on the Move" (no. 84) published a roundup of four regional consultations and a concluding world meeting of National Directors for the pastoral care of migrants that took place between September 1999 and October 2000. The final or summary statements of the four regional <rc_pc_migrants_pom85_castro.htm> meetings were also published (in no. 85) for a more detailed description of what took place during those meetings. Issue no. 86 also carried some of the papers presented at these gatherings. The useful information and interesting analysis of the migration phenomenon that they offer deserve a wider dissemination. For lack of space, the publication had to be limited to a selection. "Key Trends and Developments Affecting International Migration to and within the 'New World' <rc_pc_migrants_pom86_tomasi.htm>" by Fr. Lydio Tomasi, c.s., Director of the Center for Migration Studies in New York, and "Smuggling and Trafficking in Humans: a Human Rights Issue <rc_pc_migrants_pom86_martin.htm>" by Dr. Susan F. Martin, Professor at Georgetown University, New York describe the present trends in international migration and the urgent problems linked to the phenomenon. Since both presentations were given at the Regional Meeting for America, they focus on the American situation although they do not fail to refer to the situation world-wide.
"La Migración a la Luz de la Exhortación Apostólica Ecclesia in America <rc_pc_migrants_pom86_inda.htm>" (Migration in the light of the Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in America) is self-explanatory. It presents the migration phenomenon in the light of the discussions that took place during the Synod of Bishops dedicated to America and the synod document that was later issued. The author, Archbishop Alberto Suarez Inda of the Archdiocese of Morelia, Mexico, was one of the Synod Fathers. The response of the Church to the challenges of international migration can take many forms. Dr. Stefano Zamagni, President of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), attempts to describe the role of Christian communities and organizations in this field after a very interesting analysis of the way migration is tackled today from different points of view. His paper is entitled "The Migratory Question Today and the Role of ICMC <rc_pc_migrants_pom86_zamagni.htm>". Other articles will be published in the next issue."
far from sufficient for the Church, which has been sent forth to proclaim the good news to all peoples, to address only Catholics in the world of migration.54
"Today the trend in migratory movement has been as it were inverted. It is nonChristians, increasingly numerous, who go to countries with a Christian tradition in search of work and better living conditions, and they frequently do so as illegal immigrants and refugees. This causes complex problems which are not easy to solve. For her part, the Church, like the Good Samaritan, feels it her duty to be close to the illegal immigrant and refugee, contemporary icon of the despoiled traveler, beaten and abandoned on side of the road to Jericho (cf. Lk 10:30). She goes towards him, pouring "on his wounds the oil of consolation and the wine of hope" (Roman Missal, Common Preface VII), feeling herself called to be a living sign of Christ, who came that all might have life in abundance (cf. Jn 10:10)."55
This concern was manifested in the creation of "... the International Catholic Migration Commission, which will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of its foundation in 2001. In fact, it was instituted in 1951, by initiative of the then Substitute at the Secretariat of State, Msgr. Giovanni Battista Montini. It intended to offer a response to the exigencies of those involved in migratory movements, provoked by the need to re-propose the production machinery, which was damaged by the war, and the tragic situation in which entire populations found themselves. They were forced to move due to the new geopolitical order dictated by the winners. The association's fifty years of history, with the modifications adopted in order to cope better with changing situations, give witness to how various, attentive and substantial were its activities. Speaking at its inaugural session held on 5 June 1951, the future Pope Paul VI dwelt on the necessity to demolish the obstacles that prevented migration, so as to give the unemployed the possibility to work and the homeless a shelter. He added that the newborn International Commission for Migration's cause was the very cause of Christ himself. These words have entirely preserved their relevance."56
- Why is the Church concerned with migration? The answer is, for pastoral reasons: to care for the migrants, as individuals in a particularly vulnerable situation. There are three main points that summarize the overall pastoral approach of the Church to the question of migration.
54 As John Paul II has written, “Newness of life in Christ is the 'good news' for men and women of every age: All are called to it and destined for it. Indeed, all people are searching for it, albeit at times in a confused way, and have a right to know the value of this gift and to approach it freely. The Church, and every individual Christian within her, may not keep hidden or monopolize this newness and richness which has been received from God's bounty in order to be communicated to all mankind”. Redemptoris Missio, no. 11.
55 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, August 21, 1996, no. 2.
56 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, 7
First of all, the Church wishes to be there where the migrants are, to share with them the joys and the hopes, as well as the grief and the pains of migration.57 The humanitarian aid that refugees and migrants need, social action and advocacy to defend their human and labor rights according to the social doctrine of the Church, initiatives of training and Christian formation are all part of the Church’s mission among those involved in the phenomenon of human mobility. However, all these are but various expressions of one mission: the proclamation of the Good News that God is love and, out of love, He became man, and by His death and resurrection, He restored man’s lost unity with God. In doing so, He also gave back to every person the dignity of being a child of God and revealed every human being’s worth, for he must be so important in the eyes of God to gain such a great Redeemer.58
Second, although the Church does not encourage migration because of the suffering that it inevitably entails, she defends the person's right to migrate59 and offers her maternal care to those who are forced to do so in search of a dignified life, worthy of human beings and children of God. She has taken steps to be with the migrants both at the sending and at the receiving ends, to prepare and sustain them in this important step in their lives. The Church is ready to be at the service of any migrant in need and does not ask anyone to produce passport or baptismal certificate. For her, all migrants, including those in an irregular (unregulated or illegal) situation, have fundamental rights, in particular human and labor rights. Wherever they are, these rights are to be protected and defended. Many migrants are in an irregular situation, but before focusing on this, the irregularities committed against them need to be tackled and the system which generates or condones irregular migration when it is convenient should be reformed.60
Third61, especially in emigration countries like the Philippines, that has exported its labor to practically every part of the world, the Church is called to accompany potential migrants in their decision-making process and to prepare them for migrant life abroad. Naturally, the formation of a migrant starts very much before he/she decides to migrate: from the cradle at home, to his lessons at school, in catechism classes, in the parish, in the ecclesial groups and associations he might choose to follow, etc. Already at this stage of the
57 Cfr. GaudiumetSpes, no. 1.
58 Cfr. RedemptorHominis, nos. 9-10.
59 Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1995, no. 2241. Henceforth abbreviated CCC.
60 cf. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000), Report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration', IV. 1.
61 Archbishop Stephen Fumio Hamao, President, Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant People: 'Problems and Challenges of Migrants and the Response of the Church'. Discourse on the Inauguration of the Catholic National Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migration and Tourism in Sri Lanka (2003, March 7), Colombo, Sri Lanka.
potential migrant’s life, the Church wishes to be present. And then, when a person starts toying with the idea of migrating, it is important to provide him/her with correct information regarding the possible destination countries: their laws, and not only labor legislation, their customs, etc. Since employment agencies or even relatives and friends are not always dependable or objective sources of information in this regard, it is important for the Church, through its networks, to be able to furnish reliable pre-departure data. When a person finally decides to migrate, then it is necessary to direct him/her to the Church and its related structures and organizations in the destination country, where it is possible to avail of pastoral care, including social and legal assistance, if necessary.
- The pastoral care of migrants
The Church defines migrants as those who, for any reason whatsoever, live outside their own country or ethnic community. This is where the specific pastoral care for migrants originates. Being persons belonging to another ethnic community and therefore of another tongue and culture, the general pastoral care directed to the local community is not sufficient. It is necessary to devise one that is appropriate for them. It should not be the work only of detached missionaries, but of the whole local Church, priests, religious and lay people. It is the whole local Church that must pay attention to migrants, be ready to welcome them and undergo a cultural osmosis.
Changes in migration and in the life of the Church have given more relevance to the role of the laity in caring for migrants. There is also a need for cooperation to facilitate the formation and participation of lay persons in this sector. In fact, formation of both missionaries and laity has become crucial, since working with migrants does require preparation. However, programs in this regard are lacking. It is urgent for concrete programs to be formulated through cooperation between the various offices involved in this field (Pontifical Council for Migrants, Office for Human Development, Scalabrini Migration Center, among others). Establishing and fostering cooperation with the NGOs involved in migration is also very effective. The Church should play a more active role in promoting the involvement of and networking with NGOs, especially those of Christian inspiration.
Migration can be considered both a symptom and a parameter. The type of care for migrants that a church provides reveals the understanding of the universal character and of the nature of mission that a church has. Thus, increasing awareness for the needs of migrants, instead of detracting the attention of the Church from other pressing issues, produces a general reawakening on the values of the Gospel and the implications of mission. In fact, migration brings mission at our door. But how can the parish welcome migrants? Existing experiences need to be shared and circulated. Providing liturgical services,
physical structures and programs is certainly important. However, it is possible that although migrants may be present, they do not become part of the Christian community. Thus, common activities are to be encouraged. Likewise, a common participation in a parish from a variety of ethnic origins is to be preferred over the multiplication of specific structures for specific groups. The multicultural parish is encouraged to experience the universality of the Church, provided that cultures do not remain juxtaposed. Welcoming migrants in a parish is not an issue of integration (as against ghettoism or assimilation) but of growth as a Christian community with a universal awareness of its universal dimension. Some other thoughts on integration can be found on page 50, below.
Reinforcing the pastoral care of migrants, the Church has named two Patron Saints of Migration62:
• Frances Xavier Cabrini (1850-1917), beatified in 1938 and canonized in 1946. She founded the Congregation of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in 1880 with the intention of sending them to the missions in the East. Pope Leo XIII urged her to dedicate herself to the Italian emigrants who were going to North and South America by the thousands. Thus, her adventure began in the West, not in the East, and she dedicated herself to emigrants. Pius XII, who in 1950 proclaimed her as the ‘Celestial Patron of All Emigrants by God's side’, made this wonderful synthesis of her activity among the emigrants: "In many places in North, Central and South America, she founded kindergartens for the emigrants' children, opened schools for them and created public hospices for the orphans. She often visited the sick among the people who had settled elsewhere; she would console the prisoners, and with her pious heart and words, she would prepare the persons condemned to death to atone for their crimes and undergo the punishment with Christian sentiment".
• John Baptist Scalabrini (1839-1905), Bishop of Piacenza, lived the drama of the exodus of migrants who, during the last decades of the nineteenth century, traveled in great numbers from Europe to the countries in the New World. He clearly saw the need for a specific pastoral care of migrants through a suitable network of spiritual assistance. In this perspective, and giving proof of a keen spiritual insight and a concrete practical sense, he founded the Congregation of the Missionary Priests and the Missionary Sisters of Saint Charles. He strongly supported the need for legislative and institutional instruments for the human and juridical protection of the migrants against all forms of exploitation. Today, in different situations, the spiritual sons and daughters of Msgr. Scalabrini, who were later joined by the ‘Secular Institute of the Scalabrinian Missionary Women’, continue to give witness to Christ's love for migrants and to offer
62 See Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People: http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/migrants/documents/rc_pc_migrants_d oc_20000601_migr_santi_en.html
them the Gospel. In 1998, John Paul II declared him Blessed and defined him as the ‘Father of Migrants’.
2. To many, if not all, people of good will, many of whom are not particularly religious.
This should not come as a surprise. That is the result of right reason about the human person and can lead to a rich dialogue between Christian and humanitarian thinkers. However, Christian faith not only protects the results of right reason but even goes beyond it. For example, to the right of leaving one’s country, the social doctrine of the Church adds “the right to enter a country in which he hopes to be able to provide fittingly for himself and his dependents” (PaceminTerris, n. 106).
Faith protects justice, human dignity and solidarity from being hijacked by ideologies and politics that have their own agendas. The social doctrine of the Church considers human rights as rooted in the person, and that is radically different from dominating currents of thought today, where rights are conceived more in terms of what public opinion believes or law recognizes than in reference to anything transcendent63. The fact remains that when the Creator is denied or ignored, the creature is also easily sacrificed. Migrants and refugees, for example, can be easily pushed aside by “policy decisions” and by language that deprive them of their individual human dignity.
3. To the State
The Church is aware of the impact that the phenomenon of migration has on social and political realities. "The phenomenon of migration with its complex problems challenges the international community and individual States today more than ever. The latter generally tend to intervene by tightening migration laws and reinforcing border control systems. Thus migration loses that dimension of economic, social and cultural development which it had in the past. In fact, there is less and less talk of the situation of ‘emigrants’ in their countries of origin, and more and more of ‘immigrants’, with respect to the problems they create in the countries where they settle."64
"States with a relative abundance tend to tighten their borders under pressure from a public opinion disturbed by the inconveniences that accompany the
63 As Yuengert has wisely pointed out (op. cit., p. 8), it is “crucial, however, to distinguinsh the nature of a rights-claim in Catholic social thought from standard rights-language. The purpose of rights-language in the Catholic tradition is not to end public policy debates and disagreements but to orient them toward the common good of all persons, natives of the host country and immigrants alike.” I will return to the question of the ‘right to migrate’ later.
64 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, July 25, 1995, no. 1.
phenomenon of immigration. Society finds itself having to deal with the "clandestine", men and women in illegal situations, without any rights in a country that refuses to welcome them, victims of organized crime or of unscrupulous entrepreneurs."65
"Then by mingling people of different religions in the fabric of daily coexistence, migration has made this one of the elements of social diversification. The countries in this category which have experienced the most tangible changes are certainly those in the West, with a Christian majority. In some of these the plurality of religions is not only widespread, but has also taken root, because the migratory flow has long existed. Some governments have already granted certain more substantial religious groups the status of a recognized religion, with the benefits that this implies in matters of protection, qualifications, freedom of action and financial support for cultural and social initiatives."
66
There is a tendency to reduce the protection due to refugees67 whereby States move gradually away from a law or rights-based approach to refugee protection, towards more discretionary and adhocarrangements that give greater primacy to domestic concerns rather than to their international responsibilities.
"Despite an increased awareness of interdependence among peoples and nations, some States, guided by their own ideologies and particular interests, arbitrarily determine the criteria for the application of international obligations. On the other hand, in countries which had in the past offered a generous reception to refugees, there is now a disturbingly similar trend of political decisions aimed at reducing the number of entries and discouraging new requests for asylum. While moments of economic recession can make the imposition of certain limits on reception understandable, respect for the fundamental right of asylum can never be denied when life is seriously threatened in one's homeland. It is troubling to witness the reduction of resources earmarked for the solution of the refugee problem, as well as a weakening of political support for the structures purposely created for such humanitarian service."68
- The right of the State to regulate the entry of immigrants. The Church recognizes that States can limit or control migration, but it also asserts that should be done accompanied by two actions, as follows.
65 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, no. 4.
66 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, August 21, 1996, no. 1.
67 As an example and for more detailed analysis, see the article by M. A. Blume on "Refugee law in the European Union at the turn of the century: pastoral reflections" published in People on the Move no. 82, April 2000.
68 Pontif. Council CorUnum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidiarity", no. 6.
The first is a severe examination of conscience based on the principles that will be discussed below. In this regard, the Church is called to be prophetic in forming society’s conscience and helping in its examination. The Church has a right and duty to speak on this issue, being ‘an expert in humanity’ (Sollicitudo ReiSocialis, nos. 7 and 41) that keeps recalling the basics about human dignity and a more just and fraternal social order.
The second is the need to put this discussion into the context of another pillar of the Social Doctrine of the Church, namely just international cooperation69 on migration, one that serves the common good of both the receiving and the sending countries. Support of this cooperation is evident in the presence of the Holy See as an observer in the International Organization for Migration, a forum for discussion of ‘ordered migration’, in the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees as a full member and in other U.N. discussions on the international economic order as an observer, in the Pope’s appeal for reduction or cancellation of international debt, and in the Holy See’s support for the 1990 Convention on the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Their Families.70
Migrants, with few exceptions, are people looking for a decent life. The reaction of states and law-enforcement officials to them as they carry out their duties must be appropriate and proportionate and respectful of human dignity.71
69 See John Paul II, CentesimusAnnus, the 100th Anniversary of Rerum Novarum, 1991, no. 57; John Paul II, LaboremExercens, On Human Labor, 1981, no. 23; Vatican Council II, Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, 1964, no. 66; John Paul II, Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees 1991 n. 2; 1995 nn. 2 and 4.
70 See discourse of Pope John Paul II to the Fourth World Congress on Migration (L’Osservatore Romano, 10 October 1998, p. 8) and his earlier statement in the 1980 Message: «This huge flux includes hundreds and thousands of emigrant husbands and wives who are obliged to submit to forced separation, even if one may note with relief that the reuniting of spouses and families is becoming an increasingly strong concern and interest in legislation and international agreements aimed at regulating or disciplining migratory policy» (n. 1).
71 Refoulement (www.unesco.org/migration) means the expulsion of persons who have the right to be recognised as refugees. The principle of non-refoulement has first been laid out in 1954 in the UN-Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, which, in Article 33(1) provides that: "No Contracting State shall expel or return ('refouler') a refugee in any manner whatsoever to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion." It is important to note, that the principle of non-refoulement does not only forbid the expulsion of refugees to their country of origin but to any country in which they might be subject to persecution. The only possible exception provided for by the UN Convention is the case that the person to be expelled constitutes a danger to national security (Art 33(2)). Although the principle of non-refoulement is universally accepted, problems with refoulement frequently arise through the fact that its application requires a recognised refugee status. However, not all countries are members to the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees or may not have established formal procedures for determining refugee status.
As Blume has stressed, those responsible for refoulement would do well to reflect on what the Pope recently said about legitimate defense against terrorism and realize that they are not dealing with terrorists: There exists a right to defend oneself against terrorism, a right which,
Furthermore, regarding borders, Church teaching raises serious questions about the morality of tolerating crossings and barriers that cause death and injury. To this can be added the abuse of migrants in transit by police or vigilantes and the dubious practice of interdiction at sea, whether in the Gulf of Mexico or on the Pacific, with the real possibility of refoulement.72
As Yuengert has pointed out73, some may interpret to right to migrate as a severe restriction on a nation’s ability to control its own borders or to promote the interest of its own people, but the opposite may be true: recognition of the right to migrate may open up horizons of cooperation and growth that are overlooked when immigrants are perceived only as a burden.
III. DOCTRINAL APPROACH
1. Biblical background
(a) The Old Testament: the Chosen People as migrants
"'You shall love your neighbour as yourself' (Lv 19:18). In the Book of Leviticus this commandment occurs in a series of precepts which forbid injustice. One of them warns: 'When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God' (19:33-44). The reason, 'for you were strangers in the land of Egypt' which constantly accompanies the command to respect and love the migrant, is not only meant to remind the chosen people of their former condition; it also calls their attention to God's action: on his own initiative he generously delivered them from slavery and freely gave them a
as always, must be exercised with respect for moral and legal limits in the choice of ends and means. The guilty must be correctly identified, since criminal culpability is always personal and cannot be extended to the nation, ethnic group or religion to which the terrorists may belong.
International cooperation in the fight against terrorist activities must also include a courageous and resolute political, diplomatic and economic commitment to relieving situations of oppression and marginalization which facilitate the designs of terrorists. The recruitment of terrorists in fact is easier in situations where rights are trampled upon and injustices tolerated over a long period of time. (cfr. Pope John Paul II, “Message for the World Day of Peace 2002,” n. 5.) If such precautions are to be exercised in dealing with terrorists, what should be done in the case of people who are looking for a job? (See Fr. M. A. Blume, “Migration and the Social Doctrine of the Church” in People on the Move, no. 88-89, April-December 2002.
72 The principle of non-refoulement is sacred in international refugee law and is violated by policies and actions that limit access to asylum procedures or return people to places where they face persecution or torture. See Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People and Pontifical Council CorUnum, “Refugees: A Challenge to Solidarity” (Vatican City 1992), n. 14; 1951 Geneva Convention, Article 33.
73 Yuengert, op. cit., p.53.
land. 'You were a slave and God intervened to set you free; you have seen, then, how God treated migrants; you must treat them in the same way': this is the implicit thought underlying the precept."74
"Whoever has first made the effort, like Abraham, to leave his country, his kindred and his father's house (cf. Gn 12: 1), is thereby more willing to open himself to those who are different. A similar process occurs with migration which, by making people "come out of themselves", can become an outreach to others and to other social contexts into which they can be integrated when the necessary conditions are created for peaceful coexistence."75
(b) The New Testament: the Family of Nazareth as migrants
"In Jesus, God came seeking human hospitality. This is why he makes the willingness to welcome others in love a characteristic virtue of believers. He chose to be born into a family that found no lodging in Bethlehem (cf. Lk 2: 7) and experienced exile in Egypt (cf. Mt 2: 14). Jesus, who ‘had nowhere to lay his head’ (Mt 8: 20), asked those he met for hospitality. To Zacchaeus he said: ‘I must stay at your house today’ (Lk 19: 5). He even compared himself to a foreigner in need of shelter: ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me’ (Mt 25: 35). In sending his disciples out on mission, Jesus makes the hospitality they will enjoy an act that concerns him personally: ‘He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me’ (Mt 10: 40)."76
(c) The Christians as guests and pilgrims in the promised land
"By her nature, the Church is in solidarity with the world of migrants who, with their variety of languages, races, cultures and customs, remind her of her own condition as a people on pilgrimage from every part of the earth to their final homeland. This vision helps Christians to reject all nationalistic thinking and to avoid narrow ideological categories. It reminds them that the Gospel should be incarnated in life in order to become its leaven and soul, also through a constant effort to free it from the cultural incrustations that inhibit its inner dynamism."77
"The task of proclaiming the word of God, entrusted by Jesus to the Church, has been interwoven with the history of Christian emigration from the very beginning. In the Encyclical Redemptorismissio, I recalled that "in the early centuries, Christianity spread because Christians, traveling to or settling in
74 John Paul II, Message for the 85th World Day of Migration, February 2, 1999, no. 4.
75 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, no. 2.
76 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, no. 5.
77 John Paull II, Message for the 85th World Day of Migration, February 2, 1999, no. 2.
regions where Christ had not yet been proclaimed, bore courageous witness to their faith and founded the first communities there" (n. 82)."78
"For the Christian, acceptance of and solidarity with the stranger are not only a human duty of hospitality, but a precise demand of fidelity itself to Christ's teaching. For the believer, caring for migrants means striving to guarantee a place within the individual Christian community for his brothers and sisters coming from afar, and working so that every human being's personal rights are recognized. The Church invites all people of goodwill to make their own contribution so that every person is respected and discriminations that debase human dignity are banned."79
"For the believer, accepting others is not only philanthropy or a natural concern for his fellow man. It is far more, because in every human being he knows he is meeting Christ, who expects to be loved and served in our brothers and sisters, especially in the poorest and neediest."80
"For the Christian, every human being is a 'neighbour' to be loved. He should not ask himself whom he should love, because to ask 'who is my neighbour?' is already to set limits and conditions. One day Jesus was asked this question and he responded by turning it around: it is not 'and who is my neighbour?', but 'to whom should I become a neighbour?' that is the right question. And the answer is: 'anyone in need, even if he is a stranger to me, becomes a neighbour I must help'. The parable of the Good Samaritan (cf. Lk 10:30-37) invites everyone to reach out beyond the bounds of justice in the perspective of gratuitous and unlimited love."81
2. Eclesiological dimension
In this sense it is legitimate to speak of the need to deepen the meaning of the catholicity of the Church. The future of international migration is not predetermined. It will be the consequence of human will and governmental policies. The catholicity of the Church can help to set up structures and strategies so that the positive potential of all migration will be realized. This cannot be done without inter-religious cooperation and the collaboration of States and international organizations. Although international migration is developing in various and specific ways, the phenomenon is global and requires strategies at the worldwide and regional levels. Only a total vision will allow the
78 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, August 21, 1996, no. 2.
79 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, no. 2.
80 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, no. 3.
81 John Paull II, Message for the 85th World Day of Migration, February 2, 1999, no. 5.
82 Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People. Conclusions of the Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, Vatican City, 5-10 October 1998.
formulation of a coherent strategy that is capable of putting in equilibrium the rights and duties of all persons. The goal remains that of achieving the wellbeing of the citizens of this world which is becoming one big global village. Ensuring safety and respect for national laws is not necessarily incompatible with a more just and constructive treatment of migration phenomena. Furthermore, devising a global strategy that will diminish the sufferings of refugees and migrants, will serve the most basic interests of contemporary states. This strategy will have to seriously tackle the causes of migration flows, especially those concerning socio-economic disparities and conflicts.
Each community is called upon to go from passive cohabitation to active and inventive Catholicity. It is the Pastoral Care of Migrants’ responsibility to help in achieving this.
This Catholicity is based on many requirements. A warm welcome is the expression of the Church’s charity understood in its most profound sense and universal character. It takes on a whole series of attitudes ranging from hospitality to understanding and valuing others, which is the psychological prerequisite to get to know one another, free from prejudices and living together serenely in harmony. Acceptance is also expressed in Christian witness (cf. The Church and Human Mobility, no. 22) and in the recognition of the originality of each culture in expressing the faith; the Catholic communities called “ethnic Missions”, have an important role in this area. Other manifestations are the dialogue and fraternal exchange between baptized persons of different origins in one and the same community; the host community’s openness to knowing the other; the awareness, on the part of baptized persons from different cultures, of the sign of fraternity they must give in their communion in Christ’s love; and the openness and warm welcome to migrants belonging to other Christian denominations.
Because of its many requirements, catholicity requires authentic formation not only of the pastoral workers who have to take on a role of mediation within the Church of arrival, but also of the lay people, who perhaps have experienced migration, and who are now charged with the task of welcoming in this Church, and those who have to be projected towards understanding the other. In the delicate mission of pastoral care, pastoral agents must be well prepared, if they want their action to be effective. It is also important to promote interaction and osmosis among the various sectors within the diocese involved in pastoral care. The establishment of adhocstructures for formation is strongly encouraged by the Church. Formation in the faith is essential for all migrants, but particularly for children born in the country of immigration. This means not simply a good preparation for the reception of the sacraments, but an integral proclamation of the Gospel and catechetical instructions.
The Church is the place where these immigrants, particularly those in illegal situations, are “recognized and accepted as brothers and sisters. It is the task of the various Dioceses actively to ensure that these people, who are obliged to live outside the safety net of civil society, may find a sense of brotherhood in the Christian community”.83
The Vatican II Council praised those who work in favor of migrant communities with the following words: "With our whole heart, we thank all priests, religious men and women and missionaries. Inspired by the hope which comes from God, revealed in Jesus of Nazareth, they dedicate themselves to the service of the weak and the sick and proclaim the Gospel of life. We admire the generosity of those many people who work for humanitarian goals, the persistence of those who lead international organisations, the courage of journalists who work at considerable risk for the truth and for the enlightenment of public opinion, the dedication of scientists, doctors and nurses, the daring of businessmen who create jobs in run-down areas, the devotion of parents, social workers and teachers, the creativity of artists, and so many other peace-makers, who seek to save lives, strengthen the family, promote the dignity of women, bring up children and preserve or enrich the cultural patrimony of humankind. We believe that, in all of these people, "grace is active invisibly" (GaudiumetSpes, 22)."84
- All Christians are called to share in the mission of the Church to welcome migrants and refugees since in and for the Church there are no ‘foreigners’. Rather, through their baptism all Christians, citizens, immigrants and refugees alike, are incorporated into the one Body of Christ, the Church, and are continually nourished in this unity by the Bread of the Eucharist.
3. Some specific questions about migration in the Social Doctrine of the Church85
The social doctrine of the Church has evolved in response to concrete questions. The first “social encyclical”, Leo XIII’s RerumNovarum (1891) was a response to the 19th century industrial revolution and its disastrous effects on the lives of millions of workers. The same Pope “not only upheld vigorously the dignity and rights of the working man but also defended strenuously those emigrants who sought to earn their living abroad”.86 The great movements of people, which Vatican II considers a sign of our times (see GaudiumetSpes, no.
83 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, July 25, 1995, no. 5.
84 John Paul II, Message of the X Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, October 26, 2001, n. 13.
85 This section contains, in adition to other materials, most of the ideas put forth in the paper by Rev. Fr. Michael A. Blume, published in People on the Move, no. 88-89, 2002.
86 Pius XII, Apostolic Constitution ExulFamilia(1952), Title 1.
4-6), is one of the concerns that helped expand the breadth and depth of the social doctrine of the Church. In the following pages I will describe briefly those questions related to migration that the social doctrine of the Church addresses.
(a) The right to migrate: “Among man's personal rights we must include his right to enter a country in which he hopes to be able to provide more fittingly for himself and his dependants” (PaceminTerris, no. 106).
“The Church in America must be a vigilant advocate, defending against any unjust restriction on the natural right of individual persons to move freely within their own nation and from one nation to another. Attention must be called to the rights of migrants and their families and to respect for their human dignity, even in cases of non-legal immigration”.87
The defense of this right is based on the notion and dignity of the person88. The human person has a right to live in a way befitting the image of God, fulfilling his/her vocation through the God-given duty of labor (see Gen 3,19). Work is rooted in the human person who participates in God's creative act of being fruitful, multiplying, filling the earth, and subduing it (see LaboremExercens, no. 3). Labor is not only about survival but also about developing one’s personality, family, culture, social and political life.
Since every human person has an inalienable right to life and the activities needed to sustain and develop it, when these rights are continually impeded, people have a right to go where they hope to start again to live humanly.
89
The protection of human dignity and life itself becomes evident in the more dramatic forms of migration, especially in the case of refugees. While there may be justified limitations on immigration, “respect for the fundamental right of
87 John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation EcclesiainAmerica, January 22, 1999, no. 65.
88 Yuengert (op. cit., Ch. II) further distinguishes three principles that justify this right: the right of a family to sustenance (cfr. MateretMagistra, no. 45, and PopulorumProgressio, no. 69), the priority of the family over the state (cfr. RerumNovarum, no. 13 and LaboremExercens, no. 23), and the right of economic initiative (cfr. SollicitudoReiSocialis, no. 15).
89 John Paul II: "Specifically, these are the right to have one’s own country, to live freely in one’s own country, to live together with one’s family, to have access to the goods necessary for a dignified life, to preserve and develop one’s ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage, to publicly profess one’s religion, to be recognized and treated in all circumstances according to one’s dignity as a human being. (...) These rights are concretely employed in the concept of universal common good, which includes the whole family of peoples, beyond every nationalistic egoism. The right to emigrate must be considered in this context. The Church recognizes this right in every human person, in its dual aspect of the possibility to leave one’s country and the possibility to enter another country to look for better conditions of life." Message for the 87th Day of Migrants and Refugees 2001 (February 2, 2001) no. 3.
asylum can never be denied when life is seriously threatened in one's homeland”90 (see also91).
The problem of refugees must be confronted at its roots, that is, at the level of the very causes of exile. The first point of reference should not be the interests of the State, or national security, but the human person, so that the need to live in community, a basic requirement of the very nature of human beings, will be safeguarded.92
“Thus, she [the Church] does not grow tired of affirming and defending the dignity of the human person, highlighting the inalienable rights that originate from it. Specifically, these are the right to have one’s own country, to live freely in one’s own country, to live together with one’s family, to have access to the goods necessary for a dignified life, to preserve and develop one’s ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage, to publicly profess one’s religion, to be recognized and treated in all circumstances according to one’s dignity as a human being.”93
"The soul of your work [at the service of immigrants] is a vision of human dignity which is based upon the truth of the human person created in the image of God (cf. Gen 1:26), a truth which illuminates the entire Social Teaching of the Church. From this vision there flows a sense of inalienable rights which do not depend on any human power to concede or deny, for they are rights which have their source in God."94
- Protection is not a simple concession made to the refugee: he is not an object of assistance, but rather a subject of rights and duties. Each country has the responsibility to respect the rights of refugees and assure that they are respected as much as the rights of its own citizens.95
90 Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People and Pontifical Council “Cor Unum,”Refugees: A Challenge to Solidarity” (Vatican City 1992), no. 6. This point is supported by Article 31 (1) of the 1951 Geneva Convention on the Status of Refugees, the foundation of modern asylum law, which recognizes that entering a country, even illegally, for the purpose of seeking asylum is not a crime.
91 Charter of the rights of the family, Presented by the Holy See to all persons, institutions and authorities concerned with the mission of the family in today's world, October 22, 1983. Article 12: "The families of migrants have the right to the same protection as that accorded other families. a) The families of immigrants have the right to respect for their own culture and to receive support and assistance towards their integration into the community to which they contribute. b) Emigrant workers have the right to see their family united as soon as possible. c) Refugees have the right to the assistance of public authorities and International Organizations in facilitating the reunion of their families."
92 Cf. Sacred Congregation for Bishops, "Instruction on the Pastoral Care of People Who Migrate" (22 August 1969), 6, in AAS, 61 (1969), 617.
93 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 3.
94 John Paul II, Message to the ICM, November 12, 2001, no. 4.
95 Cfr. Pontif. Council CorUnum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidiarity", no. 11.
“These rights are concretely employed in the concept of universal common good, which includes the whole family of peoples, beyond every nationalistic egoism. The right to emigrate must be considered in this context. The Church recognizes this right in every human person, in its dual aspect of the possibility to leave one’s country and the possibility to enter another country to look for better conditions of life. Certainly, the exercise of such a right is to be regulated, because practicing it indiscriminately may do harm and be detrimental to the common good of the community that receives the migrant. Before the manifold interests that are interwoven side by side with the laws of the individual countries, it is necessary to have international norms that are capable of regulating everyone’s rights, so as to prevent unilateral decisions that are harmful to the weakest.”
96
There must be an effective recognition of the rights of migrants: "It is urgent in their regard that one know how to overcome a strictly nationalistic attitude to create a State which recognizes their right to emigration and encourages their integration.... It is the duty of all - and especially Christians - to work energetically to establish the universal brotherhood which is the indispensable basis of true justice and a condition for lasting peace" (Paul VI, Encyclical Octogesimaadveniens, no. 17).
The Church, ‘expert in humanity’, considers the protection of human rights inherent in pastoral care. For example, addressing the European Court and Commission of Human Rights in 1988, John Paul II recalled that "human rights (...) draw their vigor and their effectiveness from a framework of values, the roots of which lie deep within the Christian heritage which has contributed so much to European culture. These founding values precede the positive law which gives them expression and of which they are the basis. They also precede the philosophical rationale that the various schools of thought are able to give to them."97 The same applies to the rest of the world98. From this follows that
96 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 3.
97 John Paul II, Addresss to the European Court and Commission of Human Rights, Strasbourg,8 Oct. 1988, L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 14 November 1988.
98 Rev. Fr. Michael A. Blume, S.V.D., “Refugee Law in the European Union at the turn of the Century: some pastoral reflections”, in People on the Move - N° 82, April 2000: "Thus Europeanization, considered from a Catholic point of view and applied to refugee law, means the project of reading Europe's legitimate concerns about migration and refugee movements in the light of the fundamental values of European civilization. These include the affirmation of the dignity of the person as prime value and the sacred character of life; the role of the family; the freedom to think, speak and profess one's convictions and religion; the protection of individuals and groups; the cooperation of all for the common good; the concept of work as a sharing in the Creator's own work; the authority of the State, itself governed by law and reason (See Address at the University of Upsalla, 9 June 1989, L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 19 June 1989); and the solidarity with all peoples that emerges from probing the mystery of the human person. These are the core issues of the religious-humanitarian culture of Europe. They
the care of migrants implies the protection of their rights, and this has to be also the responsibility of the local community and can be the catalyst for the protection and promotion of their dignity. Churches have organized various activities in this regards, from hiring lawyers, to challenging associations of Catholic lawyers to provide pro-bono services to migrants, to organizing paralegal groups and exposing cases of abuse. This is also an area in which sharing of experiences and practices can be very productive. Specifically, the Church encourages governments to ratify the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.
(b) Is the right to migration absolute? No, it is not an absolute right. As Yuegert suggests99, the principle that regulates the right to migrate is the common good. But not just the common good of a particular country, rather the universalcommon good, as follows from the words of John Paul II that he quotes: “... rights are concretely employed in the concept of universal common good, which includes the whole family of peoples, beyond every nationalistic egoism. The right to migrate must be considered in this context”.100
Can it ever be limited?
As indicated earlier101, the social doctrine of the Church also recognizes the right of states to control entry of persons and their borders. They have a right and duty to protect their sovereignty as well as the internal order that guarantees security, basic human rights and freedoms. Therefore, states can make practical decisions that control immigration.102 It is, however important to remember the principle that immigrants must always be treated with the respect due to the dignity of every human person. Regarding controlling the influx of immigrants, the consideration which should rightly be given to the common good cannot ignore this principle. The challenge is to combine the welcome due to every human being, especially when in need, with a reckoning of what is necessary for both the local inhabitants and the new arrivals to live a dignified and peaceful life.103
are like the soil in which a legal system can be cultivated to produce laws that will be good for Europe and the rest of the world too."
99 Yuegert, op. cit., p. 18. He discusses in more detail the concept of the universal common good in chapter IV of his monograph.
100 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration (February 2, 2001), no. 3.
101 See section II.3.
102 As John Paul II has stated, “Certainly, the exercise of such a right [to enter another country] is to be regulated, because practicing it indiscriminately may do harm and be detrimental to the common good of the community that receives the migrant. Before the manifold interests that are interwoven side by side with the laws of the individual countries, it is necessary to have international norms that are capable of regulating everyone’s rights, so as to prevent unilateral decisions that are harmful to the weakest”. Message for the 87th World Day of Migration (February 2, 2001), no. 3.
103 Cfr. John Paul II, Message for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace 2001, no. 13.
This position is quite different from sometimes bitter debates on migration controls or even ‘zero migration’. To be morally justified, a decision to restrict immigration has to take into account several issues.
First, there in an obligation on the part of the governing bodies, to search for the truth about migration, its benefits in society, and critically examine the notions circulating in the media, on talk shows, and in bars. Decisions based on insufficient information harm not only migrants but also those who make them. Only the search for the truth brings freedom, peace, and justice.
Second, limiting migration cannot be based on egoistical motives, e.g., the hope of preserving a certain lifestyle, while the greater part of humanity lives below the poverty line. “Although it is true that highly developed countries are not always able to assimilate all those who emigrate, nonetheless it should be pointed out that the criterion for determining the level that can be sustained cannot be based solely on protecting their own prosperity, while failing to take into consideration the needs of persons who are tragically forced to ask for hospitality.”104
The discussion of the rights of states and their citizens cannot be separated from solidarity, which is also basic to Catholic social teaching105. Solidarity is based on our common human origin and equality and is manifest in the quest for a more just social order. “Socio-economic problems can be resolved only with the help of all the forms of solidarity,” including at an international level, on which world peace in part depends.106 There needs to be a globalization of solidarity.
Closing the doors to immigration without a commitment to remove its causes is a double injustice. Besides, it is not ethically acceptable to reject the migrant worker as well as the product on which he invests his labor in his country of origin through exorbitant tariffs. Poverty, which is the main generator of migration, requires an urgent solution. Progress is such only when it is transformed into development for all persons. This means sharing of goods and a more sober lifestyle on the part of rich countries.
Third, another pillar of social doctrine of the Church, the universal destination of goods, needs to enter any discussion of restrictions, for “the goods of creation are destined for the whole human race” (CCC no. 2402). “Peace and prosperity (...) belong to the whole human race: it is not possible to enjoy them in a proper and lasting way if they are achieved and maintained at the cost of other peoples and nations by violating their rights or excluding them from the sources of well-being” (CentesimusAnnus, no. 27).
104 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 3.
105 The notion of solidarity will be addressed below.
106 Cfr. CCC no. 1941. See also the whole context in CCC nos. 1939-1941.
Bearing these three principles in mind, it is easier to understand the exhortation of John Paul II in no. 65 of EcclesiainAmerica: “The Church in America must be a vigilant advocate, defending against any unjust restriction the natural right of individual persons to move freely within their own nation and from one nation to another”.
(c) Solidarity and migration: addressing the roots of the problem
In terms of social doctrine of the Church, the solution to the plight of migrants needs to be elaborated on the basis of solidarity, the universal destination of the goods of the earth, international common good, and the priority of persons over work and over possessions. This needs to be proclaimed in any education and formation program, and as part of advocacy efforts in order to form the conscience of individuals and nations as a whole when facing this issue.
While working to maintain the integrity of the migrants' protection system and sustain its functioning, it is also urgent to address the root causes of forced movements of population. The community of nations must move towards a more coherent approach. The sources of the instability which causes forced population movement must be addressed. Countries in all parts of the world and their citizens must be able to be protagonists of a common vision of development aimed at inclusion. Regretably, exclusion, in so many forms, is still a dramatic characteristic of a world that likes to consider itself global. Only efforts that aim at overcoming such widespread exclusion and inequalities will in the long-term address the root causes of forced movement. This will require comprehensive programs to create security for people through, among others, debt relief, increased and more effective development assistance, investment in people and their creative capacities, participative and democratic governance structures and the creation of those infrastructures which enable people to remain in their own land. Coherent efforts at reducing arms expenditures and at conflict prevention are ever more urgent.
- But, what is solidarity?107
"[Solidarity] is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good; that is to say, to the good of all and of each individual because we are all really responsible for all."108
"Solidarity means taking responsibility for those in trouble. For Christians, the migrant is not merely an individual to be respected in accordance with the norms established by law, but a person whose presence challenges them and
107 See also Yuegert, op. cit., pp. 49-51, for a description of the principle of solidarity as found in the teachings of the Church.
108 John Paul II, SollicitudoReiSocialisno. 38.
whose needs become an obligation for their responsibility. ‘What have you done to your brother?’ (cf. Gn 4:9). The answer should not be limited to what is imposed by law, but should be made in the manner of solidarity."109
"The growing international development consensus must be underpinned and accompanied by certain underlying principles, also of an ethical nature. Development is above all about certain basic human aspirations and values, understood within a holistic vision of the relationships between humankind and the rest of creation. In a knowledge-based economic system, development consensus must be person-centered, it must aim at inclusion and policies which enhance human capacity and strengthen participative human communities. Development must be inserted into a framework of solidarity and shared responsibility. Our task is to make solidarity a reality. We must make create a worldwide movement which understands solidarity as a natural duty of each person, each community and each nation. Solidarity must be a natural and essential pillar of every political grouping, the private possession of neither right nor left, neither North nor South, but an ethical imperative of a humanity which seeks to re-assert its vocation to be a global family. God, in fact, ‘gave the earth to the whole human race for the sustenance of all its members, without excluding or favouring anyone’ (Pope John Paul II, CentesimusAnnus, n. 31)."110
"When he visited South Africa in 1995, Pope John Paul II stated that solidarity is ‘the only path forward, out of the complete moral bankruptcy of racial prejudice and ethnic animosity’ (Homily at Germiston Racecourse, Johannesburg [17 September 1995], no. 4: Insegnamenti XVIII, 2 [1995], 581). Solidarity must be fostered among States, but also within every society where a process of dehumanization and the disintegration of the social fabric undeniably aggravates racist and xenophobic attitudes and behaviour. This negative process results in rejection of the weakest, be it the foreigner, the handicapped or the homeless. Solidarity must be based upon the unity of the human family, because all people, created in the image and likeness of God, have the same origin and are called to the same destiny (cf. the document published by the Pontifical Commission for Justice and Peace TheChurchandRacism: TowardsaMore FraternalSociety,cited henceforth as CR, Part III, nn. 19-20). On this basis the contribution of religion remains irreplaceable, a contribution made by each believer who, freely adhering to faith, lives it out every day. Freedom of conscience and freedom of religion remain the premise, the principle and the foundation of every other freedom, human and civil, individual and communal."111
109 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, July 25, 1995, 5
110 Intervention by the Holy See at the third United Nations Conference on the Least Developed Countries (LDC), Brussels, 16 May 2001.
111 Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, “Contribution to World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance”, Durban 8/31 – 9/7, 2001, n. 22.
(d) Economic development and the universal destiny of wealth
"The globalization process can be an opportunity, if cultural differences are accepted as an opportunity for meeting and dialogue, and if the unequal distribution of the world's resources leads to a new awareness of the necessary solidarity which must unite the human family. If, on the contrary, inequalities increase, poorer populations are forced into the exile of desperation, while the wealthy countries find they are prisoners of an insatiable craving to concentrate the available resources in their own hands."112
"In this regard we should not lose sight of the fact that any evaluation of this problem [migration] must start with the notion of the universal common good that embraces the entire human family and goes beyond any nationalist selfishness. This notion is founded on the universality and indivisibility of the fundamental human rights that derive from the dignity of the human person and have also been appropriately recognized by the American Convention of Human Rights."113
“More than one hundred years ago, Pope Leo XIII issued the first great social Encyclical Letter, RerumNovarum. In it, the Pope stated the ideas that would become an inspiration for social policy for years to come. Every program geared to increased production must have no other end in view than to serve the human person, namely: to lessen inequalities, to remove discrimination, to free men from the bonds of servitude and to enable them to improve their condition in the temporal order, achieve moral development, and perfect their spiritual endowments. When we speak of development, care must be given both to social progress and economic growth."114
“In 1967, in his Encyclical Letter PopulorumProgressio, Pope Paul VI reinforced the position of the Church regarding the connection between peace and social and economic development. Therefore, when we combat misery, and struggle against injustice we are providing not only for man's prosperity but also for his spiritual and moral development and are therefore promoting the welfare of the whole human race."115
The ‘moral bankruptcy of racial prejudice and ethnic animosity’, to use the words of Pope John Paul II (Homily at Germiston Racecourse, Johannesburg, 17
112 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, no. 4.
113 Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Letter to the 32nd ordinary Assembly of the Organization of American States, 2 June 2002.
114 Archbishop R. Martino, Intervention by the delegation of the Holy See to the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey (Mexico) 21 March 2002.
115 Ibidem.
September 1995), can only be definitively eliminated through a conscious effort of solidarity and a recognition of the essential unity of the one human family.
A human rights approach must always focus on the person living in poverty as a fellow human person, endowed with dignity, rights and potential. A human rights approach cannot be satisfied with policies that treat persons living in poverty somehow as a threat, as just potential illegal immigrants or asylum seekers, much less as potential terrorists. We respond to the person living in poverty, not out of fear or out of short term political or self-interest, but in a true spirit of solidarity, fostering the common good of the entire global community.
The person living in poverty must not be considered an object to be managed but as a participating subject. Men and women living in poverty demonstrate that they have great ingenuity, as without such ingenuity they would not survive. The focus of international intervention should be to ensure that the genius of the poor can be focussed not just on surviving but on flourishing, on becoming active participants in society in a way worthy of human dignity, with hope for themselves and their families. They must have the necessary access to formation, to credit and to judicial protection needed to achieve such participation (see Appendix 2).
In keeping with the principle of subsidiarity116, the poor must be heard on issues and be at the center of local, national and international programs for sustainable development. Persons living in poverty must be considered as participating subjects. Individuals and peoples cannot become tools but must be the protagonists of their future.
(e) Families and migration
The family is one of the great themes in the social doctrine of the Church, for it is “the original cell of social life .... the natural society in which husband and wife are called to give themselves in love and in the gift of life” (CCC no. 2207). This gift of God is also deeply affected by many factors today, including migration, as Pope Pius XII knew very well fifty years ago when he published the Apostolic Constitution on migration, ExulFamilia, a title already reflecting concern for the family in migration.
116 This principle of subsidiarity, which lies as the foundation to much of the Social Doctrine of the Church, requires a brief explanation. John Paul II, in CentesimusAnnus no. 48, says: “A community of a higher order should not interfere in the life of a community of a lower order, depriving the latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need and help coordinate its activity with the activities of the rest of society, always with a view to the common good.” The first formulation of this principle belongs to Pius XI in no. 79 of his Encyclical Letter QuadragesimoAnno, dated May 15, 1931. Yuegert, op. cit., in pp. 51-54 provides an excellent description of this principle.
1.) Among the rights of the family is “the right to emigrate as a family in search for a better life” (FamiliarisConsortio, no. 46). Those who migrate do so to fulfill duties for “the physical, spiritual and religious welfare of the family” (MateretMagistra, no. 45). The need to seek a worthy livelihood constitutes a right to migrate, and that is all the more so when migration is forced.
But the right to migrate includes the right to be with one's family.117 The human person in his/her primary relations takes precedence over political considerations as well as production and profit. This concept led John Paul II to protest against “systems that perpetuate the forced separation of spouses”118 or of parents from children: "The Church repeats with insistence that (...) the protection of families, and particularly of those burdened by further difficulties of being migrants and refugees, constitutes an indispensable priority . 'What God has joined together, let no one separate' sounds like an implicit condemnation for a society that grants economic advantage to the detriment of moral values."119
When we consider the normal obligations of society towards the family and its development as well as the rights of the family itself (see Familiaris Consortio, n. 46), it is reasonable to also draw the conclusion that there is a right not to migrate or, put positively, “the primary right of man to live in one’s homeland”.120 Migration so often means this right is not respected as individuals and families are unable to fulfill their basic obligations to themselves and their children in a particular society.
2.) Rights of immigrant families in their country of arrival: The Church’s pastoral outreach brings it face to face with the need to defend the value of the family, its freedom of movement and decision-making, its right to educate children and bring them up “in accordance with the family’s own traditions and religious and cultural values” and the other rights of the Charter of Rights of the Family (see footnote no. 75). The social doctrine of the Church also insists that states have the obligation to assure to
117 Vatican Council II, GaudiumetSpesno. 66 has a clear statement on this that builds on earlier teachings of John XXIII and Pius XII: "All the people . . . must treat them [migrants] not as mere tools of production but as persons, and must help them to bring their families to live with them".
118 "The Serious, Sorrowful and Complex Conditions of Families involved in the Difficult Situation of Emigration" (Message for the World Day of Migration, 15 August 1986). The 1993 Message, "Problems of the Migrant Family," takes the similar positions as a contribution to the International Year of the Family. His 1980 Message also deals with migrant families, "An ever more Adequate and Enlightened Pastoral Care of Families in Emigration." Cited by Fr. M. A. Blume, People on the Move, no. 88-89, December 2002, cit. #13.
119 John Paul II, Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1986
120 Pope John Paul II, Message to the Fourth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, no. 2.
immigrant families what it guarantees to its own citizens.121 Denouncing abuse of these rights, the Church asserts that the family has preference in cases of conflict between society and family. There should be no discrimination against migrant families. The Christian communities in host countries are called to solidarity and burden sharing with migrant families. Papal documents appeal to them to accept immigrants so that no one is without a family in this world. The church should be that family, especially for the heavily burdened. In the Church no one is a stranger.
Family separation is another difficult problem in migration. This entails problems for the stability of the couple and of the family, as well as for the education of the children. When the absent spouse is the woman, it is even more difficult, especially because, normally, it is mainly the wife and mother who takes care of the home and the upbringing of the children.
(f) The unity of the human family and the rejection of discrimination
"Working for the unity of the human family means being committed to the rejection of all discrimination based on race, culture or religion as contrary to God's plan. It means bearing witness to a fraternal life based on the Gospel, which respects cultural differences and is open to sincere and trustful dialogue. It includes the advancement of everyone's right to be able to live peacefully in his own country, as well as attentive concern that in every State immigration laws be based on the recognition of fundamental human rights."122
Furthermore, progress in the capacity to live together within the universal human family is closely linked to the growth of a mentality of hospitality. Any person in danger who appears at a frontier has a right to protection. In order to make it easier to determine why such people have abandoned their country, as well as to adopt lasting solutions, a renewed commitment is needed to produce internationally acceptable norms for territorial asylum. Such an attitude facilitates the search for common solutions and undercuts the validity of certain positions, sometimes put forward, that would limit acceptance and the granting of the right of asylum to the sole criterion of national interest.123
121 John Paul II: "Taking into account their particular needs, the State's task is to ensure that immigrant families do not lack what it ordinarily guarantees its own citizens. In particular, it is the State's duty to protect them from any attempt at marginalization or racism, promoting a culture of convinced and active solidarity. For this purpose it provides the most appropriate and concrete measures for their acceptance, together with those social services likely to foster for them too, a peaceful life and a development that respects their human dignity". Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1994.
122 John Paul II, Message for the 86th World Day of Migration, November 21, 1999, no. 6.
123 Cfr. Pontif. Council CorUnum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidarity", no. 10. In note (9) the document indicates that the United Nations had convened in 1977 in Geneva a diplomatic conference to adopt a Convention on Territorial Asylum capable of filling the juridical void
Indeed, protection must not be limited to a guarantee of physical integrity but must be extended to all the conditions necessary for a fully human existence. Thus they must be assured not only food, clothing, housing and protection from violence, but also access to education and medical assistance, and the possibility of assuming responsibility for their own lives, cultivating their own cultures and traditions, and freely expressing their own faith. Furthermore, since the family is the fundamental unit of every society, the reunification of refugee families must be promoted.124
"Peace! Humanity is alwaysin need of peace, but now more than ever, after the tragic events which have undermined its confidence and in the face of persistent flashpoints of cruel conflict which create anxiety throughout the world. In my Message for 1 January, I stressed the two "pillars" upon which peace rests: commitment to justiceand readiness to forgive. Justice, first of all, because there can be no true peace without respect for the dignity of persons and peoples, respect for the rights and duties of each person and respect for an equal distribution of benefits and burdens between individuals and in society as a whole. It can never be forgotten that situations of oppression and exclusion are often at the source of violence and terrorism. But forgivenesstoo, because human justice is subject to frailty and to the pressures of individual and group egoism. Forgiveness alone heals the wounds of the heart and fully restores damaged human relations."125
(g) Immigration and inter-religious dialogue126
Migrants have the right to express publicly their religious beliefs in the countries in which they have residence, subject only to the limitations found in the U.N. Declaration on the Elimination of Intolerance and Discrimination based on Religion and Belief and they should be able to benefit from the spiritual assistance of religious personnel of their own tradition. They likewise have the right to see that they can transmit their religious heritage to their children and that their children have the right to be educated in the tenets of their religious
caused by the evolution of the refugee problem. Unfortunately the initiative failed, principally due to the ideological conflicts between the then existing blocks of countries. Twenty-five years later, the new geopolitical context seems to invite a renewed effort by the international community to adopt a juridical instrument that can ensure an adequate protection for all refugees in today's world.
124 Cfr. Pontif. Council CorUnum: "Refugees: a challenge to solidarity", no. 12. John Paul II devoted his Message for the 88th World Day of Migration 2002 (July 25, 2001) to this theme.
125 John Paul II, Address to the representatives of the World Religions, Assisi (Italy), 24 January 2002, no. 3.
126 Cfr. Msgr. Felix A. Machado, Undersecretary, Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue: 'Immigration and Inter-religious Dialogue', World Day of Migrants and Refugees, 2002.
belief. Acceptance of religious diversity of migrants can be a powerful means of fostering religious tolerance on a wider scale.
The multireligious character of the world can be a source of great harmony and peace. The Catholic Church has been promoting this dialogue among religions for a long time and the message of the Holy Father on the occasion of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2002, entitled ‘Migration and Inter-Religious Dialogue’ must be considered in this context. Immigration and interreligious dialogue are sometimes spoken of as problems in our society. In his message on the occasion of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees' 2002 John Paul II brings these two together and shows how they can be opportunities for contributing harmony and peace to the world. The phenomenon of immigration offers occasions for Christians to engage in dialogue with people of other religious traditions. The practice of dialogue, in turn, enables Christians to know the immigrants justly and fairly and thus help them integrate better into society. The experience of many years show that interreligious dialogue can be undertaken on different levels. The Catholic Church speaks of four levels or forms of dialogue. They are distinct from one another yet at the same time inter-connected: 1. dialogue of life - it implies concern, respect, and hospitality towards the other; 2. dialogue of collaboration - it calls every Christian to work together with each and all for goals of a humanitarian, social, economic, or political nature which are directed towards the liberation and advancement of humankind; 3. dialogue of specialists - it involves confrontation, deepening and enrichment of the respective religious heritages; and 4. dialogue of religious experience - it implies sharing one's experience of prayer, contemplation, faith and duty, as well as one's expressions and ways of searching for the Absolute.
"This enriching intercultural and inter-religious dialogue presupposes a climate that is permeated with mutual trust and respects religious freedom. Among the sectors to be illuminated by the light of Christ therefore is freedom, particularly religious freedom, which is still at times limited or restricted. It is the premise and guarantee of every other authentic form of freedom. ‘Religious freedom’ - I wrote in RedemptorisMissio– ‘is not a question of the religion of the majority or the minority, but of an inalienable right of each and every human person’ (no. 39). Freedom is a constitutive dimension of the Christian faith itself, since it is not a transmission of human traditions, or a point of arrival of philosophical discussion, but a free gift of God, which is communicated with due respect for the human conscience. It is the Lord who acts efficaciously through his Spirit; it is He who is the true protagonist. People are instruments that He uses, to each of whom He assigns a singular role."
127
True religious belief is absolutely incompatible with racist attitude and racist
127 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 9.
practices. Pope John Paul II, before the Durban Conference128, made an appeal in this sense to all believers, noting that we cannot truly call on God, the father of all, if we refuse to treat in a brotherly way any person, created in God's image.129 Through their common belief in the dignity of every individual and in the unity of the human family, believers of all faiths can indeed bring strong leadership in fostering understanding and reconciliation among peoples. In a world in which religion is often exploited as a means to deepen existing political, social or economic divisions, it is encouraging to note the growing number of initiatives, both at the local and on the international level, of dialogue among religions. Interreligious dialogue, today more than ever, is a vital element in fostering peace and understanding and in overcoming historical divisions and misunderstandings. Such dialogue can and should be a strong contribution to the fight against racism.
The Durban Declaration (no. 8) recalls that religion, spirituality and belief play a central role in the lives of men and women and in the way they live and treat other persons. It stresses how religion contributes "to the promotion of the inherent dignity and worth of the human person and to the elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance".
Religion, above all, can be a strong force for that individual and collective conversion of hearts, without which hatred, intolerance and exclusion will never be eliminated. The fight against racism requires a concerted international program. But the fight against racism begins in the heart of each person, and in the collective historical memory of our communities. The fight against racism requires a personal change of heart. It requires that ‘healing of memories’, that forgiveness for which Pope John Paul II called in his Message for the World Day of Peace 1997, no. 3, when he said: "No peace without justice, no justice without forgiveness: I shall not tire of repeating this warning to those who, for one reason or another, nourish feelings of hatred, a desire for revenge or the will to destroy"."130
(h) The right to just coexistance, without labels and respect for their culture.
This section briefly touches the complex area of families and individuals being inserted into a new society, new culture, and new experience of being Church. The issues are even more urgent since globalization includes strong tendencies towards the ‘homogenization’ of cultures, “the slavish conformity of cultures, or at least of key aspects of them, to cultural models deriving from the Western
128 World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance, Durban (South Africa), 31 August - 7 September 2001. The “Durban Declaration” is contained in the final UN report.
129 John Paul II, Address before the recital of the Angelus, at Castel Gandolfo, Sunday 26th August 2001, quoting from the Declaration of the Second Vatican Council Nostraaetate, no. 5.
130 Intervention of the Holy See at the United Nations Organization on Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and related Intolerance, New York, 28 January 2002
world” and “the aggressive claims of some cultures against others”.131 The social doctrine of the Church requires that the “cultural practices which immigrants bring with them should be respected and accepted, as long as they do not contravene either the universal ethical values inherent in the natural law or fundamental human rights”.132
In this context it is worth pointing out that John Paul II has addressed this themes in his earlier ‘Messages for the Day of Migrants and Refugees’. For example, “Respect and Increase the Cultural Identity of Migrants” was the theme of the 1981 Message. Culture is closely linked with migrants' identity, both personal and spiritual, as well as with their faith. It also gives them something to fall back on as they meet a new and alien society, often dominated by very secularized attitudes and approaches.
The Church has a special role in this area. The experience is that assuring migrants feel at home in a local church,133 is the first step to “integration” into it. Feeling at home necessarily means being themselves in “language, liturgy, spirituality, particular traditions”. That is the path to the kind of “ecclesial integration, which enriches the Church of God and which is the fruit of the dynamic realism of the Incarnation of the Son of God”.134 When not forced ahead nor held back, migrants make their own contribution to the catholicity of the church, i.e., that “complete openness to the other, a readiness to share and to live in the same ecclesial communion”.
135 The teaching and experience of the Church here can be a lesson to civil societies that struggle with their multicultural challenges.
"Sometimes, due to an environment dominated by growing religious relativism and indifferentism, it is difficult for the spiritual dimension of charitable undertakings to emerge. Some people fear that doing charity in view of evangelization could expose them to the accusation of proselytism. Proclaiming and bearing witness to the Gospel of charity constitutes the connective tissue of the mission towards migrants (cfr. Apostolic Letter Novomillennioineunte, no. 56)."136
131 John Paul II, "Message for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace”, 1 January 2001, nos. 8-10.
132 ibid. n. 13
133 John Paul II's 1982 Message, "Specific Church Presence in the Structures and Organs for the Pastoral Care of Migration," concentrates on the specific purpose of ecclesial structures and organisms for the pastoral care of emigrants. Regarding the development of pastoral approaches that respect and promote the languages and cultures and ecclesial traditions of migrants, see also Code of Canon Law 787 §1, 769, 518, and 214.
134 John Paul II, "The Right of Believing Migrants to Free Integration into the Church," Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1986. See also the 1981 Message, "Respect and Increase the Cultural Identity of Migrants."
135 John Paul II, Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1986.
136 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 7.
True dialogue is established between people who are looking for the truth “in a manner proper to the dignity of the human person and his social nature. The inquiry is to be free” with the possibility of explaining to others the truth they think they have discovered.137 Once recognized, the truth requires the personal adhesion of the one who discovers it. The convictions “kept in the most intimate sanctuary of the human person,” affirms Pope John Paul II,138 are expressed in religious freedom. Thus the Pope calls for the recognition of such a right. In fact, the Vatican II document DignitatisHumanae (no. 3) states: “Injury therefore is done to the human person and to the very order established by God for human life, if the free exercise of religion is denied in society, provided just public order is observed.” This affirmation remains valid in whatever environment a person may be, whether he be migrant or native. The search for truth and the dialogue that results from this, however, does not take place only in the field of theological research, but above all in daily life, and not so much through events that dazzle the means of social communications, but through small gestures of friendship, solidarity and brotherhood. When within a civil community citizens know how to accept each other with their respective religious convictions, it is easier for them to come to an understanding on the basic values for a peaceful and constructive living together. They would feel united by the awareness of being brothers and sisters, as they are children of the one and only God, creator of the universe.
139 And once we recognize each other as brothers and sisters and we love each other as children of the same Father who is Love, there comes the hope “for warding off the dread specter of those wars of religion which have so often bloodied human history”, often causing painful forced migration. Then comes the certainty that the name of the one and only God will become ever more “a name of peace and a summon to peace,”140 that peace the Jesus called his own: “Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace which the world cannot give, this is my gift to you” (Jn 14,27).
"It is important to help the community of arrival not only in being open to charitable hospitality but also to a meeting, collaboration and exchange. Furthermore, it is opportune to open the way to pastoral agents who, from the countries of origin, come to the countries of immigration to work among their fellow countrymen. It would be very useful to institute for them centers of welcome that would prepare them for their new task."141 - Contribution to integration, not assimilation.
137 Cfr. DignitatisHumanae(DH), 7 December 1965, no. 3.
138 Cfr. John Paul II, Discourse to the Peoples of Kazakhstan, 22 September 2001. Cit. #6 of Archbishop S. F. Hamao, “Presentation of the Pontifical Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2002”, in: People on the Move, no. 87, December 2001.
139 Ibidem.
140 Cfr. John Paul II, Apostolic Letter NovoMillennioIneunte, 6 January 2001, no. 55.
141 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 8.
“However, this service [pastoral care of immigrants] is, by its very nature, temporary and transitory, although the law does not set a definite time for its cessation. The organizational structure of such a service is not a substitution but is cumulative with respect to the territorial parochial care, which it is expected to join sooner or later. In fact, although the pastoral care of migrants takes into account the fact that a given community has its own tongue and culture, which cannot be ignored in daily apostolic work, it does not intend to make their preservation and development its specific objective.”142
"[the Church] puts clergy and faithful on guard against attempting merely to assimilate them, which destroys their particular characteristics. Rather she encourages the gradual integration of these brothers and sisters, making the most of their diversity to build an authentic family of believers which is welcoming and supportive."143
"(...) deeper awareness of the importance of the Catholic doctrine on nonChristian religions (cfr. Decl. NostraAetate), so as to be able to undertake an attentive, constant and respectful interreligious dialogue as a means of mutual knowledge and enrichment. ‘In the light of the economy of salvation,’ I wrote in the aforementioned Encyclical Redemptorismissio, ‘the Church sees no conflict between proclaiming Christ and engaging in inter-religious dialogue. Instead she feels the need to link the two in the context of her mission ad gentes. These two elements must maintain both their intimate connection and their distinctiveness; therefore they should not be confused, manipulated or regarded as identical as though they were interchangeable’ (no.55)."144
"The mass media can play an important role, both positive and negative. Their activity can foster a proper evaluation and better understanding of the problems of the ‘new arrivals’, dispelling prejudices and emotional reactions, or instead, it can breed rejection and hostility, impeding and jeopardizing proper integration."145
The territorial parish is therefore called to give pastoral care to the migrants living in its territory. In fact, the chaplain for migrants does not exercise an exclusive competence but one that is cumulative with that of the territorial parish priest.146 It is important to keep in mind that the pastoral care for
142 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 5.
143 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, no. 3.
144 John Paul II, Message for 87th World Day of Migration, February 2, 2001, no. 6.
145 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, no. 1.
146 Cfr. DePastoralisMigratorumCura,39.3. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'.
147
migrants is called to be open to their new world and to lead them to a full participation in the life of the diocese.
With the rapid decline in the number of priests and religious, the lay people, including migrants themselves, are the key to the future of the ministry in the field of migration. To be efficacious, however, they have to be adequately trained for the apostolate. This includes formation on the tenets of their faith, the teachings of the Church on migration and the social doctrine of the Church, as well as knowledge of the actual migration situation, civil laws and regulations, existing migrant-related organizations, and so forth.
The rejection of discrimination also implies a positive effort for integration and hospitality. Some of the pastoral aspects that should be taken into account in the care of immigrants and that will provide a substantial contribution to living together are based on the fact that the common good of a society called upon to live the pluralism of cultures in a new way should be the object of the Church’s attention under various aspects. Here are some examples:
• The struggle against any discriminatory attitudes or speech regarding cultural origin or religion, because these are in contradiction with God’s design.
• Vigilance over the conditions of the immigrants’ family life. The family is an essential crucible of integration.
• The will to never put nationals and immigrants in opposition in questions of security which come up in certain circumstances.
• Informing public opinion about the complexity of the problems connected with immigration in order to reject simplistic solutions and to help baptized persons to bring about the necessary discernment in line with the Church’s teachings.
• In this regard, the serious responsibility of mass media in the formation of public opinion is to be underlined. It is therefore necessary to entrust these means to competent and reliable professionals who are aware of their task to help the receiving population understand and respect the fundamental rights of the migrant and to assume its part of the responsibility before the international community.
• Support for ‘places of mediation’ which make it possible for persons of different cultures to learn to know one another and be involved together in a common project.
147 Cfr. Velasio De Paolis, op. cit., II.6.2. Quoted by Dr. Nilda M.Castro, Official of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move, n. 84, December 2000) in her report on Four Regional Consultations and a World Meeting on the Pastoral Care of Migrants, entitled 'The Presence of the Church in Migration'.
• Warm welcome to migrants according to the spirit of the Gospel and services addressing the migrants’ needs to combat marginalization towards which the destination society tends to push them. These will also serve to neutralize the strategy used by sects to lure migrants into their ranks.
• The local and the migrant communities should assume a greater coresponsibility in the religious education of their children. This requires a new type of collaboration, given that migrant communities often speak a different language from what is spoken locally and are of a different cultural heritage. In this regard, Catholic schools are encouraged to be more open to the children of refugees and migrants in their communities.
• The necessary accompaniment of young immigrants in their process of integration into the society and the Church.
• Accompany the process of integration with the spirit of respect for the migrant’s culture and tradition, in his characteristic singularity. It is in this process that it is possible to experience the uniqueness of the other and to understand that love for our neighbors means brotherhood.
• Pastoral support for mixed marriages confronted with the differences in the spouses’ religions
(i) Migrants and human labor
“Human work is a key, probably the essential key, to the whole social question”, states John Paul II in the Encyclical LaboremExercens(no. 3). Since migration is so often in search of work, it is closely linked with labor as one of the first themes of the social doctrine of the Church.
Every migrant has fundamental rights, which are inalienable and which must be respected in every circumstance. The contribution of migrants to the economy of their host country is linked with their ability to realize fully their human intelligence and capacity. In this regard, the International Convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members of their families offers a compendium of rights that enables migrants to make this contribution. Its provisions merit adoption, especially by those States which benefit most from migration.
Immigrant workers have the right to just remuneration and employment conditions. Bilateral accords, in the case of areas where migration is particularly intense, can be a very effective manner to ensure that international norms are fully respected.
The social doctrine of the Church has great concerns for migrant workers, particularly for the serious problems they face: discrimination and xenophobia,148 deception regarding contracts or conditions of work, treatment as tools and not persons, dangerous occupations (the “three D’s”: dirty, dangerous, demanding), long working hours, pay lower than that of citizens for the same job,149 poor housing or none, and non-integration into social life.150 The message of Church documents and teaching to governments and others responsible for such situations is clear: They must protect all workers from these evils, even if they are migrants and not citizens, and work together with all nations to deal with labor migration at its roots, which means seeking a just global economic order.151 Local churches have a special call to solidarity with migrant workers and to formation of public opinion to promote justice for them.152
"Migration will inevitably become one of the characteristics of a globalised economy. There is therefore an urgent need to intensify and better coordinate reflection on the theme of migration on an international level. Many governments, faced with changing migration challenges, are drawing up new legislative measures. We need a forward-looking human rights framework on migration, which can be used to inspire and to evaluate these national legislations."153
The principle of the unity of the human family must be the fundamental building block for an equitable globalization which is to bring prosperity to all. While respecting the right of states to enact appropriate legislation regarding access to their country, any such legislation must respect the fact that a worker is never just a commodity to be treated just like any other product or form of capital.
To place it within a forward-looking human rights framework the first requirement is that it be set within a positive image of migration. Legislations that are based primarily on control and repression of abuses - dimensions that, without doubt, are necessary - will never capture the concept of migration as opportunity. Migration is opportunity today, just as it was for some so many individuals and families throughout the past. Migration can bring new
148 John Paul II, "The Condition of Migrants as a Challenge to the Vocation of the Christian", Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1983.
149 Cfr. CentesimusAnnus, no. 8, which refers immediately to the exploitation of women and children, some of whom are migrants.
150 Cfr. GaudiumetSpes, no. 66 and PopulorumProgressio, no. 69.
151 Cfr. CentesimusAnnus, no. 52.
152 John Paul II, "Specific Church Presence in the Structure and Organs for the Pastoral Care of Migrations", Message for the Day of Migrants and Refugees, 1982.
153 Intervention by H. E. Msgr. D. Martin to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, Geneve, 24 April 2002.
opportunity for the individuals who move to a new country, whether for a shorter or a longer period of time. If managed effectively, migration brings new opportunity for the economy of the receiving country, as well as an enrichment of its society. Church documents place a strong emphasis on the idea of the free movement of people as a source of richness, and this notion deserves further development.
(j) The problems of illegal immigration
Undocumented or irregular migration is an issue that arouses many emotions. Without going into details of a complex question, I will simply state the principles on which the social doctrine of the Church operates regarding this question.
1.) "There are no illegal migrants, for migrants are persons, and no person is illegal. Persons can engage in illegal movements but their Creator does not do illegal things. There is a need to change language that already carries with it a judgement. I believe Church documents are already correcting their previous language as we have in the Message of 2000, which speaks of ‘clandestine’, ‘men and women in illegal situations’. EcclesiainAmericano. 65 calls for attention ‘to the rights of migrants and their families and to respect for their human dignity, even in cases of non-legal immigration’. This is only respect for the truth. Illegality is not necessarily a result of personal bad will. Judgement needs to be suspended when we speak about people, particularly at this moment when the tendency to judge is very strong. The dignity of a person in an irregular situation does not expire as a visa or a passport does."154
2.) The Church respects civil law, including migration law, but also advocates that it be just.
"Migration is assuming the features of a social emergency, above all because of the increase in illegal migrants which, despite the current restrictions, it seems impossible to halt. Illegal immigration has always existed: it has frequently been tolerated because it promotes a reserve of personnel to draw on as legal migrants gradually move up the social ladder and find stable employment."155
"Today the phenomenon of illegal migrants has assumed considerable proportions, both because the supply of foreign labour is becoming excessive in comparison to the needs of the economy, which already has difficulty in absorbing its domestic workers, and because of the spread of forced migration. The necessary prudence required to deal with so delicate a matter cannot become one of reticence or exclusivity, because thousands would suffer the consequences as victims of situations that seem destined to deteriorate instead
154 Michael A. Blume, "Migration and the Social Doctrine of the Church", in People on the Move, no. 88-89, April-December 2002.
155 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, July 25, 1995, no. 1.
of being resolved. His irregular legal status cannot allow the migrant to lose his dignity, since he is endowed with inalienable rights, which can neither be violated nor ignored. llegal immigration should be prevented, but it is also essential to combat vigorously the criminal activities which exploit illegal immigrants. The most appropriate choice, which will yield consistent and longlasting results is that of international co-operation which aims to foster political stability and to eliminate underdevelopment. The present economic and social imbalance, which to a large extent encourages the migratory flow, should not be seen as something inevitable, but as a challenge to the human race's sense of responsibility."156
3.) Anti-immigrant propaganda can infect the Christian community, which has to be helped to understand why some migrants act illegally.
"In the search for a solution to the problem of migration in general and illegal migrants in particular, the attitude of the host society has an important role to play. In this perspective, it is very important that public opinion be properly informed about the true situation in the migrants' country of origin, about the tragedies involving them and the possible risks of returning.”157
4.) Migrants in such situations need to be helped to live and, when possible, to regularize their status.158 If the community gives shelter to migrants in irregular situations, the aim is not ‘civil disobedience’ but the defense of people who have not been properly treated before the law or whose cases merit review. The following statement should be considered in such context: "Holy See wishes to commend such activity on the part of UNHCR and others and to encourage expanded consideration of the plight of these human beings who have the right to humanitarian assistance even though their homeland is a sovereign territory and this assistance is against the wishes of their government." Statement of H.E. Mons. Renato Raffaele Martino to the 3rd Commission of the General Assembly of the United Nations on item 114: "Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, questions relating to refugees, returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian questions", Tuesday, 20 November 2001. Furthermore, the Church is called to advocate with governments for more
156 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, July 25, 1995, no. 2.
157 Ibid., no. 4.
158 Undertaking the care of migrants as integral pastoral care, churches consider all migrants, including irregular migrants and sometimes most specifically irregular migrants, as part of their concern. In particular, the Church reaffirms that migrants, even though in an irregular situation, still hold rights, in particular human and labor rights; that before focusing on the irregularities of migrants, the irregularities committed against them should be tackled; and that the system which generates or condones irregular migration in time of convenience should be reformed: too often migrants are welcome only to the extent that they are useful. See also the extense document published by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People (People on the Move, n. 85, April 2001) summarising the results of the Regional Meeting of National Directors for the Pastoral Care of Migration in Asia and the Pacific celebrated in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, 22-24 September 1999.
adequate legislation, in particular for the case of defactorefugees who cannot return home without risking their lives.
"The Church acts in continuity with Christ's mission. In particular, she asks herself how to meet the needs, while respecting the law of those persons who are not allowed to remain in a national territory. She also asks what the right to emigrate is worth without the corresponding right to immigrate. She tackles the problem of how to involve in this work of solidarity those Christian communities frequently infected by a public opinion that is often hostile to immigrants. The first way to help these people is to listen to them in order to become acquainted with their situation, and, whatever their legal status with regard to State law, to provide them with the necessary means of subsistence. Thus it is important to help illegal migrants to complete the necessary administrative papers to obtain a residence permit. Social and charitable institutions can make contact with the authorities in order to seek appropriate, lawful solutions to various cases. This kind of effort should be made especially on behalf of those who, after a long stay, are so deeply rooted in the local society that returning to their country of origin would be tantamount to a form of reverse emigration, with serious consequences particularly for the children."159
5.) "When no solution is foreseen, these same institutions should direct those they are helping, perhaps also providing them with material assistance, either to seek acceptance in other countries, or to return to their own country. (...) The poverty and misfortune with which immigrants are stricken are yet another reason for coming generously to their aid. It is necessary to guard against the rise of new forms of racism or xenophobic behaviour, which attempt to make these brothers and sisters of ours scapegoats for what may be difficult local situations. Due to the considerable proportions reached by the illegal migrant phenomenon, legislation in all the countries involved should be brought into harmony, also for a more equitable distribution of the burdens of a balanced solution. It is necessary to avoid recourse to the use of administrative regulations, meant to restrict the criterion of family membership which result in unjustifiably forcing into an illegal situation people whose right to live with their family cannot be denied by any law. Adequate protection should be guaranteed to those who, although they have fled from their countries for reasons unforeseen by international conventions, could indeed be seriously risking their life were they obliged to return to their homeland."160
6.) There are situations where there is no legal way to be regularized or to return home. Solidarity calls for finding a way out of such situations. In 1998, as one example, Pope John Paul II, during the Fourth World Congress for Migration, spoke about his Jubilee year plea for condoning or reducing
159 Ibid., no. 3.
160 Ibid., no. 4.
international debt. He then appealed for something analogous for migrants: a significant gesture “through which reconciliation, a dimension proper to the Jubilee, would find expression in the form of an amnesty for a wide range of those immigrants who, more than the others, suffer the drama of precariousness and uncertainty, that is, those who are illegal.”161
(k) Crime and immigration: crime is not due to immigration perse but to the problem of marginalization (indocumented individuals in general).
When a person in need is in a strange country, where he does not understand the language and much less know its culture and legislation, he is in a very vulnerable position. Even in the country of arrival, where he had high hopes of a better life, he can easily fall victim again to the abuse of his human rights. Moreover, when survival is at stake, it is easy to give up one’s labor rights, especially if no one helps him/her to defend them. Migrants and refugees are in fact easy prey to exploitation, and, in extreme cases, also to human trafficking. They are often victims of violence, maybe not always physical, but very often psychological and moral, as in cases of marginalization, discrimination, xenophobia and other forms of intolerance. They are often made “scapegoats” for local unemployment or criminal activities.
"In addition to the problems connected with cultural, social and sometimes even religious barriers, there are those associated with other phenomena such as the unemployment that afflicts even countries which have been the traditional destination of immigrants, the break-up of families, the lack of services and the precarious situation of so many aspects of daily life. Morever, the host community fears the loss of its own identity because of the rapid increase of these ‘strangers’ through their demographic growth, the legal mechanisms for reuniting families and clandestine enlistment in the so-called underground economy. When there is no prospect of harmonious and peaceful integration, withdrawal into self, tension with one's surroundings, dispersal and the waste of energies become real risks, with negative and sometimes tragic results. People find themselves "more scattered than before, divided in speech, divided among themselves, incapable of consensus and agreement" (Apostolic Exhortation ReconciliatioetPaenitentia, no.13)."162
"(...) helping to ensure that people already marginalized will not be further penalized because they are not a part of the process of economic globalization. Today, therefore, I wish to invite you to an ever deeper awareness of your mission: to see Christ in every brother and sister in need, to proclaim and defend the dignity of every migrant, every displaced person and every refugee.
161 John Paul II, Message to the Fourth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, no. 2.
162 John Paul II, Message for the World Day of Migration, November 9, 1997, no. 1.
In this way, assistance given will not be considered an alms from the goodness of our heart, but an act of justice due to them."163
The discussion on the social doctrine of the Church and migration cannot remain at a theoretical level, but must attempt to put into action the consequences of the Catholic faith, based on the Word of God and proclaimed in the Scriptures. “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt” (Ex 23,9). Every generation had to learn this lesson, rooted in the collective history of God’s people. And so, in consequence, “When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God” (Lev 19,33). This alien, loved by God, is a kind of “sacrament” of the Beloved Son: “I was a stranger, and you welcomed me” (Matt. 25,35). Recalling God’s love in Christ’s sacrifice, St. John reminds us: “Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another” (1 John 4,11). Our situation of being aliens, estranged from God by our sin and separation from the Covenant is changed in the redeeming act of Jesus in his death and resurrection: “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God” (Ephesians 4,19). The social doctrine of the Church helps us live out that reality as individuals and community of believers in Christ in the world of human mobility.
IV. CONCLUSIONS (under development)
What are the similarities with the eugenics movement?
The U.S. Congress passed America's first naturalization law in 1790. It limited the privilege of US citizenship to "free white persons." About a century later, immigration laws began to restrict who could enter the country. The 1882 Act to Regulate Immigration prohibited entry to "any person unable to take care of himself or herself without becoming a public charge". The law was designed to exclude immigrants whose undesirable conditions might prove costly to society – including convicted criminals, the poor, and the mentally ill. In that same year, the Chinese Exclusion Act was the first measure to specifically target immigrants by race or ethnicity.164 A lot has happened since then.
163 John Paul II, Address to the Participants in the Assembly of the Council of the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), November 12, 2001, no. 2.
164 Paul Lombardo, “Eugenics Laws Restricting Immigration” in Social Origins of Eugenics, http://www.eugenicsarchive.org/html/eugenics/essay9text.html
