At a Mass commemorating the fifth anniversary of his trip to Lampedusa, Pope Francis called on Catholics to speak out in the face of injustice towards migrants.
“The Lord promises refreshment and freedom to all the oppressed of our world, but he needs us to fulfill his promise . . . He needs our voice to protest the injustices committed thanks to the silence, often complicit, of so many,” said Pope Francis in his homily at the July 6 Mass for Migrants.
According to the Holy Father, the silence is multifaceted. He spoke of “the silence that thinks ‘it has always been done this way’” and “the silence of ‘us’ as opposed to ‘you’” among the “many silences.”
“Before the challenges of contemporary movements of migration, the only reasonable response is one of solidarity and mercy,” the pope continued, calling for migration policies “concerned for the good of one’s own country, while taking into account that of others in an ever more interconnected world.”
The Pope stressed that a just migration policy is one at the service of “every person involved,” meaning it is “a policy that provides for solutions that can ensure security, respect for the rights and dignity of all.”
Might I suggest that the same indignation be directed to Church leaders regarding the shame of so many innocent minors who have been victims of sexual abuse at the hands of Clerics.
Might I further suggest that the Holy Father use the same speech but simply substitute the word “migrant” with “minors” and the word “government” with “Bishops and the Church”.
Truly, the Pope’s highly selective indignation that always points toward migrants and away from internal Church scandals and missteps is simply remarkable.
And the authority and credibility of the Church continues to be degraded and membership declining because the response of Church leaders, mostly at the highest level of authority, has been nothing more than silence.
And the beat goes on...and on...and on.
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