The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. – John 1:5 

Those who accompany and work with immigrants in the United States are well aware of the darkness all around — the challenges facing immigrant families who suffer long visa delays and are separated, who lack legal counsel and are confused and afraid, who await deportation back to places from which they’ve fled for their lives. Like the lengthening nights of winter, the hardship can seem to be all-encompassing. 

Inspired by the celebration of Christmas, we look for the light to carry us through. In a dark room, a tiny light draws all eyes. The victories, joys and resilience of the immigrant families in our midst are powerful reminders of why we put our faith in the triumph of love and justice. When a family member receives a green card, when parents and children are reunited, when a newly licensed immigrant can drive to work without fear of deportation — these moments of hope are like flames that burn brightly to guide us forward. 

Though they come from diverse faith traditions, the affiliates in the CLINIC network take up the holy work of welcome every day; their day-to-day practices serve as beacons of light in a world that so often seeks to exclude.  

This Christmas holiday season, may we keep those forced to flee their homes in our hearts and prayers. Like the Holy Family, who themselves were refugees, we pray that God will hold and protect migrants and refugees in his loving care. 

From all of us at CLINIC, we wish you a Merry Christmas and happy holidays. Thank you for your support and for your prayers offered on behalf of our migrant and refugee brothers and sisters. 

With joy, 

Anna Gallagher, CLINIC Executive Director 

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’” – Matthew 1: 23

In the fourth week of Advent, we are nearing the joy of the celebration of Christmas, the birth of the Christ-child.

In Jesus’ day, those who were waiting for the coming of the Messiah expected great fanfare at his coming: wealth, power, and obvious outward signs that this is the one they had been waiting for. In the Gospel for the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we are reminded that the coming of Christ happened through the most unexpected and ordinary of circumstances — through the birth of a child to a poor young woman.

Nubia Torres is the director of Immigration Legal Services at Catholic Charities Dallas. As a fully accredited Department of Justice legal representative, she has been working in immigration law for over 10 years.

“This past year has been a difficult one,” Torres reflected. “We had several unexpected populations of people who needed our help — Afghans, Ukrainians, Venezuelans they literally have arrived at our doors and knocked, seeking our aid. We have worked hard to find the resources to keep the door open to them, to respond to their needs.”

She remarked on how the community has rallied to welcome these unexpected arrivals. “We have really had to go the extra mile, to work together as a community to respond. It has required answering needs that are unconventional for us. We’re not just providing legal services but coordinating with others to provide food and housing as well. We want to make these families feel like they are not burdens but a blessing for our communities.”

Torres remarked how glad she was to see that some leaders in her area, including the local bishop, Rev. Edward Burns, have embraced the call to welcome the stranger amid these particularly hard circumstances. “Leaders showing with their actions what welcome looks like — that gives me hope.”

In the end, Torres noted that it is not the complex cases or the grand, few-and-far-between moments of policy breakthrough that keep her going in the work, but the small and incremental wins she sees in the immigration legal work that can make an enormous difference in the lives of her clients.

“Seeing someone able to get a driver’s license and drive without fear, or get a green card that leads to living wage, or someone able to get citizenship… these things change people’s lives, and they drive me to keep going in the work,” says Torres. While the incremental wins can get lost in the grand scheme of broken policy and backlogs, Torres explained that these joyful victories are what propel them forward.

In this fourth week of Advent, as we reflect on the year and the joy of Christmas, we can recall how Christ’s birth models the often-quiet movement of God — how victory, joy and light can be found in people or events that are unexpected and understated.

For many of the most meaningful parts of life, and in the work of immigration justice, one has to peer closer to see the meaning. Seemingly ordinary victories can be the most transformative, like the birth of a child two thousand years ago.

Questions for reflection:

1. What ordinary victories have inspired you in your life and work?
2. What motivates you to believe in the triumph of love and justice?

This reflection is part of CLINIC's 2022 Advent reflection guide. Click here to download the full guide.

“Strengthen the hands that are feeble, make firm the knees that are weak, say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not!” – Isaiah 35: 3-4

In the readings for the third Sunday of Advent, we hear Jesus confirm to John the Baptist that he is the one the prophets have been longing for, the one who will bring liberation, restoration, and flourishing for God’s people.

For Fr. Jon Pedigo, Director of Advocacy and Community Engagement at Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, California, that message — the process of liberation — is what the work is all about.

Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County provides a whole range of services for immigrant families. One notable service is the pop-up “community markets” that happen weekly and are hosted by parishes and religious communities around town. At the “markets,” immigrant families can gather to share a meal, pick up groceries and fresh food, and talk to staff from various agencies that can provide help, including health care workers and free immigration legal assistance.

“The goal is relationship-building,” says Fr. Pedigo. “We collaborate with agencies around town to create these spaces where folks can build up community and find the help they need. We want to make it a relational and restorative space — neighbors helping neighbors.”

Fr. Pedigo explained that through connection to these “markets” or other services, immigrant families become aware of other avenues for community and connection, including what he called “healing circles,” or spaces where people can gather with others who speak their same language to talk about their life experiences with the guidance of a therapist. Rosary groups are another popular option where people gather to pray and support one another.

“In the work of community organizing, we have learned that internal well-being comes before and along-side external well-being. A person needs to own their own voice and feel their inherent dignity, and then they can think about joining with others to work on common obstacles to go from merely surviving to flourishing. We address the human dimension — spiritual and emotional wellbeing — first, then scaffold on top of that to address other issues."

He connected this work in the community with the story of the visitation of Our Lady of Guadalupe to Juan Diego, whose feast day is celebrated this week. “St. Juan Diego began the story saying, ‘I am nothing,’ feeling powerless, and the Virgin — who looked and spoke like him — called out his dignity,” said Fr. Pedigo. “It is a story of internal growth, of God coming to us and teaching us who we are.”

“Making change starts with restoring dignity,” Fr. Pedigo said. “We can’t miss that first step.”

Questions for reflection:

1. How have you experienced the fruit of "owning your own voice?"
2. What does it mean to help others restore a sense of their dignity?

This reflection is part of CLINIC's 2022 Advent reflection guide. Click here to download the full guide.