Vatican says Catholics have obligation to aid, defend refugees
07 June, 2013 - Catholic laity have an obligation to root out traces of xenophobia
in their hearts and recognize refugees as their brothers and sisters - children of
God whose dignity must be protected, said a new Vatican document. "Welcoming Christ
in Refugees and Forcibly Displaced Persons," a document of pastoral guidelines for
providing material and spiritual assistance to people forced to leave their homes
was released at a press conference in the Vatican on Friday by the Vatican’s Pontifical
Council for Migrants and Travelers and the Pontifical Council ‘Cor Unum’, which coordinates
Catholic charity worldwide. Since the mid-1980s, the document said, the debate surrounding
refugees and other asylum seekers has become "a forum for political and administrative
election purposes, which fed hostile and aggressive attitudes among the electorate."
In effect, countries are focused more on deterring newcomers from reaching their shores
than they are on offering protection and welcome to suffering people fleeing situations
that threatened their lives and dignity, Cardinal Antonio Maria Veglio, president
of the council for migrants and travelers, told reporters. From a Catholic point
of view, he said, "every policy, initiative or intervention in this area must be inspired
by the principle of the centrality and dignity of the human person." Cardinal
Robert Sarah, president of ‘Cor Unum’, said being Christian means trying to meet both
the material and spiritual needs of refugees and displaced people, who "ask us for
a commitment of love that first of all restores their dignity as persons made in the
image and likeness of God." "Along with bread, they need love that nourishes their
spiritual dimension," Cardinal Sarah said, and that love is precisely what gives witness
to "the love with which Christ loves us and saves us." The new document from the
two Vatican offices was designed to update their 1992 document, "Refugees, A Challenge
to Solidarity." In addition to the more restrictive policies many countries have adopted
since 1992 -- including because of the threats of terrorism and because of the global
economic crisis -- the new document focuses more on the dangers of human trafficking
and on the need to develop protections for the forcibly displaced -- those people
who were forced to flee their homes, but did not seek refuge in a new country. According
to data compiled by Cardinal Veglio's office, in 2012 there were some 16 million officially
recognized refugees in the world and 28.8 million internally displaced persons. In
addition, an estimated 21 million people have been trafficked, including 4.5 million
for sexual exploitation and 14.2 million for what amounts to slave labor. With the
introduction of more restrictive measures both for immigration and for the recognition
of refugee status, the number of people being smuggled or trafficked -- for sex, forced
labor or as child soldiers -- has increased, the document said. In addition to
supporting Catholic groups, particularly women's religious orders that are rescuing
victims and helping them recover, the document said, lay Catholics need to look at
how their investing or buying habits may actually promote trafficking for low-cost
labor, including in the fields of manufacturing, textiles and agriculture. The document
treats the whole field of migration as a field for Catholic missionary activity, which
includes telling people about Christ, but also includes the ongoing conversion of
its own members and the public defense of the rights of the weak. "Every person is
priceless, human beings are worth more than things, and the gauge of the values any
institution holds is whether it threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the
human person," the document said. Refugees and forcibly displaced people not only
have needs, but they have gifts, the document said. In refugee camps, detention facilities
and parishes where they resettle, Catholic representatives should be aware that some
of them may have been catechists at home and should continue to be involved in ministering
to members of their community. Those who have endured great suffering and yet still
believe in God "can be effective agents of witness and evangelization not only among
their peers, but also for the local population," it said. (Source: CNS)