On Saturday, June 25 at 9:30 a.m. more than 400 Sisters of Mercy along with leadership and members of the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Eighth Day Center for Justice, and the Chicago Archdiocesan Office of Immigrant Affairs will be gathering on the grounds of Saint Xavier University in Chicago to take a stand against deportation of immigrants.
The Sisters of Mercy recognize an urgent duty and challenge to stand in solidarity with immigrants seeking fullness of life. “Our immigration system is broken,” explained Sisters of Mercy JoAnn Persch and Pat Murphy, organizers of the event. “We see families being torn apart and it is destroying the very fabric of our nation.”
The public is invited to join the Sisters of Mercy as they sign letters to President Obama to stop deportations and stop ripping families apart. Silhouettes of men and women facing deportation will be held by the Sisters of Mercy and placed in the ground at Saint Xavier University, as a sign of their solidarity with these those who have been deported leaving families behind. The witness will also include prayer, song and testimonies.
Saint Xavier University was founded by the Sisters of Mercy in 1846.
The Sisters of Mercy is the largest order of women religious in the U.S., vowed to serve people who suffer from poverty, sickness and lack of education, with special concern for women and children. The Institute of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas is comprised of six Communities with more than 3,800 sisters who serve in North, South and Central America, the Caribbean, Guam and the Philippines. More than 3,100 Mercy Associates, several Companions in Mercy, over 960 Mercy Volunteer Corps alumni and thousands of co-workers in Mercy-sponsored programs and institutions also share in our mission, following the example of Mercy foundress, Catherine McAuley.
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