MIGRATIONS: LITURGY, HUMANITY AND HOSPITALITY

Abstract

International Migrations and various approaches on migration are the background of the context of our research. Our interest is to understand the perspective or the thought and practice of the church in addressing the issue of migrations. It is really a matter of asking the question: which theology, which mis­sion, and which pastoral does the church propose and promote in dealing with migration or the movement of people? The mission and pastoral of the church are obviously the direct consequences of the perspective of theology, which inspires the whole pastoral intervention. Therefore our principle objective is to find a definition of theology that is more adequate in nourishing and inspiring the mission and pastoral of the church among the migrants. Though we clearly have to find the foundation to the question of which theology, we believe that the response to the question can be found in the “strangeness” of the migrant of today as a paradig­matic symbol of the one with the other. With this, there is a need to affirm the acknowledgement of the migrant as both the other and the stranger, which is the basis of the whole discourse on migration and its important contribution for its management. But it is not only that because the acknowledgment of a migrant as the migrant is a revelation of an anthropological truth, and at the same time, our theological truth. We can say that the purpose of this study is to open the window of “migrations” as “a space” that allows us to speak of God and humanity, the church and the world. This space allows us not just to speak of God but also to speak with God and to find Him in the face of each of our fellow migrant with whom Christ identifies Himself: “When I was a stranger and you welcomed me” (Mt 25,35). In the second part of this article, we offer a reflection about the given celebrative-liturgy and the issue of migrations. The idea is to think of a liturgy that is more humane and welcoming for each individual in the context of migration.