America’s Catholic hierarchy preaches open borders but whispers about abortion.
In the late fifth century, St. Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland, wrote a letter to the army of the British warlord Coroticus, condemning the practice of slavery. He did so not because condemning the then-profitable slave trade put a penny in his pocket (it did not) but because it was the right thing to do, in accord with Christian moral teaching. Over a century later, St. Benedict of Nursia held himself and his fellow monks to such a high moral standard that some of his own monks tried to assassinate him. While many pioneers went to the New World in search of gold, St. Isaac Jogues went to save souls, and gave his life in the process. St. Peter Claver ministered to slaves in the 16th century, baptizing souls that the wealthy traders considered property.
Why is it so difficult for America’s Catholic bishops today to take up the mantle of their saintly predecessors? President Donald Trump’s immigration agenda — namely, the program of mass deportations — is all that any of the bishops seem to speak or write about lately. In a recent op-ed, Archbishop José Gómez of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles turned to the violence in Minneapolis last month, writing, “As a pastor, my heart aches for our people and for our country.” …
