Understanding Immigration Through the Eyes of Thomas Merton and Joseph Cardijn

Understanding Immigration Through the Eyes of Thomas Merton and Joseph Cardijn

I am writng this as a “Conversational Talk” for Adults Using the See–Judge–Act Method, that you can use in your own work and missional activity.

Let’s begin with a simple prayer of openness:

Lord, make us instruments of your peace. Where there is fear of the stranger, bring understanding. Where there is division, bring unity. Help us to see every person with the eyes of Christ.

Why Bring Merton and Cardijn Into a Conversation About Immigration?

If you’re wondering, “Why these two?”—honestly, it’s because they balance each other beautifully.

Thomas Merton, the Trappist monk, helps us slow down, look beneath the headlines, and recognize the spiritual currents underneath social issues. He reminds us that compassion begins by realizing that we are deeply connected—far more than we think.

Joseph Cardijn, on the other hand, is wonderfully practical. He created the See–Judge–Act method not for scholars but for everyday Catholics trying to make sense of complex realities and respond with faith, courage, and common sense.

Together, they help us do something rare today:

• pause long enough to see clearly,
• discern wisely,
• and act lovingly.

So, let’s walk their path.

1. TO SEE

Seeing Immigration with Truth, Compassion, and Clarity

Let’s face it: immigration is talked about constantly—on the news, in political arguments, in conversations that sometimes get heated over the dinner table. But before we react, Merton asks us to slow down and really see.

Seeing Like Merton

Merton once wrote that compassion comes from recognizing how interconnected we are.
That’s not poetry—that’s everyday reality.

When we talk about “immigrants,” we’re talking about people made in the image of God:

• mothers and fathers,
• teenagers trying to survive,
• children who didn’t choose any of this.

Behind the statistics are sacred stories.

Cardijn’s First Step: Look Honestly at Reality

Cardijn tells us: “Don’t start with theories. Start with what’s actually happening.”

People migrate because:

• they’re fleeing violence or persecution,
• they can’t support their families,
• Climate change has made their homes unlivable,
• they’re seeking safety,
• They’re chasing hope.

And the journey is often brutal:

• human trafficking,
• dangerous crossings,
• long detention,
• broken families,
• fear in both migrant communities and in receiving communities.

Seeing means listening—really listening—to:

• migrants themselves,
• border communities,
• teachers and social workers,
• our own parishes.

Seeing is the opposite of assuming.

2. TO JUDGE & DISCERN

Judging Through the Lens of the Gospel**

Now, “judge” can sound harsh in our current cultural setting, but Cardijn meant something different.
He meant discern—ask, “What does our faith say about what we’ve just seen?” Think in terms of an examination of consciousness here.

Merton reminds us that truth emerges when people meet each other—heart to heart.

So what does Catholic Social Teaching say?

1. Human Dignity

This is the starting point of everything.
“No human being is illegal.”
Full stop.

2. Family and Community

The Church teaches that families have a right to stay together—and, if necessary, to migrate together.

3. Rights and Responsibilities

People have a right to migrate for safety and livelihood.
Nations have a right to manage borders.
The moral question becomes: How do we balance both with justice and compassion?

4. Option for the Poor

If we don’t center the voices of the vulnerable, we are missing the Gospel.

5. The Dignity of Work

Many migrants are essential workers.
Do we treat them—and their labor—with the dignity they deserve?

6. Solidarity

John Paul II called it “a firm and persevering determination” to work for the common good.
Merton called it “remembering we belong to each other.”

7. Care for Creation

Climate change is pushing millions from their homes.
Environmental justice and migration are deeply connected.

Prophetic Invitations

Merton pushes us to resist fear and nationalism.
Cardijn pushes us to ask hard questions:

• What values are shaping our choices?
• Are we living the Gospel or reacting out of fear?
• What conversion is being asked of us—personally and socially?

3. TO ACT

From Prayer to Practical Love

Merton offers a warning here:
He says activism without contemplation becomes frantic, self-righteous, or burnout-driven.

Action shouldn’t come from guilt or panic—it should come from depth.

Cardijn then steps in and says:
“Okay, now let’s actually do something.”

And he’s very concrete.

1. Personal Conversion

This is not abstract:

• Notice and challenge your own assumptions or fears.
• Learn one real, human story of someone who migrated.
• Pray with the Scriptures that challenge us to welcome the stranger.

2. Works of Mercy

• Volunteer with local immigrant or refugee agencies.
• Teach English.
• Support families navigating the legal system.
• Offer transportation or accompany someone to a court date.

3. Community Building

• Make space in parishes for immigrant voices.
• Build friendships across cultures.
• Host listening sessions.
• Organize prayer vigils or cultural celebrations.

4. Advocacy

This is where we move from charity to justice:

• Write to elected officials.
• Support humane, comprehensive immigration reform.
• Advocate for the end of family separation and inhumane detention conditions.
• Work to address root causes like violence, poverty, and climate change.

5. Parish or Diocesan Action

• Offer legal services: involve your parish lawyers.
• Provide pastoral care to mixed-status families.
• Become a “Welcoming Parish.”
• Form See–Judge–Act groups to keep the conversation alive.

Cardijn’s Practical Cycle

Small groups commit to:

• SEE the local reality,
• JUDGE it together in light of the Gospel,
• ACT in small but real ways,
• REVIEW what worked and what didn’t—and begin again. The key is to remember this is an ongoing process.

Merton’s Reminders

Avoid:

• Performative activism,
• Savior complexes,
• Burnout,
• Despair. Do everything with people, not for them. It is all about Innovation-Education-Collaboration. The keyword is Collaboration!

Simple Next Steps

This Week

• Learn one immigrant’s story.
• Reflect on your own family’s immigration history. Listen to the stories in your family.
• Pray and reflect with Matthew 25. Alone or in your groups.

This Month

• Attend one workshop or forum. Create one with your team for your parish, neighbors, and community.
• Contact one elected official, and use the Cardijn method when talking with them or writing to them.
• Volunteer one time with an immigrant-serving group.

This Year

• Join or form a See–Judge–Act group.
• Commit to ongoing service.
• Build real relationships with immigrant neighbors.

Small steps create ripple effects.

The Heart of the Matter

Immigration isn’t just a political debate.
It’s a spiritual test. It is a test of deciding to be Disciples, making Disciples.
A test of:

• how we see,
• how we love,
• and who we believe our neighbor is.

Merton challenges our hearts.
Cardijn challenges our feet.

Together, they ask:

• Can we see Christ in the stranger?
• Can we act with courage—not fear?
• Can we build a world where prayer and justice walk hand in hand?

A Closing Prayer As A Reminder That We Are All Immigrants

God of the journey,
You accompanied Abraham and Sarah,
Moses and Miriam,
Mary and Joseph fled to Egypt.
You know the weight of the refugee’s bag
and the fear in the migrant’s heart.

Open our eyes to see you in every stranger.
Open our hearts to welcome every newcomer.
Open our hands to serve with compassion and courage, through Christ, who had nowhere to lay his head,
Amen.