{"id":2928,"date":"2013-04-12T08:01:00","date_gmt":"2013-04-12T08:01:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/archbishop-likens-immigrants-to-les-misrables-hero\/"},"modified":"2013-04-12T08:01:00","modified_gmt":"2013-04-12T08:01:00","slug":"archbishop-likens-immigrants-to-les-miserables-hero","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/04\/archbishop-likens-immigrants-to-les-miserables-hero\/","title":{"rendered":"Archbishop likens immigrants to ‘Les Mis\u00e9rables’ hero"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Miami, Fla., Apr 12, 2013 \/ 02:01 am (CNA<\/a>).- Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami made a plea for immigration reform at a rally on Saturday, noting that like the hero of \u201cLes Mis\u00e9rables,\u201d migrants wish to \u201credeem themselves with honest work.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cOur immigration laws need to be changed,\u201d the archbishop urged at a march held April 6 in downtown Miami.<\/p>\n

\tSome 2,000 people participated in the rally and 20-block walk, which also drew interfaith leaders including a rabbi, an imam, and pastors of Christian denominations.<\/p>\n

\tDuring his remarks to the crowd, Archbishop Wenski discussed the Victor Hugo\u2019s 19th century novel \u201cLes Mis\u00e9rables.\u201d The book tells the story of Jean Valjean \u2013 a man who was imprisoned for having stolen a loaf of bread to feed his starving relatives \u2013 and the \u201cbitterly zealous legalism\u201d of Inspector Javert who pursues him.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cToday,\u201d the archbishop said, \u201cmodern day Javerts, on radio and T.V. talk shows, fan flames of resentment against supposed law breakers, equating them with terrorists intent on hurting us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cHowever, these people only ask for the opportunity to become legal \u2013 to come out of the shadows where they live in fear of a knock on their door in the dead of night or an immigration raid to their work place.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tSimilar marches have taken place recently across the country, culminating in a large march on April 10 in Washington, D.C. The rallies come as a group of eight senators \u2013 the \u201cgang of eight\u201d \u2013 prepares to introduce immigration reform legislation in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n

\tArchbishop Wenski reminded listeners in Miami that Christ taught that laws serve human persons, and not the other way around. Law, he said, \u201cis meant to benefit, not to enslave mankind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHe pointed to the Boston tea party participants and Rosa Parks as examples of those who have broken human laws.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cWhen laws fail to advance the common good, they can and should be changed,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n

\tThe archbishop said that America's immigration laws are \u201cantiquated and inadequate for the promotion and regulation of social and economic relations of 21st century America.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tOne participant at the Miami rally held a sign proclaiming that \u201cMigration is a human right.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tArchbishop Wenski said that immigration reform take into account \u201cboth human dignity and the national interest,\u201d lest the existing bad laws are replaced by \u201cworse ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHe voiced support for a future legal guest worker program, an \u201cearned\u201d path to legalization for the 10 million workers already in the country, and reducing the backlogs in processing family reunification visas, which \u201ckeep families separated for intolerable lengths of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cIllegal immigration should not be tolerated,\u201d emphasized Archbishop Wenski, but at the same time, \u201cfixing illegal immigration does not require the 'demonization' of the so-called 'illegals.'\u201d<\/p>\n

\tAmerica, he said, should remain a place of opportunity for those willing to work hard.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cWe can provide for our national security and secure borders without making America, a nation of immigrants, less a land of promise or opportunity for immigrants.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cThe 'gang of eight' need to move forward \u2013 with a comprehensive reform \u2013 that includes a path to citizenship to those already in the country and preserves family unification as a bedrock principle of any immigration legislation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tA nation, he noted \u201cthat honors law breakers like the patriots of the Boston Tea Party, a nation that can allow the dignified defiance of Rosa Parks in her act of lawbreaking to touch its conscience, is a nation that also can make room for modern-day Jean Valjeans.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tArchbishop Wenski concluded, saying, \u201cwe can be a nation of laws, without becoming a nation of Javerts. As Jesus reminded the embittered zealots of his day, laws are designed for the benefit \u2013 not the harm \u2013 of humankind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Miami, Fla., Apr 12, 2013 \/ 02:01 am (CNA).- Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami made a plea for immigration reform at a rally on Saturday, noting that like the hero of “Les Misérables,” migrants wish to “redeem themselves with h…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2928","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-us"],"yoast_head":"\nArchbishop likens immigrants to 'Les Mis\u00e9rables' hero<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Miami, Fla., Apr 12, 2013 \/ 02:01 am (CNA).- Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami made a plea for immigration reform at a rally on Saturday, noting that like the hero of “Les Misérables,” migrants wish to “redeem themselves with h...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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