Thought For The Day
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
My late grandparents came to America in the late 40’s after having dealt with the hell of the war in Italy, and took everything about assimilating to the utmost seriousness, learning English and and the culture.
Nonna died in 2023, but in her last decade would always tell me how appalled she was at the open borders and the multilingual pandering, and how the lack of gratitude for being here *almost* made her use profanity.
There is definitely a duty for immigrants to assimilate in every way (not against the laws of God) to the culture to which they immigrate. It is the lack of emphasis on this (or ignoring of such) by those who champion “welcoming the immigrant” which makes the rhetoric ring utterly hollow. This would involve at a minimum learning the language, participating in the cultural mores and contributing as far as one is able to the common good.
It is analogous to moving in with someone who welcomes you into their home. You live there at their pleasure, and as much as they are showing you charity in allowing you into their home and may even go out of their way treat you with hospitality, you have a duty when in their home to live as they do and to contribute to the flourishing of the household. It would, on the other hand, be insane to think that they don’t have a right to make you leave (at the very least!) if you start stealing from them or murdering their family members.
The quote from TR has some appeal to it at first glance. But many would take these words to justify discrimination against Catholics for our alleged “divided loyalties”. Many have done so. Some do so even to this day.
Our first allegiance is to the Lord our God. Period. Before country. A good nation wouldn’t have it any other way.
The dual loyalty charge against Catholics has been relegated largely to the fever swamps of the Left, which is ever anti-Catholic. TR of course had no anti-Catholic prejudice.
When my grand-father got off the boat, he signed in with his anglicized first name to demonstrate his intent and his loyalty to his new country.
I have always thought it insane for the people who want to join the club to dictate the club rules.
Likewise, I have always found it vile for someone to join a club for the purpose of undermining the club.
[…] & Philosophical Analysis, Punditry, and News:Theodore Roosevelt on Immigrants & being an American – D. McClarey at the American […]
The United States has recognized from the very beginning that the relationship between the sovereign citizen and the Infinite Supreme Sovereign Being, God, “their Creator” is intimate, individual and sacred…like the mail.
Therefore we have the Freedom of Religion in the First Amendment.
Without freedom of conscience (Jefferson’s letter to the Danbury Baptist Church) man is relegated to the realm of animals.
Unfortunately Don, some mainline Protestant sects, such as the Lutherans, the old line Calvinists, and the Fundamentalists, still think Catholics can’t be loyal Americans. Thankfully, most Americans don’t come into contact with them all that much, so their influence is limited.