Immigration and the family

The questions about immigration, legal and otherwise, continue to surface. Mary Ann Glendon has just published, in her characteristic fashion, a thoughtful essay in the newest issue of First Things (Here). She takes the occasion not only to tackle the topic but to offer insight into other issues related to questions dealing with immigration that affect American and western culture. One of these issues concerns the family. There was a time when the family was a potent auxiliary resource for dealing with a multiplicity of social and economic issues. However, with its dissolution and redefinition, this fundamental unit of society seems no longer capable of serving as a safety net to the degree that it once did. Mary Ann's reflection once again serves as a catalyst for thinking about how Catholic legal theory might address some of these problems that confront us today.    RJA sj