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The Catholic Church Teaches Dignity, Morality & Love Of Neighbor
By Alice Becnel
These days, I am so very proud of the Catholic Church, the faith I was raised in and now practice in my own way. In the bitter cold on the line waiting to enter the Rockland County Legislature, I recognized a group of Dominican sisters. The Dominican religious order arrived 120 years ago and its influence can be seen in numerous Rockland institutions: STAC, Children’s Services, Dominican University, just to name a few. The nuns on the line were visibly upset, also turned away from the filled-to-capacity meeting, and were urging others to call Mike Lawler, Bill Weber and Ed Day in protest.
Pope Leo and the American Conference of Bishops have taken an official strong pro-immigrant stand, citing the teachings of Jesus and His Church.
While acknowledging countries’ right to preserve a border and of law enforcement to bring real criminals to justice, their outcry is for human dignity. Targeting people of color without due process and sending them into horrific conditions (as if it’s what they deserve) is 100% wrong.
I am grateful to the Pope for calling out JD Vance on his twisting of Bible passages. And I thank the Catholic presence in Rockland for reminding us to be a county of morals. Any politician who is pro-ICE tactics and supportive of detention centers for mass deportation is in no way acting morally according to the clear mandates of the Catholic Church. Most faiths in fact preach love of neighbor, but I am here praising the Catholic hierarchy in particular for being so outspoken during this crisis.
Alice Becnel is a resident of Rockland County
Note: The opinions expressed above are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Rockland County Business Journal.
