Canberra-Goulburn Archbishop Christopher Prowse has called for Australians to reject fear and stereotypes in the wake of nationwide anti-immigration protests, urging a spirit of hospitality and hope instead. Source: Catholic Voice.
“In the immigration debate, there’s a difference between reacting and responding,” Archbishop Prowse said after thousands rallied in at least 20 locations under the banner March for Australia.
“On the weekend, there was a reaction, and all the tired old stereotypes came up – that migrants are taking our jobs away, that this is really an Anglo-Saxon land, and others aren’t welcome.”
Archbishop Prowse acknowledged the challenges that come with mass migration but insisted they should be addressed constructively.
“We understand there are problems and there are difficulties,” he said. “But let’s respond, not react.”
He pointed to schools as a living example of multicultural Australia.
“Around the table of Australia, there’s a hospitality for everyone. You go into any Catholic school in Australia, and it’s like a little United Nations,” he said.
“They’re laboratories of hope for the present and also for the future. When these youngsters grow up, they will have a living example of Australia as a multicultural society.
“Australia is renowned worldwide for its hospitality.
“Social cohesion is a central part of what makes Australia a good place. So let’s continue to be a better, more hospitable Australia. Be people of hope in this Jubilee Year, and look to the future with a response, not a reaction.”
Archbishop Prowse, who also chairs the Catholic Bishops’ Commission for Evangelisation, Laity and Ministry, linked his comments to a recent statement from the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.
“We have here a document … called Under the Southern Cross: A Journey of Faith and Unity, and it celebrates the great gift that we have of interculturality in Australia,” he said.
He commended the new document to all Australians, saying: “I ask you to read it … and let’s spread the good news around about how to respond, not react, to the great gift of immigration in Australia.”
The Archbishop’s call precedes the 111th World Day of Migrants and Refugees, to be celebrated on October 5.
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Archbishop Prowse calls for ‘response, not reaction’ following nationwide anti-immigration protests (By Jeanine Doyle, Catholic Voice)
