The Issue Of Migrants And Refugees In The Light Of The Social Teaching Of The Church In The Context Of The Events Of 2015

Migration accompanies man from the very beginning. Nomadic way of life was associated with the conditions of the geographical environment. Survival depended on acquiring food, therefore, mobility of people grew steadily along with the development of transport. As a result, more and more people began to reach further and further areas1. This resulted not only in improving life conditions, but also in opening to other cultural values. A two thousand year history of the Church provides many depictions of migrating people. There also survived many interesting statements on this important social issue. Until now, the largest migration took place in Late Antiquity and the early Middle Ages (from the fourth to the sixth century). “This process radically changed the character of the European continent, it led to ethnic changes over large areas, marked the end of antiquity and brought about the fall of the Empire”2. In the last century, migration became a widespread phenomenon and now it encompasses all countries, including the countries of origin, transit and destination. It is becoming a big social problem which poses a particular challenge for politicians and economists, sociologists and demographers. Migration affects millions of people and it also constitutes a problem which must be faced and dealt with in the spirit of evangelical love by the Church which serves all humanity. In the past year, 2015, migration increased on an unimaginable scale. Today, Europe faces an invasion of hundreds of thousands people from a different cultural and religious background. According to estimates by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), since the end of August 2015 more