Irish Primate: Racism is a grave sin - Christians must stand against it

Archbishop Eamon Martin addressing IX World Meeting of Families, Dublin Aug 2018 CCO archive

Archbishop Eamon Martin delivered this homily during the International Mass in Lurgan Parish, Dromore, today, 14 June, to celebrate the gifts of the parish's diverse community - after a week of attacks on migrant communities in Northern Ireland.

Friends, I'm very happy to be with you for this international Mass to celebrate the richness and diversity of your parish community here in Lurgan.

I am very conscious of course of the fear and anxiety that many are feeling this week after the brutal knife attack on a man's life in Belfast, which was followed by outrageous and orchestrated violence against the homes and businesses of migrant communities in our towns and cities. This morning's Mass is an opportunity for us to pray together following such a traumatic week. On behalf of the many good people in our communities, I want to express our shock and horror at the hatred and violence that has been shown on our streets to friends and neighbours who have come from around the world to live, work and pray among us here in Ireland.

Ireland has long been known as a place of friendliness and welcome - céad míle fáilte - 100,000 welcomes, even. Perhaps that's because migration has been a major feature of Irish history for generations; during the height of the famine years almost two million people left our shores, and migration has been a common and constant pattern in Irish life: with young people leaving to look for jobs and a fresh start in life, especially when times were tough. Even today, many of our talented young people still leave our island to seek new skills and experience and perhaps to earn enough money to return and put down a deposit on a home for their future.

Now we hear angry and hate-filled voices, especially on social media, calling for us "to close our borders and our hearts to the newcomer". Ironically, that reminds us of the way that during some dark days, our own Irish emigrants abroad were suspected and unjustly targeted.

Pope Leo, and Pope Francis before him, have reminded us that 'to welcome the migrant is to welcome Christ himself', who 'is present in the sister or brother in need of our help.'

We are also called to go beyond merely 'welcoming' newcomers. We are challenged by our faith to do everything we can to support and integrate new arrivals here and help them to become valued members of our communities who can participate in our parishes, and be our neighbours and friends.

We are well aware of the tremendous gifts that people from other countries are already bringing to our health and hospitality services, to our businesses and retail outlets, to our construction and technology sectors, and to the revitalisation of many areas and neighbourhoods which had become neglected and run down. Pope Francis used to talk about cultivating a "culture of encounter" with newcomers.

Pope Benedict XVI wrote in his encyclical, Caritas in Veritate: "every migrant is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by everyone and in every circumstance."

In recent days, we have seen again how fear can be stirred up, how difference can be treated as threat, and how people can be targeted because of their race, background or identity. We do not gather here today in Saint Peter's, Lurgan, to dwell in that darkness, but neither do we pretend it has not touched our communities.

This International Mass is a sign of another possibility and faith-filled vision - of people of many nations, languages and cultures standing together before the same Lord, sharing the same Eucharist, and recognising one another not as strangers, but as brothers and sisters in Christ. For as the psalmist put it, "cry out with joy to the Lord all the Earth, for we are his people the sheep of his flock!"

During the past week, Pope Leo XIV spoke in the Canary Islands of integration of migrants as a shared responsibility, which is rooted in human dignity, welcome and participation. The Church does not ask people to erase who they are, nor does she ask local communities to close themselves off in fear. What we seek is … a deeper encounter: the meeting of cultures, gifts, memories, prayers, music, food, stories and faith.

Those who come to our communities and parishes in Ireland bring great riches from their various traditions across the world. And we who receive them are called to share our story, our memories and traditions, with them.

In Christ, we are not set against each other. We are invited to build a home and community together, to learn from one another, to build and share the life of the local community, and to let the Holy Spirit form us into one body, rich in many gifts.

Pope Leo emphasises that, "Integration is a reciprocal journey: those who arrive learn to inhabit a new land, and those who welcome them learn to expand their own homes without diluting their identity or closing their hearts to the encounter."

Pope Leo spoke directly to members of migrant communities, saying: "To you, dear migrant brothers and sisters, belongs a noble and necessary part of this journey: to open yourselves with trust to the community that welcomes you, to learn its language, to respect its laws, to get to know its customs, to participate in communal life and to offer your gifts with gratitude."

Let me be very clear today: racism is a grave sin and Christians like us must stand strongly against it. The Irish bishops said recently, "Even if a crowd is shouting racist chants, we stand for the truth that God's love is not restricted to the holders of any particular passports - we are all equal in his eyes." Racism "seeks to divide and to exploit anxieties by spreading fear, often through misinformation."

I am delighted that this parish has chosen to celebrate this International Mass today. It is an affirmation that we recognise the image of God and human dignity in every person.

We pray for migrants and refugees as Pope Francis did:

We are a pilgrim people,
journeying our way through this earth.

Though we live on earth,
our true citizenship is in heaven.

Do not let us become possessive
of the portion of the world
you have given us as a temporary home.

Help us to keep walking,
together with our migrant brothers and sisters,
toward the eternal dwelling you have prepared for us.

Open our eyes and our hearts
so that every encounter with those in need
becomes an encounter with Jesus, your Son and our Lord.
Amen.

(Pope Francis, Prayer for World Day of Prayer for Migrants and Refugees, 2024)