Bishop Murphy weighs in on immigration BY CAROL EISENBERG
Newsday Staff Writer
March 31, 2006
Wading into the immigration debate, Bishop William Murphy of the Diocese of Rockville Centre said in his weekly column yesterday that "care for the stranger and the alien is an imperative of the law of Moses and the law of Christ."
In a carefully worded column in the diocesan newspaper, the bishop refrained from endorsing any of the bills before Congress, instead offering a framework of "some basic principles" to guide political and civic leaders and "public-spirited good citizens."
Acknowledging the polarization over the issue, especially on Long Island, Murphy noted that it was the government's responsibility to police the nation's borders to keep out terrorists. But he insisted that such policies should not be "so draconian that they effectively close the nation's borders to the still large numbers of immigrants who seek political or economic asylum."
Sidestepping the question of whether the millions already here should be given a path to citizenship, he said immigration policies "should assist immigrants ... to make the transition into our culture as smooth and as positive as possible."
Murphy also took an indirect swipe at Rep. Peter King (R-Seaford), co-author of the House bill, saying it is "especially disturbing when public officials respond to legitimate criticism by casting unworthy and demeaning remarks about leaders in communities of faith."
Reached yesterday, King stood by his comments that Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony has "intentionally distorted and misrepresented the legislation" and should not be trusted given his handling of abusive priests. He also said "Bishop Murphy should read the legislation for himself." Copyright 2006 Newsday Inc. |
