The president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Feb. 11 thanked Pope Francis for his support for the U.S. bishops’ work with migrants and refugees amid the current “struggle” on immigration policies in the U.S.
A few hours after he railed against unjust immigration policies at his general audience, Pope Francis and community organizers associated with the West/Southwest Industrial Areas Foundation returned to the theme of welcoming and integrating migrants.
A religious sister best known for helping more than 100,000 migrants and asylum-seekers at the U.S.-Mexico border in southern Texas was in Chicago April 15 to share her artwork nationally for the first time and reiterate a message of love. Sister Norma Pimentel, a Missionary of Jesus, stood at a podium at Holy Name Cathedral, positioned between copies of five oil and pastel paintings whose subjects were women and children who sought shelter after being released from detention centers at the border.
Grim developments on the southern U.S. border and the “frustrating” lack of immigration reform were on the minds of some 1,500 Southern California Catholics at the annual Mass in Recognition of All Immigrants Sept. 17 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
In response to recent reports of inhumane actions along the Texas-Mexico border, the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops have issued a statement asking all “people of goodwill to join us in this work, and to join us in praying for our brothers and sisters experiencing the harsh realities of this journey, and for all who encounter them.”
As the church prepares to commemorate the World Day of Migrants and Refugees in September, Pope Francis launched a video campaign meant to highlight the spiritual and cultural contributions that migrants bring to people’s lives.