New York Times highlights US bishops’ immigration-reform campaign
August 23, 2013
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The New York Times reported that “Catholic bishops and priests from major dioceses across the country will preach a coordinated message next month backing changes in immigration policy, with some using Sunday Masses on Sept. 8 to urge Congressional passage of a legislative overhaul that includes a path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants.”
“We want to try to pull out all the stops,” said Kevin Appleby, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ director of migration policy. “They have to hear the message that we want this done, and if you’re not successful during the summer, you’re not going to win by the end of the year.”
The campaign “includes advertising and phone calls directed at 60 Catholic Republican lawmakers and ‘prayerful marches’ in Congressional districts where the issue has become a divisive topic,” the Times reported.
Rep. Daniel Lipinski (D-IL), co-chair of the Congressional Pro-life Caucus, told the newspaper that “there are some issues that the Church speaks authoritatively on, such as abortion, in protecting life. And then there are prudential judgments that are made, informed by Catholic theology, but it’s not something that Catholics are required to follow.”
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Posted by: Chestertonian -
Aug. 24, 2013 1:21 AM ET USA
Good for Lipinski. When will there be a concerted effort by bishops and priests to promote citizenship for unborn children? No one is threatening to kill illegal aliens, so the abortion issue is FAR more critical, especially when the victims-over 55 million of them so far!-are entirely innocent, and voiceless. This is a disgrace and gives scandal to the Church in the worst way!
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Posted by: unum -
Aug. 23, 2013 10:01 PM ET USA
The Catholic bishops just don't get it. Instead of teaching the faithful as Jesus did, the bishops just view us the laity as a political pressure group for their political action campaigns. If they would just teach and inspire the faithful, they would find that thousands of lay Catholics with the diverse gifts God gave them can mount much more effective campaigns on a moral issues than the bishops can. At this point, all the flock can do is pray for more caring shepherds!
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Posted by: shrink -
Aug. 23, 2013 7:47 PM ET USA
Hit your bishop and the USCCB in the pocketbook.
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Posted by: jg23753479 -
Aug. 23, 2013 8:19 AM ET USA
Personally, I have better things to do with my time than follow the USCCB's prudential recommendations. They may well be right about immigration, but then they may just as well be wrong; their track record on many issues recently has not been exactly persuasive. Aren't these the same people who cost Catholic Americans billions of dollars in legal payments this last decade or so due to their ineptness or outright criminality? I'll look elsewhere for sound political or economic advice, thank you.
