News - September 2024 RSS Feed

Many parishes in the Archdiocese of Washington, including our parish, are blessed to have parishioners whose country of origin is Haiti. Knowing well some of our parishioners who originally came from Haiti, I found it very painful to read of Haitians being stigmatized as people who eat pets in the press and on social media. This kind of behavior reminded me of stories told about Chinese immigrants in the 1800’s as people who ate dogs, bats, or rats or other malicious lies that were continually repeated about immigrants from Europe, Asia, or Africa during much of the twentieth century.

This week I want to continue the discussion about various claims of criminal activity in Catholic organizations that assist newcomers. The USCCB posted a document on their website that I want to use to address false claims of Catholic Church agencies regarding financial enrichment, self-interest, and political motives.

Over the last three weeks, I have covered the three basic principles of Catholic Social Teaching as it applies to Immigration. This week I want to talk about false claims about Catholic organizations that serve newcomers.