PENNSAUKEN – Faith leaders from three different religions – Catholicism, Judaism and Unitarian Universalism – gathered last month to highlight the experiences of immigrants and share their faith-based perspectives on the issue.
“NJ Immigrants: Blessings and Benefits,” held at Cooper River Park, was hosted by the Multi-Faith Immigration Reform Committee, an ecumenical group that also includes those from Catholic parishes in the Diocese of Camden. Speakers included Father Kenneth Hallahan, STD, a retired priest of the Diocese of Camden; Rabbi Nathan Weiner of Har Zion in Mount Holly; Rev. Eric Posa of the Unitarian Universalist Church in Cherry Hill; Jessica Culley of CATA-The Farmworkers’ Support Community, and a former South Jersey farm worker.
Father Hallahan spoke about the Catholic Church’s approach to immigration, emphasizing both cultural inclusion and the pursuit of justice. He said the Catholic Church has welcomed immigrants “not only as individuals, but as culture.”
He also underscored the Church’s belief in justice as a systemic responsibility. Charity alone, he said, is not enough to address the challenges faced by immigrants and marginalized communities.
“Justice means policy,” Father Hallahan said. “That means laws, systems, structures, and institutions that act on behalf of the one who needs it. In the Scriptures, of course, it’s the widow, the orphan, and the foreigner who live in your midst.”
Organizers said that although the discussion of immigration does overflow into politics, the Multi-Faith Immigration Reform Committee doesn’t take a political stance.
“[Immigration] was a Gospel issue long before it was a political point. So when people say, ‘When you talk about immigration, you’re getting into politics,’ that’s not true,” said Sister Veronica Roche, SSJ, who serves in the Diocese of Camden and has worked with the immigrant community for decades.
The event also highlighted how immigrants have contributed financially and spiritually to the nation and how they help fill critical labor shortages in New Jersey.
Phyllis Sanders of the Catholic Community of Christ Our Light in Cherry Hill, for example, read a letter from a local businesswoman who lamented how restaurants are facing an uphill battle. Those fortunate enough to remain afloat after the COVID pandemic are now facing rising food and utility prices, as well as terrified and missing staff.
“As chefs and restaurant owners gather at local supply stores and markets, the question everyone is asking is, ‘What is happening?’” wrote the restaurateur, who wished to remain anonymous. “Restaurants are … beginning to face the reality of how to function without our steady and faithful staff who may have come here illegally for no other reason than they were never given an opportunity to enter our country legally.
“These are faithful and hardworking people. They help our businesses thrive … and survive. They pay taxes. They support families. If there was ever a mutually beneficial relationship in the world, these immigrants are a shining example of it: they need us and we definitely need them,” the letter continued.
Culley, general coordinator at CATA – which strives for better working and living conditions for the immigrant community – spoke about the rising anxiety she has seen among immigrants who are working to become U.S citizens. They are facing “a decision of whether to continue with their immigration applications for asylum or other immigration relief … or to go underground in the hopes of evading ICE and separation from their families,” she said.
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