Music to My Ears

Sharing Bishop Taylor’s letter on immigration

02/16/2025

This weekend I want to share Bishop Taylor’s recent letter on immigration. To those who support our immigrants his letter will sound like “music to your ears”. To those who oppose our migrants, his letter may sound like “nails on a chalkboard”. So, for those of you for whom this letter will sound like nails, let me tell you what I do when I deal with people I don’t get along with.

I say a prayer for them, just one Hail Mary, when they’re really getting under my skin. And that Hail Mary does not just make me stop and take a deep breath. It helps me to see them as God sees them. And God see all of us – you and me, too – like small children who don’t know our right hand from our left. In other words, praying for someone fills my heart with compassion for that person.

The bishop addressed his letter “To all people of good will,” meaning to everyone, Catholics, non-Catholics, Republicans, Democrats, anyone with ears to hear. The bishop writes: “As you know, the contentious issue of immigration continues to dominate the public square, often without any serious consideration of what Jesus and our Christian faith has to say about this matter.” By the way, do we think about immigration as just a matter of politics or rather as a matter of faith? The bishop is saying immigration is very much a matter of faith.

The bishop continues: “It is my hope that our elected officials will have the courage and wisdom to do what is right, to do what Jesus would do – to do the loving thing. You may feel there is nothing you can do to change politicians’ minds. But the place to begin is with ourselves, our own hearts and our own parishes, and our own discomfort in dealing with another culture and immigrant group. And to not forget about the human dignity and the human rights of the other person.” You see, the bishop is trying to move the conversation from the political to the personal plane, and highlight our obligation to love each person.

He continues: “As you know, I’ve written a pastoral letter which you can download from the Diocese of Little Rock website. I have preached and taught on this issue throughout my time here as your bishop. And so, I don’t want to rehash all the Catholic principles that must be taken into account.

“Rather, I want to appeal to your hearts – to the reality that we are all brothers and sisters – including the 1/3 of Arkansas Catholics who worship in Spanish in 43 of our parishes. And right now, this Spanish speaking part of our body is hurting and living in fear.”

By the way, do you know that 50% of Immaculate Conception parish is Hispanic? There are as many people crammed into our two Spanish Masses as there are in the 4 English Masses every weekend. When we hear all the rhetoric about mass deportations, IC parishioners may be among the ones who might be deported. How can we not care what happens to them?

Bishop Taylor continues: “If you are living in fear today, I want you to know we stand in solidarity and in prayer with you. And if you’re not familiar with the parts of the body of Christ who are living in fear, I implore you to pray for them and try to find ways to get to know them. Find ways to help your fellow believers feel welcomed.” Hey, wait, the bishop just stole my line about praying for people you don’t get along with. I guess a bishop can do that.

Then the bishop quotes the parable of the sheep and goats: “In Matthew 25, Jesus tells us at the last judgment he will say to his chosen ones: ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me…As often as you did it for one of my least brothers and sisters, you did it for me.’ And to others he will say, ‘As often as you neglected to do it to one of these least ones, you neglected to do it to me.’”

The bishop continues: “I could go into all the theological reasons behind the Church’s teaching on the rights of migrants, and all the arguments as to why our current immigration system is deeply broken. For example, many of us are under the mistaken impression that people who want to migrate to the United States can easily do so by getting in line. But for most people there really is no line, which is why circumstances forced them to come here without papers.

Then bishop gets more specific: “And anyone who’s tried to navigate the system can tell you how bureaucratic, complex, inconsistent, and expensive it really is – and that’s for people who have financial means and family or highly skilled employment-based connections!” By the way, my family came from India to the United States in 1976, and it was not easy nor was it cheap.

The bishop continues: “But all those arguments aside, what Jesus is challenging us to do here regarding immigration is to let him share his heart and mind with us. All that I’ve said in the past really boils down to Jesus’ call for us to love as he loves, without fear, trusting in God’s providence.” In other words, the bishop is asking us: do we have the Heart of Christ for immigrants?

He continues: “One of the most distinguishing features of our Catholic faith is that we are called to be ‘universal’ in fact as well as in name. This means that there must be no dividing lines within our parishes, no second-class parishioners – all are welcome, no exceptions. But there’s more to it than that.

He goes on: “You and I are being offered a unique and privileged opportunity to share the mind and heart of Jesus Christ, the same Jesus whom we honor with so many images of the Sacred Heart, his heart visible, crowned with thorns and on fire with love. And that’s who he now invites us to be, Christ for others.

And then the bishop concludes with this, saying: “In this, God will use us to be not only a light to our nation (enlightening others about human rights, about truth, about life), but also more importantly a source of love, love that banishes fear, love that brings hope and healing, and in this way become a model for what all of American society is called to be. /s/ Anthony B. Taylor, Bishop of Little Rock.”

Let me end on a personal note. As I said my family emigrated to the U.S. because we had money and someone sponsored us. But if my family had been poor, I never would have come to the U.S. I would not have been raised in Little Rock and discover a priestly vocation in high school. And I would not have been your pastor for the last 11 years. To some of you that may sound like nails on a chalkboard, but to others, it might sound like music to their ears.

Praised be Jesus Christ!