This article comes from the Catholic News Agency, by way of American Catholic.
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Vatican Officials: Helping Immigrant Families Helps Everyone
By Cindy Wooden
VATICAN CITY (CNS)—Nations serve their own interests as well as the good of migrants when they adopt family-friendly immigration policies, said the Vatican offices that work with families and migrants.
Allowing immigrants to bring family members with them obviously increases a newcomer's happiness, but it also gives them the built-in support system needed to integrate responsibly into their new homeland, the offices said.
Cardinal Ennio Antonelli, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, and Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, president of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, issued a statement May 14 in anticipation of the U.N. celebration of the International Day of Families.
The United Nations chose "The Impact of Migration on Families around the World" as the theme for the May 15 observance.
Families play an essential role in promoting "peace and social cohesion, educational development and general well-being, economic growth and social integration," the Vatican officials said. Families transmit values, help people preserve their cultural identity and are important influences in preventing crime and delinquency, they said.
In the past, when a married person immigrated alone, it usually was a man who hoped to find work and eventually bring his family to his new country. Now, "the number of women leaving their country of origin in search of a more dignified life is growing exponentially," Cardinal Antonelli and Archbishop Veglio said.
Women face real solitude and the potential for exploitation and abuse, they said.
"We hope that the competent institutions will elaborate responsible family policies that facilitate family reunification" and make it possible for immigrants without documents to gain legal status so that they and their families can contribute fully to the social and economic life in their new homelands, the statement said.
The church officials also encouraged education programs to help sensitize people to the needs, hopes and cultures of their new neighbors, particularly encouraging families to reach out to immigrant families.
