[freedumb2003]

Very disengenuous of the Church.

The last words in confession are "go and sin no more" not "if you repeat this sin you get a bye."

This is a numbers game for the shrinking USA Catholic Church.

[Americanexpat]

I wonder if they would feel the same way if all the illegals were Muslims or Jews?

Send all medical and education bills to the chrurch.

[utahagen]

This isn't "the Church". The US Catholic bishops speaking about issues such as illegal immigration are not speaking for Catholics; neither are Catholics bound by church law to follow their lead on these issues. As a Catholic, I am infuriated that the bishops use their titles to advance purely political agendas, but I bristle as well when people (understandably) characterize such views as being those of "the Church".

[johnb838]

This is a numbers game for the shrinking USA Catholic Church.

Benedict wants to shrink the church anyway, get rid of the cafeteria catholics, so don't expect anyone to genuflect your way with that argument anymore.

I see this as one of those things that the church is in a bit of a bind with. It has to take a humanitarian position. It's like the Iraq war. JPII said "The Churches position is always against war," which made a lot of people around here angry. But I think what that really means is that the Church knows that war is a political reality, but it is something that the church may not get involved in lest it be accused of another crusade.

I, myself consider myself to be pro immigrant. Once we stop the spigot, and find out who these people are, I have no problem with them coming here to work.

We just have to shut off the spigot FIRST.