When Mbengue Nyimbilo Crepin told Pope Francis of his harrowing journey to Italy and about the deaths of his wife and 6-year-old daughter in the desert along the border between Libya and Tunisia, the pope told him he had been praying for them since July. Nyimbilo, known as “Pato,” sobbed Nov 17 as he shared Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Migrants and Refugees’
Meanness toward migrants and refugees
Thursday, June 6th, 2019
“The signs of meanness we see around us heighten our fear of ‘the other,’ the unknown, the marginalized, the foreigner,” and thus many migrants seeking a better life end up as recipients of this meanness, said Pope Francis in his recently released 2019 World Day of Migrants and Refugees message. The Holy Father warned that Read more
Bishop asked how Vatican wall differs from US border wall
Thursday, May 2nd, 2019One of the most famous walls in history is the wall around the Vatican City. At a congressional hearing Clay Higgins, a member of the US House of Representatives asked Bishop Mark Seitz how this wall differed from the US border wall. Read more
NZ’s hypocrisy on family reunifications
Thursday, July 5th, 2018Peter Dunne argues New Zealanders angry about Trump’s family separations policy should look instead at our own racist policy on family reunifications. Continue reading
Palmerston North welcomes 160 refugees in 12 months
Monday, June 25th, 2018
Palmerston North settled more than 40 households of approximately 160 former refugees over the last 12 months, according to the Red Cross Service Centre. They include Burmese Muslim, Rohingya from Myanmar, Palestinians from Syria, Afghan Dari speakers, Karen from Myanmar, South Sudanese and Bhutanese Nepali. The centre trains over 100 volunteers to work in teams Read more
Polish priest wishing for Pope’s death rebuked
Thursday, March 22nd, 2018
A Polish priest who said in a homily last month he wished Pope Francis would die an early death has been called to account by his archbishop. Father Edward Staniek was evidently reacting to Francis’s call for Catholics to take in Muslim refugees because it was their Christian duty. “I pray for the Pope in Read more
Manus Island – the priest and the Major show everyday humanity and decency
Monday, November 27th, 2017
The decency and integrity of two Manus Islanders, a Catholic priest and a retired army major, has impressed Kon Karapanagiotidis from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre. He said their story shows us the power of people’s everyday humanity and decency. “These men highlight an important story that has been missed by many.” The two Manusian Read more
Message for World Day of Migrants and Refugees
Friday, September 26th, 2014
The full text of the Holy Father’s Message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees 2015 was published on 23 September: Dear brothers and sisters, Jesus is ‘the evangeliser par excellence and the Gospel in person’. His solicitude, particularly for the most vulnerable and marginalised, invites all of us to care for the frailest and Read more