September 27, 2024
Dear Friends in Christ
For a century, the Church has asked the faithful to consider the human experience of migrants and refugees through the light of Christ’s teachings. In this National Migration Week, I offer my personal invitation to you to reflect on the strong contributions of immigrants to our shared communities. Let us see their efforts in the context of our universal faith and let us understand that they have the same hopes and dreams for their sons and daughters as do we all.
New Americans value the same things as Americans who have been in this country for generations. We share similar concerns, priorities and family values in this flesh-and-blood experience on our journey toward the Kingdom of heaven.
To our immigrant brothers and sisters of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, we see you and we extend God’s love to you. You are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are His pilgrim Church. Many of you have traveled far, leaving behind family and home, and seek no one’s harm. As you pursue a good life for yourself and your family, please know you are welcome here, and I pray you find love, safety and comfort in the Church.
As a family of faith, let us open our minds and our hearts to the challenges our new neighbors are facing. Every human being is created in God’s likeness and cannot be reduced to a number or regarded as a burden. Every encounter with our neighbor invites us to encounter Jesus.
As the Holy Father asked in prayer, “Do not let us become possessive of the portion of the world [Christ has] given us as a temporary home.”
Migrants, refugees and immigrants may relocate to Maryland for reasons as varied as their life experiences. They travel from Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and regions across this entire world. They may come here to find freedom from violence, escape following a natural disaster or for the opportunity to provide for their family.
Like the people of Israel in the time of Moses, migrants of our day may face hunger and thirst, exhaustion and despair. God is their traveling companion, the guide and anchor for salvation. And He has placed you and me as the Good Samaritans along their journey to provide consolation in times of discouragement and need.
Our new American brothers and sisters bring to our shores their God-given gifts that enrich our society in countless ways. They bring expressions of faith, investments in community, diversity of thought, customs born of creativity and craftsmanship and vibrancy through new economic activity.
Immigrants from Latin America, in particular, have breathed new life into many of our parish communities as they’ve settled their families in the Archdiocese of Baltimore. Many have found their spiritual homes in our Catholic churches, such as Sacred Heart of Jesus in Highlandtown, Sacred Heart in Glyndon and St. Timothy’s in Walkersville. An increasing number of our Catholic parishes offer Masses in Spanish, and more and more congregations are striving to create ecclesial inclusion among worshipers. Census data show in the last year alone that Baltimore City and Baltimore County have each gained more than 10,000 Hispanic residents.
My friends in Christ, the charge we all share is to build bridges among nations and peoples. The Gospel is our guide for finding unity and solidarity with all humankind.
If you would like more information on the Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform, please visit the U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishop’s “Justice for Immigrants” website. There’s much to learn and do.
May the Holy Spirit guide us as we serve our brothers and sisters.
With warmest personal regards, I am
Faithfully in Christ,
Most Reverend William E. Lori
Archbishop of Baltimore