Churches called to be welcoming to migrants

The Catholic bishop in charge of migration policy in England and Wales has called on churches to welcome migrants and see them as their neighbours.

Bishop Patrick Lynch said Christians were called to listen to the stories of migrants and remember the “suffering that immigrants and strangers experience in their everyday life”.

His comments were made on Racial Justice Sunday today, which this year focuses on the theme of building bridges with the migrant community.

The bishop challenged Christians to consider who their neighbour was in light of the issue of migration and not to be “indifferent” to the plight of migrants in Britain.

He said migrants had brought a new “vibrancy” to parishes across Britain and that church was called to demonstrate a “more visible culture of welcome, hospitality and solidarity with migrants”.

“Racial Justice Sunday gives us the opportunity to recognise the suffering migrants have experienced through misunderstanding, exploitation, insecurity, uncertainty, injustice and poverty but also to celebrate the rich cultural and spiritual patrimony of migrants and to give visibility to the ways they are enriching us in our parishes and dioceses,” he said.

“It is an opportunity not to be indifferent to those around us, ‘who unsettle us and do not look or speak like us’ but to identify them as our neighbours and to reach out to the people we do not know, to migrants, to refugees and people seeking sanctuary who share the pews in our parishes.

“The Church calls us to be open minded and welcoming to migrants and refugees, to listen to their stories to celebrate the values they bring to our communities and to stand in solidarity with them.”