Refugee Week (19-25 June) is the world’s largest arts & culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. It was founded in 1998 and is held every year around the UN World Refugee Day (20 June). You can find out more at: refugeeweek.org.uk
Many Catholic parishes and organisations are taking part in this important celebration. CSAN, the official agency of the Bishops’ Conference for domestic social action, has a range of resources around this year’s theme of compassion, which can be found at: csan.org.uk/news/refugee-week-2023-grow-your-compassion/
The Jesuit Refugee Service also has information on events to mark Refugee Week here: jrsuk.net/news/join-jrs-for-refugee-week-2023/
Earlier this year the Bishops’ Conference published Love the Stranger: a Catholic response to migrants and refugees. The document places the human being at the heart of our pastoral outreach, looking beyond statistics and policies to the person – each with a name, a face, and a story. It offers 24 guiding principles for Catholics in England and Wales, and has been endorsed by the Holy See. You can read Love the Stranger here: cbcew.org.uk/love-the-stranger/
