On Saturday, April 25, dozens of people attended a talk entitled “From Justice to Solidarity: Immigration and Our Catholic Faith” at St. John the Baptist Parish in Fort Wayne. The talk was given by David Lantigua, an associate professor of moral theology at the University of Notre Dame who speci alizes in Catholic social doctrine. His talk explored what the Church teaches about immigration and how we are called to respond with justice and solidarity. Debunking Myths Lantigua first debunked a few myths, the first of which was that Catholic social teaching is an abstract ideal that is not applicable in the real world. People believe it does not “play out in politics,” Lantigua said, but in response, he asked the audience what Jesus challenged in the Sermon on the Mount. “Love your enemies,” an audience member responded. “The Golden Rule,” another added. “Yes,” said Lantigua. This is evidence that “the Gospel is hard work. Social doctrine is hard work,” but that doesn’t render it inapplicable. He went on to explain that Catholic social doctrine doesn’t resolve our differences, but it does offer an opportunity to talk about important issues and find our way toward unity as a single human family. This reaching for unity and solidarity of human experience was central to the hourlong talk. The second myth Lantigua raised was the belief that morality and politics should be separate. He referred to comments by Vice President JD Vance and President Donald Trump’s recent interactions with Pope Leo XIV when he insisted our morality should inform our politics as we find ways to seek the common good together as human beings. He invoked the words of Pope Leo, who focuses on the need for peace, which is not the absence of conflict but instead is both the result of justice and the Augustinian effect of charity. In all of this, the theme of peace is central as we look for a path to unity. Catholic Themes Relevant to Immigration Lantigua discussed three Catholic themes that are relevant to how we talk about immigration as Catholics. The first is that we are made in the image and likeness of a Trinitarian God. This fact reveals that we are social creatures who need and depend upon one another. Because of this, our response to immigration needs to be seen through a communal lens and with a social perspective. The second theme Lantigua spoke of was the centrality of the family. Referring to the Church’s history of holding out against communism because of its attack on the family unit, Lantigua reminds us that “the family has rights that are anterior to the state.” He gave as examples of this the practice of home schooling and reiterated that “the family has rights regardless if the state recognizes them.” The speaker pointed to Pope Pius XII’s Holy Family-centered doctrine on immigration, Exsul Familia Nazarethana, which relies on our sympathy with the Holy Family’s exile in Egypt and exhorts that we are called to improve conditions for migrants. The third theme was the importance of welcoming strangers. Lantigua encouraged those in attendance to consider the Augustinian idea that all Christians are resident aliens here on earth, and as pilgrims on a journey, we need to understand migration as a theological concept. He brought up Leviticus 19, which reminds us that we, too, were once aliens in Egypt. After discussing these themes, Lantigua spoke about how Catholic social doctrine approaches justice and solidarity in the immigration debate. He defined justice as giving to another person their due. Returning to our Trinitarian God-inspired social dependence on one another, Lantigua said we need to understand “our rights in relationship to other people.” He recognized that while justice is necessary, it is often a starting point to a rift, but the richness of Catholic social teaching tells us that “peace is the work of justice.” What needs to follow justice is a striving toward solidarity, and as with his earlier Sermon on the Mount reference, Lantigua said the Church brings us the power to love our enemies. In response to the question of how do to love our enemies in another political party, Lantigua said: “We have to love. We have to want friendship. We have to want solidarity with those we are afraid of, and we have to allow ourselves to hear the stories of others.” Lantigua ended the talk on a provocative note in referencing Matthew 10:34-36, verses that prove how hard the Gospel is and that open as follows: “Do not think I have come to bring peace. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” He asked the audience to “let Jesus decide what’s going to divide you. Do not let your political party do that.” During a QA following the talk, an attendee asked how to respond to the usual arguments about immigrants stealing American jobs. Lantigua encouraged us to “look at the facts” and said there are “ways to look at these issues through social scientific work that shows it’s more complicated than simple narratives express.” Caty Burke, a parishioner of St. John the Baptist, said her biggest takeaway from the talk was “that Catholic social doctrine challenges us to see and think through the lens of the Gospel rather than a political party. There is room for debate about policies, but there is not room for debate about the dignity of the human person made in the image of a Trinitarian God, and that has to be the foundation of how we think and talk about immigration.” Another attendee, Sherry Binversie, said the talk gave her “a better grasp on how Catholic social teaching is lived out as a Catholic. When we say we are people of the Gospel and followers of Christ, it means the entirety of the Gospel and not just the parts that we are the most comfortable with.” She added that “we deny ourselves the opportunity to serve and be served when our approach to social issues limits us to those people we are the most comfortable with.” Toward the end of the talk, an attendee asked Lantigua whether we should draw the conclusion that all our borders should be open. Lantigua quickly and firmly said, “No. That’s not realistic.” But he did add that “the political side has to build pathways for those who have made it here.” He expanded on this response by saying moral theology is not intended to make public policy, but “the theology handles how we work it out.” The post Speaker Explores ‘Immigration and Our Catholic Faith’ appeared first on Today's Catholic. ...read more read less