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Thursday of the Second Week of Advent

Readings of the Day 
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In today's reading, Isaiah reassures us that God grasps our hand
and stands with us no matter what. God provides us with what we need
to create a loving, just and peaceful world where human dignity is
prioritized and respected. God gives us a bountiful world in which we
can grow and for which we must care and share with all of our brothers
and sisters.

Wise words to consider as we celebrate International Human Rights Day.
We are reminded that these same values formed the foundation for the
creation of the United Nations. The peoples of the United Nations in
the Charter reaffirmed their faith in the dignity and worth of the
human person and in the equal rights of men and women and were
determined to promote social progress and better standards of life.

Pope Francis powerfully and prophetically addresses these age-old and
sacred values in his recent encyclical Fratelli Tutti. He emphasizes
God's great love for each and every one of us, reminding us that
we are one large family despite any borders that physically separate
us. He calls us to universal fraternity, exhorting us to open our
hearts and to welcome, protect, promote and integrate migrants and all
those on the margins. Francis urges us to recognize that together we
are all saved or no one is saved. In recommending the need for reform
at the United Nations and international finance institutions, he
exhorts us to create a global, juridical, political and economic order
that favors the development of all peoples in solidarity. While our
family of nations recognized the need for universal fraternity and
respect for human dignity after the devastation of World War II, we
have fallen on the wayside. As Francis instructs, we must put human
dignity back at the center upon which to build the alternate social
structures we need for a truly just world.

As we consider today's readings in light of Francis' call
for universal fraternity, what steps can you take locally to live more
closely in solidarity with those on the margins in your community?

 

Anna Gallagher is the Executive Director of Catholic Legal Immigration
Network, Inc. (CLINIC).  CLINIC promotes the dignity and protects
the rights of immigrants and refugees in partnership with a committed
network of Catholic and community-based organizations which provide
immigration legal services to immigrants and refugees throughout the
United States and at the southern border.   

 




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