In All Things

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From the Office

This issue of In All Things considers the Catholic Church as it relates to immigration. Although the question of immigration reform took the national stage in 2006, the Catholic Church has provided services to and advocacy on behalf of immigrants since early in U.S. history. Indeed, as Richard Ryscavage, S.J., explains, our Church continues to be an immigrant Church. But if America is a country of immigrants, and the Catholic Church a church of immigrants, what is different about the phenomenon today that it has attracted so much attention? And what does today’s immigration suggest about the future?

The current immigration wave is set in a time of swift historical change. Contrary to a history of diverse immigrants in the Church, as explained by James E. Grummer, S.J., a large portion of the current influx of immigrants are linguistically homogenous. This factor and the phenomenon of globalization have enabled immigrant communities to become transnational communities, affecting the way they integrate into American society, as discussed by Elzbieta Gozdziak and Erica Dahl- Bredine. Moreover, globalization has created an economic uncertainty amongst the lower-skilled classes in developing and developed countries alike; two Catholics debate how this economic uncertainty affects the immigration question in the U.S. Thirdly, the war on terror has created a climate of fear in the United States, making it more difficult to respond to the call of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Mexican Episcopal Conference for their flocks to be Strangers No Longer. J. Kevin Appleby’s article explains the immigration policy prescriptions in that pastoral letter.

The uncertainty surrounding this historical change has impacted the U.S. and the Church’s responses to immigration reform. Some local legislatures have reacted to undocumented immigration by restricting immigrants’ ability to rent homes and receive services.

The Society of Jesus has developed networks of academics and pastors within the U.S. and throughout Latin America to share information and collaborate on immigration efforts; we include some of the voices of participants of these networks in this issue. The Society also actively participates in the Justice for Immigrants campaign established by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to educate Catholics about the current migration reality and advocate for reform. Kevin O’Brien, S.J., provides the theological basis for arguments for reform in his article; an Ignatian meditation by Robert Scullin, S.J., follows.

In sum, this issue of In All Things aims to help readers understand the economic, social and cultural aspects of the immigration phenomenon in the United States and consider the catholic—universal—call to solidarity and hospitality.

Jill Marie Gerschutz