“A Stranger and You Welcomed Me” (Mt. 25:35) – Part 2 of 4

Christmas is almost two and half months away, and there is no rush to get to it as we try to enjoy this autumn season. But one Polish Christmas tradition, that you may have participated in or have never even heard of, is known as  Wigilia (Polish pronunciation: [viˈɡilʲa]), which comes from the English word, “vigil.” This Polish vigil on Christmas Eve entails some wonderful traditions. One of which has to do with hospitality and inclusion in which an empty seat along with a table setting is left open just in case a traveler, family member, friend, or even a stranger, like an immigrant or refugee, for example, who knocks on the door, has a reserved seat to join in on the Christmas celebration. While called to be prudent in using both our hearts and heads when welcoming a stranger into our homes, Jesus’ message of welcoming a stranger in need when we have the means to provide for them is biblically clear.
Christ gave this teaching of welcoming the stranger to his apostles, whose successors are our modern-day bishops. By the grace of the Holy Spirit, how have the bishops taken this teaching of Jesus and further deepened it in our rich, Catholic Tradition?

While the U.S. bishop responded with a pastoral statement in 2001 called, “Welcoming The Stranger Among Us: Unity in Diversity,” they signed a joint pastoral letter together with the Mexican bishops in 2003 concerning migration entitled, “Strangers No Longer Together On The Journey Of Hope.” The two countries’ bishops proposed five principles to help guide the flock on this matter. They are:
I. Persons have the right to find opportunities in their homeland (34).
II. Persons have the right to migrate to support themselves and their families (35).
III. Sovereign nations have the right to control their borders (& regulate immigration with justice & mercy) (36).
IV. Refugees and asylum seekers should be afforded protection (37).
V. The human dignity and human rights of undocumented migrants should be respected (38).

In addition to these five principles, “the Catholic bishops of the United States and Mexico, in communion with the Holy Father in his 1995 World Migration Day message, affirm that ‘in the Church no one is a stranger, and the Church is not foreign to anyone, anywhere. As a sacrament of unity and thus a sign and a binding force for the whole human race, the Church is the place where illegal immigrants are also 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. Solidarity means taking responsibility for those in trouble.’ The Church must, therefore, welcome all persons regardless of race, culture, language, and nation with joy, charity, and hope. It must do so with special care for those who find themselves–regardless of motive–in situations of poverty, marginalization, and exclusion.” Source: http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-and-dignity/immigration/strangers-no-longer-together-on-the-journey-of-hope.cfm

The Michigan Catholic Bishops’ followed up with a statement in 2007 and then again in 2011 similarly on the important topic of immigration highlighting the following three principles:

• Uphold the human dignity of all persons and work against any injustice which would compromise the dignity of immigrants.
• Promote and give priority to the reunification of families.
• Recognize the rich contribution to the community by those immigrants and migrants who work and live here.

Source: http://www.micatholic.org/assets/files/statements/mbs_20110719-StatementOnImmigration.pdf

Finally, in a letter called Ecclesia (Church) in America #65, our late and beloved Holy Father, St. John Paul II wrote in 1999 that “migrants should be met with a hospitable and welcoming attitude which can encourage them to become part of the Church’s life, always with due regard for their freedom and their specific cultural identity. …The Church in America must be constantly concerned to provide for the effective evangelization of those recent arrivals who do not yet know Christ.” (Source: http://w2.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_22011999_ecclesia-in-america.html). May we welcome and evangelize the stranger in the immigrant and refugee, many of who do not yet know Christ. By welcoming the stranger, we welcome Jesus. Stay tuned next week for a brief focus on immigration and refugee myths.

In Concern for The Stranger Among Us,
Fr. Jeff Allan