Bishops send timely reminder on unity
National
Seventy-five years after a landmark pastoral letter On Immigration was issued by Catholic bishops, Australians are again being urged to offer generosity to those seeking to make Australia their new home.
In 1950, an unprecedented influx of migrants from southern and Eastern Europe prompted the bishops to write: “In the inscrutable ways of Divine Providence, Australia becomes today a sanctuary, a shelter, a home for thousands of the homeless, stateless, persecuted peoples of the old world.”
The letter – read aloud in churches across the country – called on Australian Catholics to exercise their moral duty to extend kindness, practical assistance and hospitality to new arrivals, especially those displaced by war and persecution.
In the 75th anniversary letter, Under the Southern Cross: A Journey of Faith and Unity, the Bishops Commission for Evangelisation, Laity and Ministry says it is a timely opportunity to reflect on Australians’ attitudes towards immigrants.
“Once again, our nation serves as a sanctuary and refuge for thousands seeking a new life – whether fleeing hardships in their homelands or pursuing the opportunities, freedom, and prosperity that Australia offers, and we are called again to extend the hand of welcome to migrants ‘patience, kindliness, sympathy and practical help…in God’s name’,” the letter says.
“Despite significant progress in fostering a multicultural society, prejudice persists among some of us who view others as being ‘different’ or ‘other’ within our nation.
“And in today’s political climate, as conflicts from abroad spill into our own nation, we are witnessing growing tensions, division and unrest, which are threatening the harmony of our communities.”
“And yet the bishops’ message from 1950 continues to echo across the decades, reminding us once again of the eternal call to welcome Jesus in welcoming the stranger. ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me’.” (Matthew 25:40)
Commission chair Archbishop Christopher Prowse said Catholics are called to “welcome, support, and embrace” those arriving from other lands.
“Migrants have made an enormous contribution to our nation,” Archbishop Prowse said.
“All of us benefit from their diverse cultural traditions, stories, deep wisdom and experience they bring.
“Australia is a more welcoming, vibrant, and flourishing society because of their contribution.”
The statement is available here.
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