Policy & Advocacy

Catholic Social Ministry Gathering Hill Leave Behind Message, January 2016

Topic
Office/Committee
Year Published
  • 2016
Language
  • English

Hill Leave Behind Message, January 2016

Called to Live in Mercy in Our Common Home: A Catholic Message to Congress

Catholic leaders answered Pope Francis’s invitation to “live mercy in our common home.” In his 2015 Address to Congress, he urged global solidarity to combat poverty, restore dignity, protect refugees and immigrants humanely, and pursue justice that includes hope and rehabilitation for those who have committed crimes.

Strengthen International Assistance and the Green Climate Fund

  • Protect and boost FY 2017 funding for poverty-reducing development and humanitarian accounts (approximately $23 billion annually), including:
    • Development Assistance (water, education, agricultural yields)
    • Health Assistance (vaccinations, epidemic response, system strengthening)
    • Humanitarian Aid (life-saving relief for refugees and disaster victims)
  • Provide a dedicated line item for the Green Climate Fund to help developing countries adapt to and mitigate climate change without sacrificing economic growth or poverty reduction.

Criminal Justice Reform

  • Endorse The Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015 (S. 2123) to:
    • Modify enhanced mandatory minimums for repeat drug offenders
    • Expand “safety valves” for judicial discretion
    • Enhance prison-based reentry programs
    • Limit juvenile solitary confinement
  • Support the Second Chance Reauthorization Act (S. 1513/H.R. 3406) to fund faith-based reentry services—education, job training, substance-abuse treatment, mental health counseling.
  • Encourage the House to pass the Sentencing Reform Act of 2015 (H.R. 3713), which reduces certain drug and firearm mandatory minimums, makes Fair Sentencing Act changes retroactive, and broadens the safety valve.

Refugees and Immigrants

  • Recognize the unprecedented refugee crisis since World War II and fund the four key humanitarian accounts: International Disaster Assistance; Migration and Refugee Assistance; Emergency Migration and Refugee Assistance; Food for Peace Title II.
  • Ensure robust support for refugees and host countries (e.g., Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey) and commit to fair-share resettlement of eligible Syrian, Iraqi, and other vulnerable refugees.
  • Oppose anti-resettlement or anti-asylum measures; maintain U.S. leadership in humanitarian protection, regardless of nationality or religion.
  • Treat the Central American migration surge as a refugee crisis: stop family detention, strengthen due-process rights, and fund regional protection and durable solutions.
  • Pursue compassionate, comprehensive immigration reform that balances security, family unity, and human dignity.

Congressional decisions on budgets, sentencing, and refugee policy carry moral weight. Catholic leaders urge lawmakers to protect the most vulnerable—children, the poor, prisoners seeking redemption, and displaced families—and to legislate in ways that reflect mercy, justice, and the Golden Rule.

hill-message-leave-behind-january-2016.pdf