Immigrant Social Ministries
What is Polish Social Ministry Mission
When comprehensive immigration reform failed to pass the Senate in 2007, Chicago’s immigrant community needed to know what they could do to help one another through increasing, urgent, basic human and pastoral needs in the absence of immigration policy restructure.
In support, we developed our immigrant leadership ministries, called the Immigrant Social Ministry – e.g. Pastoral Migratoria and Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry (Link) – to empower Hispanic and Polish immigrant lay leaders through service and justice actions in parishes.
Currently, more than 50 Polish lay leaders (6 Polish parishes) are actively participating in Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry in the Archdiocese of Chicago. Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry also responds to the call to evangelize and bring individuals and society to Christ.
Components
Leadership Development & Reflection
Candidates for Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry participate in a leadership training series based in Catholic social teaching and the listen-learn-proclaim (see-judge-act) methodology. Training uses a series of formation modules that integrate reflection on Scripture from an immigrant’s perspective, and analysis on civic issues facing the immigrant community. Ongoing leadership development includes public speaking, conducting meetings, teamwork, organizing workshops and information tables, community organizing, etc. There are also ongoing opportunities for prayer and biblical reflection, including retreats, forums.
After completing the initial training and being commissioned for this ministry, lay leaders work at the parish level to identify and prioritize social and pastoral needs of their local community, and strategize a response with service and justice actions.
Justice, Service and Accompaniment
The pastoral agents play major roles in advancing immigrant rights and integration by working toward systemic change in society, while also meeting immediate social and pastoral needs of the local immigrant community. In support of the Catholic Campaign for Immigration Reform Justice for Immigrants, they participate in the planning and implementation in their local parishes of advocacy initiatives such as postcard and petition campaigns. They organize prayer vigils, pilgrimages, and congressional visits involving their parish communities. They take leadership roles in the local rollout of new immigration policies such as the Temporary Visitor Driver’s Licenses, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, etc.
The pastoral agents also provide basic human support and accompaniment. They work in collaboration with community organizations and partner institutions to disseminate information through the infrastructure of their parish, provide workshops with professionals or experts in a particular area, bring resources to the parish community and accompany families who are experiencing detention or deportation.
Click to see an album of the PIIM ministry.(Link)
- Read more about the Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry (Brochure)
- See a map of Parishes with Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry and Pastoral Migratoria (PDF)
If you have any questions, please contact Malgorzata Antoniak, the Liaison for the Polish Immigrant-to-Immigrant Ministry, at [email protected].