Two weeks after protesters in Murrieta, Calif., made national news by attempting to prevent busloads of mostly unaccompanied children from reaching an emergency detention facility, the bishops of California have issued a statement calling on Catholics to support these refugees. “These children and families have journeyed to our country, fleeing violence and destitution in Central America. Sadly, their experience in California has thus far been marked by hostility and near chaos.... In this critical moment, Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan reminds us of what we are called to do.” Writing in the Los Angeles diocesan newspaper The Tidings, Archbishop José Gómez asked Catholics to try to appreciate the situation of the children crossing the border. “No matter how they got here, no matter how frustrated we are with our government, we can’t forget that these are children of God who are also just kids.... [They are] innocent children who are lonely and frightened and far from home, caught up in circumstances they did not create and they cannot control.”
