Catholic and Anglican bishops from Britain and France have joined together to ask their countries to be more generous to migrants at Calais.
Archbishop Peter Smith of Southwark, the Rt Rev Trevor Wilmott, the Anglican Bishop of Dover, and Bishop Jean-Paul Jaeger of Arras visited the “Jungle” refugee camp at Calais last Saturday.
They joined more than 2,000 supporters from across Europe in a “Refugees Welcome” Day of Action. At the port gates there was a rally with prayers, speeches and music. Archbishop Smith told Independent Catholic News: “It’s very sad. People are living here in very bad conditions. But I was delighted to see how resilient people are, showing real enterprise, building the chapel and setting up little shops.”
He said: “I’ve heard some terrible accounts from people, both Christian and Muslim, whose loved ones have been killed because of their faith. But I’ve also been encouraged to see people still remaining hopeful, helping each other and receiving support from volunteers here.” He said he hoped that governments on both sides of the Channel would put more effort into providing accommodation for refugees, and speed up the legal processes to enable them to participate fully in society.
In a joint statement in English and French the bishops said: “We leaders of churches alongside the English Channel have joined in solidarity with this Day of Action in Calais, and repeat our calls for people to respond to the growing crisis by showing generosity to those who are exiled from their homeland. These vulnerable men, women and children share in our common humanity and everyone can help them to live in dignity.”
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