Archbishop Gomez: Pope Francis may weigh in on immigration reform

March 26, 2013

Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, who joined 14 other religious leaders in a recent meeting with President Barack Obama on immigration reform, has told the Fides news agency that Pope Francis may weigh in on the issue.

Fides, the news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, reported:

"Two weeks ago there was a meeting of all the dioceses of Southern California, where it was agreed that, once a law passes, support will be given to all those who want to apply it," said Mgr. Gomez in a letter sent to Fides. The archbishop also made the comment on the possibility that Jorge Mario Bergoglio, the first American Pope in history, wants to show his support for the reform before the politicians in Washington, DC.

“Our new Pope is an immigrant’s son,” Archbishop Gomez noted in a March 19 address at the Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel in Los Angeles. “This is also something new for a Pope in modern times. His father was a railroad worker who came to Argentina from Italy seeking a better life. What a great story! The son of a humble immigrant grows up to become the spiritual leader of more than a billion Catholics in every continent and nation! Doesn’t that say it all about the promise of immigration?”

 

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Further information:

• Immigration reform, perhaps even the support of the Pope (Fides)
• "The Heart of a Stranger": The Task for Religious Believers in Immigration Reform (Archdiocese of Los Angeles)
• Religious leaders, Obama discuss immigration reform (CNS)