The following comes from Bishop McGrath’s “Message on Separated Families”:
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We are hundreds of miles from the border, yet what has happened along the US-Mexico border over the past few weeks has a direct impact on many of our own people. Images of crying children, separated from their mothers, and the anguish of mothers whose infants have been taken from their arms has increased the anxiety and fear of mothers and children living here in many of our parishes and neighborhoods. I write to assure you that we stand with you, that we support Church efforts to keep families together and to reunite those that have been separated.
The separation of detained minor children from their parents is un-American, un-Christian and inhumane. This practice is mean-spirited and betrays our nation’s tradition of welcome to migrants and refugees. Coupled with this, the United State’s Attorney General’s decision to deny welcome to victims of domestic and gang violence is a further betrayal of the values that have until now characterized the immigration policy of the United States. The Attorney General’s attempt to justify these actions by citing Saint Paul’s Letter to the Romans is a final betrayal of millennia-old principles. Blind obedience to the state has never been the mark of our democracy, which has historically been characterized by civil discourse and compromise.
Indeed, early Christians were often at odds with secular society and the government. When questioned about allegiance to the Roman Empire, Jesus instructed his followers to “Render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, but to God, the things that are God’s” (Matthew 22:21). As the Christian message began to take hold, early communities of believers found themselves in deep conflict with the Roman government. Thus, it is a perversion of Scripture to teach that God’s people must blindly obey the government, even when the government is enacting unjust laws.
We encourage Congress to fix our broken immigration system, to honor promises made to children who were brought to the United States (“DACA recipients”), and to include the good of families in their deliberations. In closing, let us all remember the words addressed to the Israelites on their desert journey: “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you well know how it feels to be an alien, since you were once aliens yourselves in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 23:9). And let us treat with compassion those who today knock on the doors of our hearts.
With every best wish and kind regard, I remain,
Sincerely yours,
Patrick J. McGrath
Bishop of San Jose
Full story at Diocese of San Jose website.
In each of his statements, you can just feel that PJ senses his inadequacy. He quotes from others without attribution, this time from Bishop McElroy and Fr. James Martin. He grandstands to win approval from the left. Did he ever call attention to this when the exact same thing was going on during Obama’s presidency? No, nobody in the media nor in the Church did because Obama=good and Trump=bad. I’m so sick of PJ’s stupid statements in support of every liberal cause du jour. I will never support the church in San Jose. Never.
Not true. Children are being separated from their parents, infants even, under Trump and Trump alone. This was not the practice under Obama.
LIES, Obama did this, check your facts
No Obama did not do this. That is absolutely not true. In the Obama era, there were children who arrived at the border either unaccompanied by adults or who arrived with coyotes who were not their parents, and so were taken into sad situations to care for them. In Trump’s policy, announced in May and recinded today, he was declaring children unaccompanied BECAUSE HE RIPPED THEM FROM THEIR PARENTS. In some cases, he is prosecuting parents for smuggling their own children. Every news organization in the world has documented this, except for Fox News/Government Media/Faux News folks like Sean Hannity.
More LIES from Anonymous at 6:29pm. A quick google search will show you the Obama cages and silver thermal (“foil) blankets from years ago. Ten out of twelve thousand kids being held came here with NO parent. Those foreign parents used their own children to gain US entry for themselves, leaving their vulnerable kids as prey for all kinds of evil doers. This not Trump’s fault, nor is the US more responsible for foreign children than their parents are. Get over your Fox News hate!
Oh, Obama certainly did. Just not at the same rate because Obama failed to prosecute illegal aliens in his open border policy. Had Obama enforced immigration law the way Trump is finally doing, he would have separated children from illegally entering adults just as Trump is now doing. But Obama did it.
Furthermore, how do we know the children really belong to the adults who claim them?
The wall cannot be built quickly enough. Stop the insanity!
Here is a description of the “humanitarian crisis” of Central American, mostly Honduran “children” crossing the border illegally and being warehoused in mass camps—-under the Obama administration, in June 11, 2014:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZUTJM435hg
It was the Obama Administration that encouraged mass groups of “children”—many are actually over age 18, but understate their age—to create a mass invasion movement and humanitarian chaos at the southern border. This is not really new at all.
“to honor promises made to children who were brought to the United States (“DACA recipients”),”
What promise was that? Obama’s? The bishop needs to read the US Constitution. We have separation of powers and a distinct legislative branch. The US made no promise to the so-called “Dreamers.”
I traveled all around the world, legally. I passed through customs and immigration with a valid passport and visas where required and I expect everyone to do the same. I have no sympathy for anyone who entered this country illegally and must now suffer the consequences.
These people are not entering illegally, they are applying for asylum, a system recognized by US and International law as being a legitimate way for people with a well founded fear of persecution to find safe haven. They only become “illegal”, as you put it, when US agents prevent them from making an asylum application when they lawfully arrive at our border.
They become illegal when they cross the border illegally. Period.
Asylum applicants aren’t crossing the border illegally. Period.
1) Asylum applicants are not legal residents and are still illegally present in the country. 2) The asylum process has been completely subverted by immigration interest groups who coach everyone to assert that they “fear for their lives” in their home country and are thus applying for asylum. 3) Only about 10% of asylum applicants actually show up for the immigration court hearing, evidencing that their application was in bad faith and that they were merely trying to obtain legal entry into the country.
Irrespective of our political leanings, we cannot accept what is happening to families at the border. This is not left vs. right, Obama vs. Trump, moderate vs. extremist. The process of taking kids away from their parents, prior to adjudication is immoral. It is un-Christian. We never punish the children for the acts of their parents. This is not even about laws. This is about being unkind which is against the teachings of Jesus. Noone who supports these policies of ripping kids from the breast of their mothers should ever consider themselves Christian.
Bob One, I don’t know what your interaction with the criminal justice system is, but mine is pretty extensive. Families get split up all the time when a member is charged who cannot make bail. Families remain split up when felons go to prison. I have never known children to be incarcerated with a parent when the parent was put in jail or prison.
It horrifies me to think any partner would willingly put their child in harms way. If it was really about fleeing evil in ones own country they would have come last year but they didn’t. Asylum can be sought legally and you don’t get separated but if you do that then you can’t claim Dacia cause your date of application is then known. Shame on those who encourage lawlessness.
Abortion is “un-American, un-Christian and inhumane.” To enforce the laws is the duty of the executive branch of government. To confess the Faith—fully and clearly—is the duty of bishops. Non-legal immigration is sinful. Yet, because of the Flores Settlement (1997), the only way for children to stay with their non-legal immigrant parents is for the government not to hold and prosecute the parents. Democrats in Congress could vote to change the Flores Settlement such that non-legal immigrants could be prosecuted AND the children stay with their parents. But they do not, which is Mr. Trump’s point. I just feel sad for Bishop McGrath, sad for the souls lost to poor catechesis, and sad for the offense given to God. I only feel angry at the…
Democrats in Congress can’t possibly do what you say. Perhaps you noticed that both the House and the Senate are controlled by big Republican majorities. Democrats can’t even bring a bill to the floor of either body without the approval of the Republican leadership. It is a lie to say that Democrats “could vote to change the Flores Settlement. I’d also point out that individuals seeking asylum, as many of these are, are not committing any illegal act or sin. It is perfectly legal to apply for asylum.
It is inhumane to separate American children from their parents when they are incarcerated, but nobody cares about that.
We have collections at Church for families of illegal immigrants who have been detained. We have never had a collection for the families of Americans who are incarcerated.
I’ve never heard of a fund at Church for Americans who need a lawyer or need bail money. Have you?
Oh, please. News travels fast, even in Mexico. People know what’s going to happen at the border, yet they persist. Better they should stay home with their kids and fight for the freedoms our forebears fought and died for. But why should they when they can sponge off of US taxpayers. I’m out of sympathy and empathy. I’m tired, as an American citizen of being used and financially abused by alien invaders.
Children shouldn’t be separated from their parents. The whole family should be turned around and sent back to where they came from. Follow the legal process or expect to be treated like a criminal. US citizens are separated from their children when they are incarcerated for their crimes!
It’s not a crime to seek asylum!
Did I say it was??
But we’re not talking about asylum seekers are we!
Yes, Ivy League, we are talking about asylum seekers.
No, we are talking about people entering our country illegally. It’s one big propaganda party by the left.
The politicization of the mission of the Church will polarize the faith community and lead to the secularization of the Gospel.
The clergy should speak from the Spirit and not from a partisan, ideological frame of reference.
It also continues the shift to an entirely secular political “church”.
Why doesn’t the good Bishop admonish parents who risk their children by trying to risk their lives and bring them illegally into the United States?
Why doesn’t the good Bishop promote lawful; immigration?
Is it not un-Christian for parents to teach their children to sneak into this country illegally—-when they could process legally?
Is it inhumane, un-American & un-Christian for illegal aliens to raid our nation’s Treasury for billions of dollars annually without the expressed approval of our nation’s taxpayers who are forced to foot this bill? Let’s see you cut back on your food intake and donate those dollars to the Treasury, Bishop. Why aren’t you lecturing your fellow bishops in Mexico to take these illegals in and give them what they seek? Uncle Sam cannot afford to be Uncle Sap too much longer before our ship of state sinks from the weight of all these freeloaders.
Unfortunately I’ve learned to take the bishops with a grain of salt. I don’t like feeling this way but they seem so removed from reality.
Unfortunately I take what the bishops say with a grain of salt. They seem so removed from reality. I don’t feel happy about this but they seem to be mouthpieces for the Democratic party.
American bishops like this one are separating Christ from Catholicism, and they’ve been doing so for years.
Oh these virtue signaling bishops, so easy for them to have a secretary type up a statement to post on the web. Then they get on with their comfortable lives, dining well, dressing well, being chauffeured everywhere, sitting at fancy desks in air conditioned offices, having people grovel to them because of their position, having people praise them for their prophetic leftist statements. They disgust me. It’s enough to leave the church over.
“It’s enough to leave the church over.” NOTHING is ever enough to cause you to leave the one true church founded by Christ Himself and vested with his promise never to abandon it.
The way bishops talk about and revere immigrants, you’d think that immigrants were sacraments.
Jennifer, the good bishop? Who are you referring to? Do you mean the one who promotes homosexuality? The one who does not believe the Bible is a historical document? The one who allows unrepentant homosexuals to receive Communion? The one who allows “married’ homosexuals to serve on parish councils?…and on, and on…Is this your idea of a good bishop?
Well then, Paddy McGrath, it’s back to Ireland for ya, never again to be parted from Mamaí and Dadaí.
The picture of the 2 year old crying while the mother was being searched is not a good one to use against family separation because the mother abandoned her husband and other 3 children to pursue her “American Dream”. Her husband has a good job. She took off with the child and her husband never even got to say good bye. He opposed her going and wants her to come home. He says things are not great in Honduras but they are OK. He says at least in detention they are safer than when they were on the journey to the US. The child was never separated from the mother at the border.
The left lies to get Trump. The bishops lie to get Trump. The media lie to get Trump. It’s all lies.
You have a very good point because this particular child was actually the result of a domestic dispute kidnapping, and should be separated from the mother who illegally fled with the child without judicial process would recognize the rights of the other parent to visitation and custody.
It costs approx. $ 116 BILLION dollars per Year to support ILLEGAL immigrants that are already in the USA for Federal, State, and Local governments. (This does not include LEGAL migrant workers or LEGAL VISA holders.)
.
The USA is over $ 21 TRILLION dollars in debt at the Federal level. Many States are over $100 BILLION in debt, and local governments are in debt as well.
.
1) When is the Bishop’s Conference going to address paying our debts per the Catechism of the Catholic Church? Catechism of the Catholic Church #2411.
2) When is the USCCB going to financially support those Countries where people are migrating from?
3) When are the US Catholic Charities going to stop taking US taxpayer paid Grants for ILLEGAL…
Not our problemo. There are 33 Latin American countries where these travellers can go and not be exposed to what Red Francis would call the tyranny of free-market capitalism.
The good bishop is correct in reiterating the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Sacred Scriptures regarding the treatment of foreigners (i. e. immigrants). Just as the Church’s teaching on artificial contraception is difficult to accept at times, so too are some of the Church’s teachings on social issues. Consult further the encyclicals Populorum Progressio and Pacem in Terris. Mr. Trump was wrong on this policy from a Christian perspective. No amount of punditry and spin from his supporters can change this fact. I hear the teachings of Christ when the Bishop speaks.
Mark, is the “good bishop” correct in promoting the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Sacred Scriptures regarding homosexuality? “San Jose is the most gay-friendly diocese in the nation”; https://www.metroactive.com/metro/11.18.09/cover-0946.html