2017 World Day of Migrants and Refugees
Wednesday, January 11, 2017
The 103rd World Day of Migrants and Refugees will be celebrated 15 January 2017. The theme of Pope Francis’ Message is “Child Migrants, the Vulnerable and the Voiceless”. In his Message, the Holy Father wants “to draw attention to the reality of child migrants, especially the ones who are alone. In doing so I ask everyone to take care of the young, who in a threefold way are defenceless: they are children, they are foreigners, and they have no means to protect themselves. I ask everyone to help those who, for various reasons, are forced to live far from their homeland and are separated from their families.” In October 2015, the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops published a Pastoral Letter entitled “I Was a Stranger and You Welcomed Me”.