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Migration reforms the political landscape

17 May 2009 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Jesus reminds his disciples in this Sunday's gospel reading that "it was not you who chose me, but I who chose you." A record 1 million immigrants chose to become U.S. citizens in 2008, a trend that is transforming the political map in immigrant-rich states such as California, Florida, and Texas. California's 300,000 new citizens accounted for nearly one-third of the nation's total and represented a near-doubling over 2006, according to a recent report by the U.S. Office of Immigration Statistics. Florida recorded the second-largest group of new citizens, and Texas claimed the fastest growth. Mexicans, who have traditionally registered low rates of naturalization, represented the largest group of new citizens, with nearly one-fourth of the total. They were followed by Indians, Filipinos, Chinese, Cubans, and Vietnamese. The new citizens are likely to reorder policy priorities in their states, political analysts predict. Polls show that Latinos and Asians are more supportive than whites of public investments and broad services, even if they require higher taxes. New citizen Alfonso Vergara is one product of a massive citizenship campaign effort by Latino groups in California this past year. A Mexico native and pharmaceutical technician, the 31-year-old said he had postponed applying for citizenship for years because the process seemed too time-consuming. But last year he was swept up in the marches and the call for civic activism. "It was time for me to build a stronger future for my family and become a more active person in this country," Vargas said. "This isn't about helping Latinos for the sake of helping Latinos. This is about helping Latinos succeed for the sake of America." Source: An article by Teresa Watanabe for The Los Angeles Times

immigrants immigration california united states texas florida office of immigration statistics alfonso vergara latinos

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The heat is on in Florida senate race

02 May 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

This Sunday's gospel begins with the dramatic moment at which Judas leaves the Last Supper in order to betray Jesus. Republican Governor Charlie Crist of Florida will stir election-year drama and likely be accused by some of betraying his party for deciding to run for one of Florida's U.S. Senate seats as an independent rather than risk losing the party primary, in which he trails badly. On Wednesday two sources close to Crist said the governor would launch his independent bid Thursday in his hometown of St. Petersburg, portraying himself as a candidate more interested in serving "the people" than partisan politics. His long-rumored break from the GOP will turn Florida's Senate race into the hottest political ticket in the country--a three-way scramble pitting Crist against Marco Rubio, the charismatic darling of movement conservatives and Tea Party activists, and likely Democratic nominee U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek."It'll be the number one headline race in the country," said University of Virginia political analyst Larry Sabato. "It's going to capture the national imagination, because there's nothing out there comparable." Source: An article by Jim Stratton and Aaron Deslatte for the Orlando Sentinel

senate florida charlie crist marco rubio kendrick meek larry sabato

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Is religious intolerance on the rise this 9/11?

12 Sep 2010 - Preaching the News for Sunday

An angry God in this Sunday’s first reading complains to Moses that the Israelites have “turned aside from the way I pointed out to them.” Leaders of many faith traditions fear that some of the American people are being persuaded to turn away from the value of religious tolerance, especially when it comes to Muslims. From the debate over a proposed Islamic center near Ground Zero in New York City to a pistol-toting Florida pastor’s plans to ignite a bonfire of Qurans on 9/11, observers fear a rising tide of intolerance. Rev. Terry Jones, pastor of the Dove Outreach Center, a small Pentecostal church in Gainesville, Florida, has sparked worldwide condemnation for his plans to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks. The Vatican said Wednesday that burning the Quran would be an “outrageous and grave gesture," and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said it would be a “disrespectful, disgraceful act.” Fearing violence, some Muslims are leaving Gainesville this weekend to avoid problems. Last week in South Florida, 13 mosque leaders issued a call to the region's Muslims for nonviolence in anticipation of high emotions over the desecration of Islam's holy book. In a rare example of a military official commenting on domestic affairs, Gen. David Petraeus, directing the military effort in Afghanistan, said Monday that the provocative act would hurt U.S. troops and play into the hands of extremists. Meanwhile, hundreds of Afghans protested in Kabul and burned Jones in effigy. The Gainesville Fire Department has denied Jones a permit for the event, but he plans to go ahead with it anyway. Known for posting signs proclaiming that Islam is the devil's religion, Jones says the U.S. Constitution gives him the right to publicly set fire to the Quran. In response to the ongoing controversy over the proposed Islamic community center near Ground Zero, a group of prominent Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders held an “emergency summit” meeting in Washington, D.C. Tuesday to denounce what they called the "derision, misinformation, and outright bigotry” aimed at American Muslims. “This is not America,” said Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick, the emeritus Roman Catholic archbishop of Washington, flanked by three dozen clergy members and religious leaders at a packed news conference at the National Press Club. “America was not built on hate.” Source: Articles by CNN wire service, Liz Goodwin and Mitch Stacey for Associated Press, Dave Cook for the Christian Science Monitor, Jaweed Kaleem for the Miami Herald, and Damien Cave and Laurie Goodstein for the New York Times

Muslims 911 terry jones anti-muslim religious tolerance dove outreach center quran theodore mccarrick david petraeus florida gainesville

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Florida governor takes sunnier view on healthcare reform

24 Feb 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

While he prayed on the mountain with the apostles Peter, John, and James, Jesus’ “face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white,” we hear in this Sunday’s recounting of the Transfiguration. Florida’s Republican Governor Rick Scott did a bit of transforming as well: The persistently vocal critic of President Obama’s healthcare reform did an about-face Wednesday and announced that he would expand his state’s Medicaid program to cover the poor—becoming the latest and most prominent Republican critic of the legislation to decide to implement one of its key provisions.It was a complete reversal for Scott, a former businessman who entered politics as a critic of Obama’s healthcare proposals. Florida was one of the states that sued to try to block the law. After the U.S. Supreme Court ruled last year that while the law was constitutional, states could choose not to expand Medicaid to cover the poor, Scott said that Florida would not expand its Medicaid programs.Scott said on Wednesday that he now supported a three-year expansion of Medicaid—through the period that the federal government has agreed to pay the full cost of the expansion and before some of the costs are shifted to the states. “While the federal government is committed to paying 100 percent of the cost, I cannot in good conscience deny Floridians that needed access to healthcare,'’ Scott said at a news conference.Scott added that the state would not create its own insurance exchange to comply with another provision of the law. But his reversal on Medicaid sent ripples through the nation, especially given the change in tone and substance since the summer, when he said that he would neither create an exchange nor expand Medicaid.“Floridians are interested in jobs and economic growth, a quality education for their children, and keeping the cost of living low,” Scott said in a statement at the time. “Neither of these major provisions in ObamaCare will achieve those goals, and since Florida is legally allowed to opt out, that’s the right decision for our citizens.”Homily hint: Poverty brings suffering; sickness brings suffering; and being poor and sick can bring a whole lot of misery, especially if one can’t afford to get care. The corporal works of mercy show us exactly where our priorities need to be, so perhaps as fiscal fighting continues in Congress we can look to the corporal works for an indication of where our nation’s budget priorities should be. Source: An article by Michael Cooper for the New York Times

Poor medicaid florida healthcare reform rick scott

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Zimmerman acquittal reverberates nationwide

21 Jul 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Those who applauded George Zimmerman’s acquittal last weekend in the Trayvon Martin shooting case likely feel the exonerated defendant is “one who walks blamelessly and does justice,” in the words of the psalmist. Those who had hoped for a conviction would look to other words of the psalm to argue that Zimmerman does not qualify as one “who harms not his fellow man, nor takes up a reproach against his neighbor.”Martin’s death sparked outcry over Florida's "stand your ground" laws and a national debate over racial profiling. State prosecutors argued during the trial that Zimmerman profiled and murdered the teenager. Because Zimmerman was acquitted of second-degree murder and manslaughter charges, protests have occurred in some communities across the country.But U.S. Justice Department officials acknowledged Tuesday it is unlikely Zimmerman will face federal charges because it would be difficult to prove he acted out of racial bias. A successful prosecution would require clear evidence that Zimmerman set out to attack the unarmed Martin because he was black.While federal prosecution of Zimmerman is unlikely, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder did say Tuesday that laws like Florida's "stand your ground" statute, which allow someone who feels in danger to respond with violence without retreating, must be "examined" because they eliminate "the common-sense and age-old requirement that people who feel threatened have a duty to retreat, outside their home, if they can do so safely."Homily hint: What a coincidence that last weekend’s verdict in the Zimmerman case was announced about the time many a pastor was preparing a sermon on last Sunday’s gospel story of the Good Samaritan, where Jesus instructs listeners to “go and do likewise” and treat our neighbor with compassion. How can parishioners who are concerned with neighborhood safety do the same? Sources: Articles by David G. Savage and Richard A. Serranofor the Los Angeles Times and Catalina Camia for USA TODAY

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Endurance champ reaches goal swimmingly

08 Sep 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

“What is within our grasp we find with difficulty” given “the corruptible body” we are burdened with, the reading from the Book of Wisdom this Sunday attests. Endurance swimmer Diana Nyad and her 64-year-old body, who had fallen short on four previous tries to swim from Cuba to Florida, finally achieved her difficult goal on Monday and became the first person to make the epic swim without a cage to protect against sharks and jellyfish stings.Nyad had dreamed of swimming from Cuba to Florida for three-and-a-half-decades, and finally on her fifth attempt she completed the 110-mile swim last Monday. Nyad said her mantra through the swim was "find a way.""It doesn't matter . . . what you come up against because none of it's going to be pleasant." she said referring to the journey. "You're hardly ever out there going, 'Oh, my God, isn't it a beautiful moon tonight?' The crew is feeling that. But you're kind of suffering through the whole thing. So my thought was, 'Everything you come up against say—and this is why people are relating to my story—all of us suffer heartache. All of us suffer difficulties in our lives. And if you say to yourself 'find a way,' you'll make it through."Nyad was 28-years-old when she first tried to swim across the Florida Straits. That first time winds knocked her far off course. Other times it was poisonous jellyfish stings which deterred her. But this year, the weather, currents, and marine life allowed her to power through the miles to reach her goal.Nyad said the hundreds of people who lined the beach in Key West to welcome her after her nearly 53-hour swim were “wonderful.” “They're not people reading a sports page every day. Those are human beings who want to witness the living out of that message—never, ever give up. And find a way . . . . And my age, they're looking at me as a baby boomer, saying life is not over at this age by any means. So I'm more of, shall we say, [a] human spirit story than I am a sports story."Nyad next plans marathon swims as fundraisers for victims of disasters in New York City, Boston, and Moore, Oklahoma.Homily hint: Nyad’s epic journey strikes a chord for anyone who has faced obstacles and persevered. Hers is the kind of experience of which the Second Letter to Timothy wrote: “I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (4:7). Sources: Articles by Maggie Fox for NBC News, Josh Levs for CNN, and CBS News

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Homily stories

08 Jan 2012 - Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, Cycle B

Friends of mine were stranded in Florida during a hurricane. They spent the storm in a hotel ballroom that was windowless and safe in the center of the building. Water and food had been stored. I asked them what was the hardest part of their ordeal. Without hesitation, they said it was when the lights flickered and then went out. Emergency lighting lasted and dimmed until the batteries gave out. The darkness affected them the most. A box of candles brought in by an employee was cheered. We're used to light when we want it by flicking a switch. When light is not there for us, we are left very disoriented. It is hard for us to imagine living without a ready, easy source of light. In the same way, Christ's light, which today we celebrate shining on all of us, has given us hope but also a challenge that we can never take for granted: hope that it will always shine and the challenge to share that light with our brothers and sisters everywhere in all places for all time. This has now become our task.

Authors Father Dominic Grassi

florida hurricane Challenge Hope

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