Noticias

Chicago - (Dec. 13, 2023) – The Archdiocese of Chicago will host the 18th Annual Posada for Immigration Reform on Friday, Dec. 15 beginning at 11 a.m. outside the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Center, 101 W. Ida B. Wells Dr. in Chicago. The posada will be livestreamed at https://www.facebook.com/pastoral.migratoria.

The posada will begin with a multilingual rosary in English, Spanish, Polish, Italian and Luganda, with a bilingual proclamation of the Gospel by Bishop Daniel Turley, O.S.A., of the Midwest Augustinian Province. Each subsequent location will include special prayers, songs and reflections. Participants will include members of Priests for Justice for Immigrants, Sisters and Brothers of Immigrants and Archdiocese of Chicago’s parishes, schools and immigration ministries. Community members are also encouraged to join in walking and praying for immigrants.

“As it has done for generations in Chicago, the Catholic Church has met the moment and opened its doors to immigrants as they arrive in our city looking for safety, shelter and accompaniment,” said Cardinal Blase Cupich, archbishop of Chicago. “As we respond to the current needs in our city, we will continue to answer the gospel imperative to open the door and welcome the stranger.” 

Each stop on the one-mile walk was chosen because of the symbolism of each building:

• Metropolitan Correctional Center – the posada will focus on the current detention and deportation situation,
• DePaul University – the posada will focus on DREAMers, the recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals policy,
• Federal Plaza – the posada will focus on the legislative process to achieve immigration reform,
• Old St. Patrick’s Church, which represents the place where posada is granted.

The archdiocese’s Office of Human Dignity and Solidarity-Immigration Ministry sponsors the posada pilgrimage, symbolizing Mary and Joseph’s journey to Bethlehem and their traveling from place to place seeking rest and shelter before the birth of Jesus Christ. The Chicago observance is modeled on a centuries-old tradition of posada throughout Mexico and Guatemala and in immigrant communities in the United States. Today’s immigrants, like the Holy Family, are vulnerable and seek legislative shelter and protection but often face rejection.

Pastoral Migratoria, a program of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Immigration Ministry that serves as a national model for immigrant-to-immigrant leadership ministry, took the lead in planning the posada.

In Chicago, this Posada for Immigration Reform began 18 years ago on the third Friday of December at 7 a.m. because that was the day and time when weekly deportations took place. In 2022, the posada was changed to 11 a.m. to hold it simultaneously with the Archdiocese of New York. Parishes in other dioceses are participating by organizing their own posadas during the traditional nine evenings before Christmas to elevate collective voices for immigration reform in their respective cities.

Locations and estimated times:

11 a.m.: United States Citizenship and Immigration Services Center, 101 W. Ida B. Wells Dr.

11:45 a.m.: Stop #1: Metropolitan Correctional Center, 71 W. Van Buren St. 

12 p.m.: Stop #2: DePaul University downtown campus, 1 E. Jackson Blvd.

12:15 p.m.: Stop #3: Federal Plaza, corner of South Dearborn Street and West Adams Street

12:30 p.m.: Stop #4: Old St. Patrick’s Church, 700 W. Adams St. The posada will conclude with

a brief program in the church’s basement.

• Representatives of Old St. Pat’s Immigrant and Refugee Ministry and The Catholic Parishes of Oak Park will offer testimonies of their respective outreach to migrants, asylum seekers and refugees.
• Immigration Ministry network representatives from the Priests for Justice for Immigrants, Sisters and Brothers of Immigrants, and immigration parish coordinators will also speak of their support to the immigrant community.

The Immigration Ministry of the Archdiocese of Chicago, Pastoral Migratoria, serves as a national model for supporting undocumented and documented immigrants and promotes the Gospel imperative for communion among all persons, including immigrant and refugee communities. Pastoral Migratoria embodies the principles of service, justice and accompaniment in Catholic parish communities as an answer to Pope Francis’s call in Fratelli Tutti to foster a universal “culture of encounter” and charity whereby everyone can “live, develop and find fulfillment” through “the sincere gift of self to others.”

Since May 2005, the Archdiocese of Chicago, its bishops, priests and religious congregations have given voice to immigrants through the Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform. The Campaign was established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops to educate Catholics and the public about the need for comprehensive immigration reform and to influence legislation for a permanent and fair solution to immigration issues in this country.

For more information about the posada, please visit https://pvm.archchicago.org/annual-posada.