CSJP Leadership Team Statement on Open Letter of Pope Francis to US Bishops

February 11, 2025

The Leadership Team of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace want to express our deep gratitude to Pope Francis for his Open Letter to the Bishops of the United States.  We echo his grave concerns for our immigrant brothers and sisters and call upon our brother Bishops to use their moral voice and authority during this unprecedented time.  For our part, we recommit to using our moral voice and resources to “respect the dignity of all persons, to value the gifts of creation, and to confront oppressive situations” (CSJP Constitution 11).

We believe that it is of critical importance that the teaching of Jesus Christ and the Catholic faith regarding the inviolable dignity of the human person be proclaimed clearly and loudly, particularly in the face of misinformation and distortion of this core Gospel message.  In the words of Pope Francis:

“Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extend to other persons and groups. In other words: the human person is not a mere individual, relatively expansive, with some philanthropic feelings! The human person is a subject with dignity who, through the constitutive relationship with all, especially with the poorest, can gradually mature in identity and vocation. The true ordo amoris that must be promoted is that which we discover by meditating constantly on the parable of the “Good Samaritan” (cf. Lk 10:25-37), that is, by meditating on the love that builds a fraternity open to all, without exception.” (6)

We join in the call of Pope Francis to all Catholics—and indeed all people of good will—“not to give in to narratives that discriminate against and cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters.”  We reaffirm our commitment to “education and action that aim to eliminate discrimination in all its forms within the congregation, in those places and institutions where we minster, and in the wider society” (CSJP Constitution 24).

We once again proclaim these words from our 2016 Congregation Statement, Welcome Immigrants and Refugees:  “We urge an immediate end to all rhetoric that instills fear, creates division, or incites violence, regardless of the migrant's faith or nation of origin.”

We place all these concerns and commitments in the heart of Christ.

Christ is our peace,
the source of our power.
United with him
we engage in the struggle
against the reality of evil
and continue the work
of establishing God’s reign
of justice and peace.
(CSJP Constitution 2)

Congregation Leadership Team
Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace
February 11, 2025