The Illegal Migration Bill will now become law after a series of votes in the House of Lords failed to result in further modern slavery protections and child detention limits.
Lead Bishop for Migrants and Refugees, Bishop Paul McAleenan, says the Church will continue to ‘love the stranger’ and call for the expansion of safe routes for those fleeing their homes:
“This legislation stands at odds with the teaching of the Church on welcoming, protecting, promoting and integrating refugees.
“Refugees are human beings made in the image and likeness of God, not a political problem to be solved. We must never make recognition of people’s dignity dependent upon where they come from or how they reach our country. The biblical call to love the stranger is unequivocal and indiscriminate.
“As a Church, we will continue to welcome those seeking sanctuary here and call for the expansion of safe routes. We urge our government to redouble its efforts to tackle factors such as conflict, persecution, and climate change that force people to flee their homes.”
Recent Posts
The Catholic Union will be hosting a webinar with His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Holy See, Chris Trott, next month. The webinar is taking place on Thursday 13 July from [...]
The storm clouds parted over Winchester and radiant sunshine shone down on the beautiful St Peter’s Church for the Diocesan Evangelisation team summer social. Representatives from Caritas, the Bamenda Committee, [...]
A splendid Corpus Christi procession was held after our 10am mass on Sunday at Sacred Heart Hook. The Blessed Sacrament was carried by Fr John Chadwick who led us from [...]
Bishop Philip Egan today celebrated the annual Diocese Schools Mass at St John's Cathedral, Portsmouth with over forty school's attending from across the Diocese. The theme was "Making Peace with [...]