The following comes a July 21 LA Times article from Matt Hamilton:
After a young woman was shot dead along the San Francisco waterfront, igniting a heated debate because of the suspect’s multiple deportations, the city’s Roman Catholic archbishop pleaded with elected officials to avoid invoking the “senseless” slaying to score “political gain.”
Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone said Monday that the death of Kathryn Steinle should not be used as a justification to malign immigrants in the United States and urged local and federal officials not to “punish all immigrants for the transgressions of a small minority.”
Steinle, 32, was walking with her father on July 1 when police say she was shot by Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, a man who has seven felony convictions and had been deported five times. Lopez-Sanchez’s alleged role in her death has set off a fierce debate over the enforcement of immigration policies and the lack of cooperation among local, state and federal agencies.
In Cordileone’s statement, issued one day before Steinle’s father is scheduled to speak on immigration enforcement policies to the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, the Roman Catholic leader said the “flawed immigration system” has divided families and diminished human dignity.
“While it is important that we learn from this incident and work to prevent it from happening again, it is also important that we recognize that the vast majority of immigrants — both those with and without papers — are not a violent threat to society and so should not be subject to guilt by association,” Cordileone said before calling for an overhaul of the immigration system.
“Such reform, long overdue, should preserve family unity, ensure the due process of law, protect those fleeing persecution, and ensure the integrity of our nation’s borders,” he said.
Well, people are shot each day throughout our country, and it’s not just illegal immigrants doing the murders.
The real problem is a lack of Fear Of God, a lack of Morals, a lack of Conscience.
“You have + I want it = I get to shoot you to get what I want.”
Very tragic for this young lady, and for the thousands of young and old who get killed in our cities each year…very depressing.
Has this man reached out to the VICTIMS families?, this is not the first such incident . Concern for the innocent should be this mans priority , should all illegals be stigmatized , no felons and those who pose a threat yes ! .
It’s NOT “scapegoating” to enforce the immigration laws. A person here who doesn’t follow the immigration laws to come here in the first place is already guilty of a criminal act. The second (and on and on) criminal act is then a lot easier to commit. It’s human nature, and we ignore it at our peril. Don’t be stupid, folks, there’s a heavy price being paid every day we let illegal immigrants ignore the law. It might be an easy way to get more votes for Democrat Party politicians as the illegals register to vote, but the price to our country is WAY too high. The fact that so many are willing to pay that price for their own power is sickening. We have to stop it in any way we can.
The Archbishop is a paradox: seemingly “conservative” (not Traditional), yet willing to bend enough to suggest too much concern with the popular will (versus God’s laws), and yet “liberal” on selected Democratic Party issues, like immigration, even though such positions are decidedly against the freedom and safety of all Americans.
Loving immigrants and wishing for their success in life is fine and Catholic, in nature. Wishing them to also break the law and jump the border is not. Telling Catholics to be respectful is very correct and commendable; wishing immigrants to move freely in America is not. We have a right as Americans to be safe and protected. Illegal immigration is, by definition, outside of the definition of such…
(Continued) “societal goals and guarantees.
No bishop may elevate his desire for illegal immigration over the safety of his countrymen. Immigration is not a moral imperative for Catholics to follow. These people do not belong here and can and must be stopped from entering, and, if here, from staying any longer. It is not Catholic to insist that we respect all illegality, when the results point to many like poor Kate Steinle. The right to maintain safety in society is also at the root of a society’s ability to use capital punishment, and to go to war.
St. Christopher that was so very beautifully written and full of merciful compassion. Poor Tony de New Religion is so confused and full of anger and an obvious lack of charity. Tony sadly wrote the word “MOST” of the immigrants are our brothers and sisters in Christ. . Even struggling Tony could not bring himself to say “All”. Everyone is created in the image and likeness of Christ. Tony must not realize that he is the one who infers that he “HATES” the rest. This is selective compassion without logic. St. Christopher, I always value your keeping with the fullness of Catholic Truth. Those who worry more about the finessing of pc lingo certainly contribute to the sinking of volumes of Truth!
Funny I thought it was a Catholic who came here illegally in 1492. Exactly what IS the difference between Christopher Columbus and any other illegal alien?
So typical leftwing tripe.. well YFC the USA is now a country with rule of law that has borders and as a sovereign nation has right to protect and defend those borders. So anyone coming over the border illegally is a breaking US laws.
Oh so pushing the native americans into little tribal areas is your idea of following the rule of law? Even the US recognizes these tribes as sovereign nations.
YFC is all over the map, defending the ‘law’ when it suits his agenda and crying foul over the law when it doesn’t. That’s what happens when one removes themselves from the rock of Truth and opts instead for agenda driven politics.
Yes YFC yes….
Ann Malley, which Rock of Truth are you referring to? Alcatraz? Gibralter? Peter? So far as I know, you are not a part of any of those three, so you must mean some other Rock of Truth.
The United States does not recognize Native American nations as sovereign nations.
Anonymous questions the sovereignty of the Indian Nations. I suggest this as a refresher: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tribal_sovereignty_in_the_United_States
YFC, please read the second sentence in your wiki link.
YFC, did you ask that as a serious question?
yes
Recognizing Indian tribes as sovereign nations is nothing other than unvarnished racial segregation which abandons the territories within a primitive time warp and largely bars them from a fair share of American economic progress. The nations run a parasitic economy of gas stations, convenience stores and casinos as a sort of toll road system to capture revenue from gambling and transportation into and across their territories. Unfortunately, the whole experience falls into the category of “be careful what you wish for.”
YFC: The legitimacy of national boundaries is, philosophically, tricky and problematic. With that said, however, I will make 3 points. #1 — Most Indian tribes were somewhat nomadic and without immigration laws. The fact that Columbus was not killed infers his immigration status as “legal.” But, in truth, there were no such laws to violate. #2 — Simply claiming territory in a vast expanse doesn’t automatically establish a national boundary (e.g. the South China Sea, Antarctica, etc.). #3 — Regarding one of your responses to someone else, the US doesn’t recognize tribes as sovereign nations: Rather, tribal sovereignty is more akin to state sovereignty.
YFC: I ask this question without disrespect: But would it be possible in the future to ask questions and make statements that help to enlighten and bring clarity to an issue. Sometimes, I get the notion that you’re here not to enlighten but to obscure and confuse an issue.
YFC, Christopher Columbus had no social safety net to break.
That Cordileone is not “Traditional” just means he doesn’t see making the same mistake for 2,000 years is any reason to keep repeating the same behavior. Unfortunately, many posters to this site disagree.
While Cordileone is correct that that the vast majority of immigrants are not violent criminals, the case does point out that our border security is WAY too lax. If a criminal who was justifiably deported multiple times can keep returning until he kills someone, then there’s a massive systemic breakdown.
The blunt truth is we can have either 1) a society with a social safety net or 2) open borders, but you can’t have both. If you allow open borders with a social safety net, then impoverished individuals will come to claim those…
‘St. Christopher ‘ MOST of the immigrants are our BROTHERS n SISTERS CATHOLICS. Your HATE is stronger that your COMPASSION for them.
…it is not hateful, Tony, to be desirous of upholding a legitimate rule of law. Perhaps the better part of compassion would be served in helping folks to enter the United States legally and/or to work with the Mexican government to improve conditions in Mexico. No doubt a great many of our Catholic brothers and sisters are suffering in Mexico, but are not willing to break the law to come to the United States (IOW: They are Catholics trying to be Catholic in keeping just laws.).
Taking the BandAid approach to charity won’t stop the bleeding. So do not over-react, but also do not under react and pretend that wholesale lawbreaking is a-okay. Especially when the practices allows for many an unsavory fellow to abuse those here in the…
Its hard to have compassion for the members of the Sinola cartel….
YFC, did you ask that as a serious question?
Tony,
St. Christopher merely gave an opinion. Do you assume that all people who give opinions are hateful? Or is it only people who have opinions contrary to your own that you consider to be hateful?
“Tony de New York”: Typical anti-intellectual rubbish from Zombie-Liberal land. The “immigrants” may, or may not, be more “catholic” than not, but that does not redefine their illegal acts, or that many of them are vicious, violent, and criminal. Yet, even that is irrelevant to the post.
The entire point is that a society, even one that is all Catholic, is free to exclude people from its citizenship based on factors it determines are necessary and proper. Certainly a just society can, and must, police its borders. None of this has anything to do with “compassion”. (You know, Tony, all caps in computer language is a shout; not polite. Is this how you speak, too?)
The second that a person illegally sets foot on U.S. soil, that person is guilty of ATTEMPTING TO DEFRAUD THE U.S. by getting free medical care, welfare, free education, free legal services, etc. All this is costing tax paying U.S. citizens billions every year. Since most illegals who work are paid “under the table,” they are not tax paying citizens. Yes, they are defrauding us. We could use that money to pay for our schools, improve the infrastructure of our cities and states and not need to build so many prisons to hold illegals who commit felonies.
“Immigrants” referred to by the Archbishop,
are illegal aliens. U. S. Law is broken by these
illegals when they enter the U. S. without proper
documentation. Get in line, apply for citizenship
just like the thousands of legal immigrants are
doing every day.
It does neither the immigrant nor the citizens of the United States any good to continue to have unsecured borders. A nation must know who is within her borders, especially in this age of terrorism. How angry would any of us be if our loved ones were killed by someone who is not supposed to be in this country? What part of ILLEGAL immigration is not understood? If I entered into Canada illegally, should they not send me back? Does Mexico not send back those entering their country from South and Central America? Yes, many immigrants are hardworking people who seek a better life, but that does not mitigate the fact criminals use the same means to enter the US and wreak havoc on its citizens. All men should be treated with humanely, but that…
…does not mean breaking the immigration laws of this country should be condoned.
It was not a “senseless” killing in the *sense* of knowing what happened and why?
We do know. Bishop Gomez, that *is* the problem.
What part of ILLEGAL does the archbishop not comprehend ? As others have written before, a nation has right and a duty to defend its borders against invaders. The only reason why Democrats support the illegals is because they know for sure the illegals will always vote for the Democratic party.
Illegal immigration is one of the major ways the Communist party planned to overtake our country specifically. The poor and uneducated people from third world countries are being used to overwhelm our system. It is truly horrific the consequences that is happening. Marxist liberation theology indoctrinated bishops and clergy in the Church are helping in this…many willingly and some are just compromised in some other way so are guilted in this false compassion. The takeover has been accelerated outside and inside the Church … it is a race to the finish line!
Comparing himself to contemporary bishops, the Archbishop is quite conservative. But, comparing him with conservative bishops who were around over fifty years ago, then the Archbishop would have been considered very liberal. How tragic that the mindset of bishops has changed so radically. Instead of being totally Catholic, modern bishops have picked and chosen what type of ecclesiastical ideas to follow, whether they be Marxist-socialist, capitalist, or conservative.