Governments, society and the Church itself must give
priority to overcoming the problems that drive families and entire communities
to emigrate, says the archbishop primate of Mexico.
During a homily Sunday, Cardinal Norberto Rivera emphasized the importance of
overcoming the poverty, violence and injustice that forces people to leave
their homeland.
He referred to last week's appeal launched by the Mexican bishops "to
sensitize the public" and to seek ways to solve "the phenomenon and
tragedy of migrants."
"The Lord Jesus himself lived this situation when the family of Nazareth,
confronted with the pride of man and the abuse of power, fled to Egypt,"
the cardinal said.
"These attitudes still prevail in various places of our homeland and the
world and, either because of wars or economic necessities, many brethren, men
and women, are obliged to abandon their place of birth in search of better
conditions of life," he added.
Some reach their ideal, but "we cannot close our eyes before the difficult
situations that they must face and which at times cost them their lives,"
he said. Many migrants die before they reach their destinations.
Even those who arrive face "a new calvary: by
the contempt of the inhabitants of the city or country, ignorance of the
language and customs, family uprooting, and loneliness in which they find
themselves, coupled with the lack of basic resources," said Cardinal
Rivera, the archbishop of Mexico City.
"The bishops of the United States and the bishops of Mexico have requested
the Catholic faithful to support their respective governments so that they will
focus on human rights in connection with migration, and in their policies,
avoid assimilating migration to criminalization and systematically linking
migration to terrorism," he added.