PHOTOS | ‘Know your dignity’: Archbishop Aquila’s Call to Hope for Migrants on the Immaculate Conception
- Guest Contributor
- 5 hours ago
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Updated: 11 minutes ago
At a special Immaculate Conception Mass celebrated for migrants, the archbishop urged the faithful to reject political rhetoric and reclaim a biblical vision of human dignity.
By Grant Whitty
Church bells tolled through the Capitol Hill neighborhood as religious, seminarians and laity made their way through the doors of the Archdiocese’s mother Church on the evening of her feast day. Masses had been celebrated throughout the day for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception there and across the archdiocese, but this Mass was different.
Amid ongoing immigration challenges facing the country, Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila sought to celebrate a special Mass for immigrants. Following a public Stations of the Cross and procession, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception was chosen as a fitting day for this Mass. The patronal feast day of the United States and the Archdiocese of Denver falls in the season of Advent, where faithful hearts and minds journey spiritually with the Holy Family as they sought refuge from their homeland and safety to bring the Christ child into the world.
On the altar, the archbishop was joined by Bishop Jorge Rodríguez and various clergy from St. John Vianney Theological Seminary in Denver and the Archdiocese. In the congregation, staff of Centro San Juan Diego were present, alongside members of Centro de los Trabajadores and two community leaders, Thomas Weiler and Sandra Cardoza, who served as lectors.
The archbishop opened his homily by preaching on the first reading from Genesis 3, which details the fall of Adam and Eve. After that fall, humanity is no longer united with the mind of God, the mind of Christ. We tend to focus on ourselves rather than on God, but we are continually called to “put on” the mind of God, as the Apostle Paul later writes in his letters to the Corinthians.
Once sin entered the world, the battle over the dignity of the human person began. Yet, amid that battle, all is not lost; there is still hope, the archbishop exhorted. In fact, the first sign of hope is found in the Blessed Mother, whose conception is celebrated in this Solemnity, he said.
“The Lord still loves humanity, and he reminds the serpent, ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your offspring and her. He will strike at your head while you strike at his heel’ (Genesis 3:15). The early fathers of the church always saw that as a promise of Mary, as a promise given to the woman, that a woman would receive the Christ who would really destroy the evil one,” Archbishop Aquila shared, explaining that God sent these prophetic words and the multitude of Old Testament prophets to remind his people of their dignity.
(Photos by Grant Whitty)
Yet, for both the Israelites and us today, it can be hard to see God’s plan. Whether wandering through the desert, entrapped in slavery to sin or battered about by the difficulties of our modern age, discerning God’s voice can be challenging.
“Who do we listen to today? And especially when it comes to the question of immigration and the question of how do we treat human beings? How do we welcome the stranger?” Archbishop Aquila asked. “This country, this society, no longer believes in God and has lost its sense of human dignity. Who then becomes God?”
Amid such confusion and challenge, Archbishop Aquila reminded those gathered that God the Father is the one who gives humanity its dignity — not other people, not politicians and certainly not governments.
“Both political parties in the United States have completely failed in dealing with immigration. They have used immigrants as pawns for their own power,” he stated.
“Rather than seeing [people] through the lens of Scripture and through the lens of God, [society] only sees whether [people] are brown, Asian, Black or White. Whether they come from different countries. Whether they are poor or rich. It demonstrates how low our country has come in all the rhetoric and the sophomoric language that, at times, is spoken by both sides of the aisle. The name-calling is unacceptable,” he continued.
“There are immigrants who have come to this country poor and in need, who have built up a life. And while they may not have all the documents that they need, they are living good lives. They are contributing to society. There must be a way, a path for them to become citizens,” Archbishop Aquila said, at the same time acknowledging the country’s right to protect its borders, though always with an eye toward welcoming the refugee and those in need.
If one fails to look to God as the giver of human dignity, the archbishop exclaimed, “We will see the chaos that we see in our country today. It is because we put a political or ideological worldview ahead of a biblical worldview.”
Finally, addressing those of Hispanic heritage who are most affected by the immigration crisis, the archbishop urged:
“My Hispanic brothers and sisters, know of your dignity. Do not let fear take over you, but know that in this time of trial, God is with you. Politicians may not. Politicians may give you lip service. Politicians may call you names, unfortunately. But you have dignity as human beings. You are very good people with wonderful hearts who love God and love Our Lady. Carry that dignity.”
In closing, he encouraged the congregation to pray with him for the country, the government and the politicians at work.
“Let us pray for the conversion of all of our politicians,” he said. “Let us pray that they may stop their childish behavior, that they may come to recognize the dignity of everyone and open their hearts to them.”
