Action responses to immigration event
KANKAKEE, IL — After learning about the Catholic Church’s position on immigration Jan. 26 at an event in Kankakee, representatives from parishes across the Diocese of Joliet publicly shared preliminary plans for welcoming immigrants into parish life and ideas for advocating on their behalf.
Milt Honel of Mary Queen of Heaven Parish in Elmhurst said members of his parish want to invite priests, who understand the intricacies of the issue, to speak at their faith community. Among other ideas, the spokesperson for the parish outreach ministry mentioned the group hopes to include an immigration station in the parish’s upcoming Steps Toward Eliminating Poverty event.
Michael Ryder, director of outreach and social justice at St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Naperville, said participants from his faith community want to raise awareness of the issue and educate parishioners about the problem. They hope their efforts will lead to action among people of the parish, he said. “Prayer will be in the middle of all that,” he added.
Speaking about an idea suggested by his group, Ryder said people of his suburban parish might start a relationship with a nearby Catholic faith community that is comprised of mainly Hispanic believers. “We want to bring people together,” he said.
A member of the Peace and Social Justice Ministry at St. Liborius in Steger, Deacon Loren Bowns spoke on behalf of his group at the immigration event. He said members of his parish need to work to welcome Hispanic believers into their parish. The clergyman said making personal connections might be the key to successfully tackling the immigration issue. “When we do that, I think our community will be a lot better,” said the deacon.
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