National Migration Week will be celebrated Sept. 20-26 this year, culminating with the Vatican’s World Day of Migrants and Refugees on Sunday, the 26th.
National Migration Week will be celebrated Sept. 20-26 this year, culminating with the Vatican’s World Day of Migrants and Refugees on Sunday, the 26th.
The overarching theme for this year’s WDMR is “Towards an ever wider ‘WE’.” In his letter announcing this year’s theme, Pope Francis emphasized that “this focus calls on us to ensure that ‘after all this, we will think no longer in terms of ‘them’ and ‘those,’ but only ‘us” (Fratelli tutti, no. 35).
The California Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a statement (en Español) to mark World Day of Migrants and Refugees.
“The immigrants, migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers turning to our country for relief from their distress should only serve to strengthen our commitment to be good Samaritans,” the Bishops wrote. “Indeed, we continue to advocate for a just and humane immigration reform, as we have for decades. In particular, the plight of young immigrant people who are Dreamers, of refugees still living under Temporary Protective Status, and of immigrants laboring as “essential workers” must no longer be ignored by Congress. Most especially, the United States at this time must come to the rescue of Afghans who served alongside our soldiers in that troubled region. This is a moral imperative of the highest order and from which we cannot excuse ourselves.
In Southern California, the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the Diocese of San Diego, the Diocese of Orange, and the Diocese of San Bernardino are planning a joint Mass dedicated to migrants on Sept. 19. The Diocese of San Bernardino is also releasing its We Are Home Project, a series of interviews with immigrants and the children of immigrants, detailing their immigration story and how they found a home within the church of San Bernardino. One video will be released per week over the next month, and you can find the first episode here.
In Northern California, the Archdiocese of San Francisco will offer an informative webinar discussing Church teaching, current policy issues, and how these are playing out at the border on Sept. 20. Register here. The Diocese of San Jose will hold a Mass in solidarity with migrants and refugees at Holy Cross Church on Sept. 26. Check with your local diocese for more information on events in your area.