The Archdiocese of Louisville has a long and storied history of welcoming immigrants, helping them make a new home and a new life in its 24 counties.

The archdiocese is an area founded like the rest of the nation by immigrants, many of whom settled in the so-called Catholic Holy Land of Central Kentucky, and in Louisville, where immigrant populations built churches and communities that exist to this day.

It’s a history that Archbishop Thomas C. Kelly wants the people of the archdiocese to remember. It is a welcoming tradition that the archdiocese needs to perpetuate, he believes, in this new and sometimes emotional period of concern about immigration.

On May 18, the archbishop sent a letter to pastors and pastoral administrators throughout the archdiocese, with an “urgent request” that they consider preaching about the subject of immigration between now and June 24.

In his letter, Archbishop Kelly notes that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has made passage of comprehensive immigration reform legislation a priority.

“This highly complex issue has many facets that the bishops of the United States and Mexico have carefully considered,” the archbishop wrote, “before offering what we believe to be the best way to accomplish this reform.”

“In Congress, our representatives have introduced the so-called STRIVE Act,” the letter said. “It contains many provisions that reflect the bishops’ thinking, and it is at least a good beginning although it requires some changes before the bishops can fully endorse it.”

All of the activity in Washington, D. C., “has brought to the public a deeper awareness of the complexity and gravity of immigration reform in our nation, especially as it affects families,” the archbishop wrote.

The letter also noted that Kentucky’s bishops have also made a general “call to action” on immigration in a pastoral letter “Every Man and Woman Is The Image of God,” published in the summer of 2006. In that document, the state’s bishops said: “We respect the right of nations to enforce their borders and enforce reasonable immigration laws. At the same time, we regard every person, illegal immigrant, legal immigrant, or citizen, with the mind of Christ: a human person worthy of dignity and respect.”

It is that principle that Archbishop Kelly wants pastors and pastoral administrators to stress to their parishioners.

“There’s a long history of the bishops supporting immigration reform — and immigrants,” Archbishop Kelly said in an interview last week. “Long before we had a border control problem, we were emphasizing the need to reform immigration legislation. We must develop just and fair ways to help those who come to us.”

Now the immigration question has become an emotional issue, flogged almost daily by some voices in the media. And that, the archbishop said, “is clouding the atmosphere very seriously.”

“We must continue welcoming the people of foreign lands,” he said, “instead of them coming here and being greeted with xenophobia.”

Archbishop Kelly said bishops in the state and nation have been “calling for immigration reform for as long as I can remember.”

“It involves, or should involve, a total recasting of the current legislation,” he said. “People now in this emotional climate are lifting their heads up and saying, ‘Oh, my goodness, the system is broken.’ The bishops have recognized that for a long time, and we all must realize that these are our brothers and sisters who are coming to us, coming to our country, looking for a better life for their families.

“This diocese, long before I came here, was right at the top of the line to help people as they got off the train or airplane,” he continued. “This has been a very welcoming place, and we want to continue that tradition.”

Along with the letter, the archbishop sent “suggestions for homilists,” which said in part that immigrants who arrive in the U.S., “particularly the undocumented, are among the voiceless who need someone to speak on behalf of their human rights and dignity.”

“A homilist should center the homily on Christ and the church’s teaching and urge parishioners to act accordingly without supporting or opposing a specific political party,” the letter said.

Also included are suggested topics for homilies on specific Sundays. For instance:

• On “Most Holy Trinity” Sunday, June 3, the suggestion notes that the “Trinity is a perfect example of community and unity in diversity. In Jesus, we, different though we are, find a unity that is a reflection of the unity of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Like the persons of the Trinity we are each unique with a special role, yet we are called to be united in that diversity, not uniform.”
• On “Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ” Sunday, June 10, the suggestion says that Jesus shared the table with many people: “with family and friends; with a bride and groom at their wedding in Cana; with upright Pharisees; with sinners, tax collectors and prostitutes.”

“The table for him is — as for people of most cultures — a meeting place where the sharing of food and drink and friendly conversations can break down divisions and hostilities and help people experience their common humanity.”

• For the homily on the Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, June 17, the suggestions note that “in the case of immigration law, our current system is unjust because it does not take into account sufficiently the dignity of the migrant. People are forced out of necessity to choose to migrate and left with no legal means, decide to do so outside of the law. The right of a nation to control its borders is balanced against a person’s need to feed their family.
• For Sunday, June 24, the “Nativity of St. John the Baptist,” the suggestion says that “we are called like John the Baptist to preach the Good News in the public forum, even when the news is not easily received. We too may be voices ‘crying out in the desert’ in the current atmosphere that surrounds the issue of immigration reform. But we cannot be discouraged from preaching the unconditional love that God has for all of his creation.”

Archbishop Kelly also noted in the interview that the presence of a growing immigrant population in the archdiocese presents the local church “with a remarkable opportunity.”

“We must take into account in our local church how long we’ve been active in helping and placing those who come to us,” he said. “And we must remember that everyone who falls under the name of immigrant is bound to have many gifts and talents. They bring to us a new and different identity, and new strengths and gifts.”