Pope Francis has declared Sunday, September 29 as the World Day of Migrants and Refugees. This commemoration was inaugurated in 1914 by Pope Benedict XV on the eve of World War I at the peak of immigration from southern and eastern Europe to Canada, the United States and elsewhere. Soon after his birth Jesus, Joseph and Mary became refugees in Egypt seeking asylum, running for their lives away from King Herod’s raging paranoia. Many are on the move today in all parts of our world facing similar threats to their lives.
Below is the Holy Father’s Message in English and French.