February 13, 1992 We, the Catholic Bishops of Florida, are deeply concerned over the plight of our Haitian brothers and sisters in Christ. Theirs is a homeland in turmoil, terror, oppression and destitution. They must not encounter deaf ears rejecting their pleas for help. True to our commitment to the Geneva Convention, may we Americans listen intently to their pleas for political asylum when in desperation they dare the perils of the sea to escape violence. And if we are unable to see in our Haitian brothers and sisters the faces of political refugees, may we have the clarity of vision to behold in them the face of Christ in extreme distress, dying from hunger if not from violence. True to our American greatheartedness may these pitiable refugees, plucked from the sea, find temporary relief from their agony in this land on which God has shed His grace. May we never muffle the voice of our Statue of Liberty "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free." or the words of Jesus, "whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do for Me." Edward A. McCarthy John J. Snyder J. Keith Symons John J. Nevins John C. Favalora Norbert M. Dorsey John M. Smith Agustin A. Roman |