THE ATTITUDE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN POLAND TOWARDS THE CURRENT MIGRATION CRISIS

Abstract

The migration crisis caused many serious consequences in European countries. It became a reason of political conflicts, social cleavages as well as intensive disputes conducted especially in mass and social media. Uncontrolled wave of migrants was a subject of many, very often aggressive discussions in the Visegrad countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia). Because of the significance as well as ethical and emotional dimensions of the issue of migration crisis the Catholic Church in Poland has taken part in the discourse dedicated to this matter. The Church through the declarations of bishops and the Polish Episcopal Conference clearly expresses opinion that Catholics are of a moral obligation to help refugees and immigrants. This stance refers to the teaching of Pope Francis and his predecessors, particularly Pope John Paul II. It is also deeply rooted in the personalistic ethics which underlines supremacy of the each person with its dignity and its inalienable rights, including the right to life, to any reason of state or national interest. At the same time this official stance of the Catholic Church and Polish episcopate is not commonly acceptable by lower clergy and believers whose opinions are very often similar to statements of right-wing radicals denying the principles of Christianity as well as European system of values.