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According to the USCCB’s voting guide, Catholics are called to “stand with newcomers, authorized and unauthorized, including unaccompanied immigrant children, refugees and asylum-seekers, those unnecessarily detained, and victims of human trafficking.” This directive is in line with the church’s longstanding emphasis on immigrant rights, and the ancient mandate to “welcome the stranger,” a core value for Christianity and a sacred obligation in many pre-Christian societies.
What this means when it comes to the nuts and bolts of policy, however, is a matter many Catholics debate. At a time when the federal government has been removing protections for immigrant groups, barring immigrants from entering the nation, and promising to deport immigrants en masse, the debate is pressingly relevant.
What does the church have to say about deportation? Is there an official Catholic stance on the matter?
On this episode of Glad You Asked, the hosts talk with moral theologian Therese Cory about whether the Catholic Church condemns deportation. Cory is a professor of Thomistic Studies at Notre Dame as well as director of the Jacques Maritain Center and its associated History of Philosophy Forum. Her scholarship focuses on medieval theories of mind, cognition, and personhood, with special focus on the thought of Thomas Aquinas.
Learn more about this topic, and read some of Cory’s writing, in these links.
- “7 things the Catholic Church teaches about immigration,” by Rebecca Bratten Weiss
- “Migration should be a choice, not a necessity,” by Antônio Lemos
- “U.S. bishops unite to defend migrants—laypeople should, too,” by Kevin Clarke
- “Wyoming bishop’s immigration letter puts faces to mass deportations,” by Cassidy Klein
- “How to Reason Prudentially about Immigration: A Reply to Feser,” by Therese Cory
- “Migrants and the Unborn: A Culture of Life Versus a Culture of Deterrence,” by Therese Cory
