Catherine Phillips, director of the Respect Life Office, offered five pieces of advice for caring for refugees and immigrants as brothers and sisters in Christ:
- Pray: “Pray that our government leaders will find better solutions to help people in need, which includes protecting citizens but also extending compassion and charity to migrants fleeing violence, persecution and seeking a better life.”
- Be in solidarity: “This can simply mean caring about the difficult situations that others face. We can listen and we can care, even if we can’t change or fix the situation.”
- Keep in mind the impact of trauma on people’s daily lives: “For example, think about how a child, who is a U.S. citizen — let’s imagine born right here in Arkansas — might not be able to concentrate on her schoolwork because she worries that her father, who lives in our country without documentation, might be deported. Reactions to fear, anxiety and grief differ from person to person; our response can consistently be love.”
- Speak respectfully, listen and learn from people who think differently: “Immigration in the U.S. is a complex issue; we can be faithful Catholics and have widely differing opinions about immigration and citizenship processes. But we aren’t acting as faithful Catholics if we don’t love one another and help the most vulnerable among us.”
- Uphold the dignity of every person: “Let’s be careful how we talk about people. Let’s see human faces, not just statistics. Let’s look for the face of Christ in every person we encounter.”
