The Golden Rule and Natural Law

Lou Dobbs, CNN’s bad boy on Globalization, the Dubai ports deal, and illegal immigration, often rubs me wrong even though I watch his diatribe most evenings. The issue that is sticking in my craw today is his accusation that the Catholic Church – in the person of Cardinal Mahoney of Los Angeles – is preaching disobedience to proposed legislation in Washington that is intended to stop the illegal breaching of our borders.

The draft legislation, among its provisions as it wends its way through the Capitol, would make it a crime to assist a known illegal alien in any way. I heard Cardinal Mahoney discourse on the subject and came to an entirely different conclusion from the telecaster’s. Lou is chewing out the Cardinal for opposing illegal immigration. I, on the other hand, heard the Archbishop saying that he could not support legislation that would make it a crime to assist any person in distress regardless of his or her immigration status.

I’ve been watching Dobbs long enough to know when he is demagoging a subject, and he is doing a dance on this one equal to any of his favorites. The Cardinal may or may not oppose closing the border; I haven’t heard his views on the matter. His message to his flock was clear, however; when the sick, hungry, homeless and downtrodden appear at your door, to be a good Catholic, Christian, or human being, you must offer help.

Any law that would prohibit aiding or succoring those in human need can be – even should be – disobeyed. Civil disobedience and natural law trump such draconian nativist provisions under consideration.

That the Congress believes that the borders of the nation should be strengthened gets no objection here. From all that I can see it is possible for terrorists and law breakers of all kinds to have easy access to this country, and we should be checking illegal immigration. Obviously, the cliché of being a nation of immigrants is true, and we should be welcoming as many newcomers as are needed by our great economic engine, keeping in mind the needs of the citizens.

But Cardinal Mahoney is right; anyone must be able to help a person in need who appears before them without regard to citizenship, known or not by the potential Good Samaritan. Anyone acting in imitation of the life of Christ in implementing the Golden Rule has obeyed a higher law. The Congress should take heed of what the good shepherd is preaching. So should Lou Dobbs.

Blog on!

Wild Bill