MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
FOR THE 93rd WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES (2007)
The migrant
family
Dear
Brothers and Sisters!
On the
occasion of the coming World Day of Migrants and
Refugees, and looking at the Holy Family of Nazareth,
icon of all families, I would like to invite you to
reflect on the condition of the migrant family. The
evangelist Matthew narrates that shortly after the birth
of Jesus, Joseph was forced to leave for Egypt by night,
taking the child and his mother with him, in order to
flee the persecution of king Herod (cf. Mt
2:13-15). Making a comment on this page of the Gospel,
my venerable Predecessor, the Servant of God Pope Pius
XII, wrote in 1952: “The family of Nazareth in exile,
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, emigrants and taking refuge in
Egypt to escape the fury of an evil king, are the model,
the example and the support of all emigrants and
pilgrims of every age and every country, of all refugees
of any condition who, compelled by persecution and need,
are forced to abandon their homeland, their beloved
relatives, their neighbors, their dear friends, and move
to a foreign land” (Exsul familia, AAS 44,
1952, 649). In this misfortune experienced by the Family
of Nazareth, obliged to take refuge in Egypt, we can
catch a glimpse of the painful condition in which all
migrants live, especially, refugees, exiles, evacuees,
internally displaced persons, those who are persecuted.
We can take a quick look at the difficulties that every
migrant family lives through, the hardships and
humiliations, the deprivation and fragility of millions
and millions of migrants, refugees and internally
displaced people. The Family of Nazareth reflects the
image of God safeguarded in the heart of every human
family, even if disfigured and weakened by emigration.
The theme
of the next World Day of Migrants and Refugees – The
migrant family – is in continuity with those of
1980, 1986 and 1993. It intends to underline further the
commitment of the Church not only in favor of the
individual migrant, but also of his family, which is a
place and resource of the culture of life and a factor
for the integration of values. The migrant’s family
meets many difficulties. The distance of its members
from one another and unsuccessful reunification often
result in breaking the original ties. New relationships
are formed and new affections arise. Some migrants
forget the past and their duties, as they are subjected
to the hard trial of distance and solitude. If the
immigrant family is not ensured of a real possibility of
inclusion and participation, it is difficult to expect
its harmonious development. The International Convention
for the protection of the rights of all migrant workers
and members of their families, which was enforced on
July 1st, 2003, intends to defend men and
women migrant workers and the members of their
respective families. This means that the value of the
family is recognized, also in the sphere of emigration,
which is now a structural phenomenon of our societies.
The Church encourages the ratification of the
international legal instruments that aim to defend the
rights of migrants, refugees and their families and,
through its various Institutions and Associations,
offers its advocacy that is becoming more and more
necessary. To this end, it has opened Centres where
migrants are listened to, Houses where they are
welcomed, Offices for services offered to persons and
families, with other initiatives set up to respond to
the growing needs in this field.
Much is
already being done for the integration of the families
of immigrants, although much still remains to be done.
There are real difficulties connected with some “defense
mechanisms” on the part of the first generation
immigrants, which run the risk of becoming an obstacle
to the greater maturity of the young people of the
second generation. This is why it is necessary to
provide for legislative, juridical and social
intervention to facilitate such an integration. In
recent times, there is an increase in the number of
women who leave their countries of origin in search of
better conditions of life, in view of more promising
professional prospects. However, women who end up as
victims of trafficking of human beings and of
prostitution are not few in number. In family
reunification, social workers, especially religious
women, can render an appreciated service of mediation
that merits our gratitude more and more.
Regarding
the integration of the families of immigrants, I feel it
my duty to call your attention to the families of
refugees, whose conditions seem to have gone worse in
comparison with the past, also specifically regarding
the reunification of family nuclei. In the camps
assigned to them, in addition to logistic difficulties,
and those of a personal character linked to the trauma
and emotional stress caused by the tragic experiences
they went through, sometimes there is also the risk of
women and children being involved in sexual
exploitation, as a survival mechanism. In these cases an
attentive pastoral presence is necessary. Aside from
giving assistance capable of healing the wounds of the
heart, pastoral care should also offer the support of
the Christian community, able to restore the culture of
respect and have the true value of love found again. It
is necessary to encourage those who are
interiorly-wrecked to recover trust in themselves.
Everything must also be done to guarantee the rights and
dignity of the families and to assure them housing
facilities according to their needs. Refugees are asked
to cultivate an open and positive attitude towards their
receiving society and maintain an active willingness to
accept offers to participate in building together an
integrated community that would be a “common household”
for all.
Among
migrants, there is a category that needs to be
considered in a special way: the students from other
countries, who are far from home, without an adequate
knowledge of the language, at times without friends and
often with a scholarship that is insufficient for their
needs. Their condition is even worse if they are
married. Through its Institutions, the Church exerts
every effort to render the absence of family support for
these young students less painful. It helps them
integrate in the cities that receive them, by putting
them in contact with families that are willing to offer
them hospitality and facilitate knowing one another. As
I had the opportunity to say on another occasion,
helping foreign students is “an important field of
pastoral action… Indeed, young people who leave their
own country in order to study encounter many problems
and especially the risk of an identity crisis” (L’Osservatore
Romano,
15 December 2005).
Dear
Brothers and Sisters, may the World Day of Migrants and
Refugees become a useful occasion to build awareness, in
the ecclesial community and public opinion, regarding
the needs and problems, as well as the positive
potentialities of migrant families. My thoughts go in a
special way to those who are directly involved in the
vast phenomenon of migration, and to those who expend
their pastoral energy in the service of human mobility.
The words of the apostle Paul, “caritas Christi urget
nos” (2 Cor 5:14), urge us to give ourselves
preferentially to our brothers and sisters who are most
in need. With these sentiments, I invoke divine
assistance on each one and I affectionately impart to
all a special Apostolic Blessing.
From
the Vatican, 18 October 2006
MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
FOR THE 92nd WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES (2006)
"Migrations: a sign of the times'
Dear
Brothers and Sisters,
Forty
years ago the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council was
closed, whose rich teaching covers many areas of
ecclesial life. In particular the Pastoral Constitution
Gaudium et Spes
made a careful analysis of the complexities of the world
today, seeking the ways best suited to bring the Gospel
message to the men and women of today.
To this
end the Council Fathers in response to the appeal of Bl.
John XXIII undertook to examine the signs of the times
and to interpret them in the light of the Gospel so as
to offer the new generations the possibility of
responding adequately to the eternal questions about
this life and the life "to come and about just social
relations" (cf.
Gaudium et Spes,
n. 4).
One of
the recognizable signs of the times today is undoubtedly
migration, a phenomenon which during the century just
ended can be said to have taken on structural
characteristics, becoming an important factor of the
labour market worldwide, a consequence among other
things of the enormous drive of globalization.
Naturally
in this "sign of the times" various factors play a part.
They include both national and international migration,
forced and voluntary migration, legal and illegal
migration, subject also to the scourge of trafficking in
human beings.
Nor can
the category of foreign students, whose numbers increase
every year in the world, be forgotten.
With
regard to those who emigrate for economic reasons, a
recent fact deserving mention is the growing number of
women involved ("feminization"). In the past it was
mainly men who emigrated, although there were always
women too, but these emigrated in particular to
accompany their husbands or fathers or to join them
wherever they were.
Today,
although numerous situations of this nature still exist,
female emigration tends to become more and more
autonomous. Women cross the border of their homeland
alone in search of work in another country. Indeed, it
often happens that the migrant woman becomes the
principal source of income for her family. It is a fact
that the presence of women is especially prevalent in
sectors that offer low salaries. If, then, migrant
workers are particularly vulnerable, this is even more
so in the case of women.
The most
common employment opportunities for women, other than
domestic work, consist in helping the elderly, caring
for the sick and work in the hotel sector. These, too,
are areas where Christians are called to dedicate
themselves to assuring just treatment for migrant women
out of respect for their femininity in recognition of
their equal rights.
In this
context it is necessary to mention trafficking in human
beings - especially women - which flourishes where
opportunities to improve their standard of living or
even to survive are limited. It becomes easy for the
trafficker to offer his own "services" to the victims,
who often do not even vaguely suspect what awaits them.
In some cases there are women and girls who are destined
to be exploited almost like slaves in their work, and
not infrequently in the sex industry, too.
Though I
cannot here closely examine the analysis of the
consequences of this aspect of migration, I make my own
the condemnation voiced by John Paul II against "the
widespread hedonistic and commercial culture which
encourages the systematic exploitation of sexuality" (Letter
of Pope John Paul II to Women, 29 June
1995, n. 5). This outlines a whole programme of
redemption and liberation from which Christians cannot
withdraw.
Speaking
of the other category of migrants - asylum seekers and
refugees - I wish to underline how the tendency is to
stop at the question of their arrival while disregarding
the reasons for which they left their native land.
The
Church sees this entire world of suffering and violence
through the eyes of Jesus, who was moved with pity at
the sight of the crowds wandering as sheep without a
shepherd (cf. Mt 9: 36). Hope, courage, love and
""creativity' in charity" (Apostolic Letter
Novo Millennio Ineunte,
n. 50) must inspire the necessary human and Christian
efforts made to help these brothers and sisters in their
suffering. Their native Churches will demonstrate their
concern by sending pastoral agents of the same language
and culture, in a dialogue of charity with the
particular Churches that welcome them.
In light
of today's "signs of the times", particular attention
should be paid to the phenomenon of foreign students.
Thanks among other factors to foreign exchange
programmes between universities, especially in Europe,
their number is growing, with consequent pastoral
problems the Church cannot ignore. This is especially
true in the case of students coming from developing
countries, whose university experience can become an
extraordinary occasion for spiritual enrichment.
As I
invoke divine assistance on those who, moved by the
desire to contribute to the promotion of a future of
justice and peace in the world, spend their energies in
the field of pastoral care at the service of human
mobility, I impart to all as a sign of affection a
special Apostolic Blessing.
From
the Vatican, 18 October 2005
BENEDICTUS PP. XVI
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