Catholic Social Services heads the call to Welcome the Newcomer in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. As an affiliate of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops, CSS’ resettlement team welcomes over 150 men, women and children annually helping to resettle them into their new homes. We provide refugees with the items and the resettlement services they’ll need during their first 90 days in the United States including housing, food, furnishings and orientation to their new communities.
Initial services we provide include:
- Airport reception
- School enrollment
- Food and clothing
- Access to medical care
- Cultural orientation
- English classes
- Furnished apartment
- Assistance with employment search
Want to get involved? Click here
NEED HELP ?
Catholic Social Services offer support to families and individuals in need in the greater Philadelphia area. Five centers are located throughout the five-county metropolitan area. Our social service centers provide intake and assessment for individuals and families to assist them in accessing benefits and services. Emergency assistance includes clothing cupboards and food pantries, rent or utility bill assistance, housing referrals, and case management.
The Call of the Church to Stand in Solidarity with Newcomers – Immigrants and Refugees
Over my 46 years of priestly ministry, I have spent much time with immigrants and refugees. I have heard their stories, shared their struggles, and helped them to make a better life for their families here in our country, their new home. By and large, these are good, honest, hard-working and faith-filled people, who make up a significant and growing part of the Catholic population in our parishes across the region. The U.S. Catholic Bishops stand in solidarity with those fleeing violence and poverty in their homelands, and remind us of the Gospel call to welcome the newcomers among us. The Bishops acknowledge the legitimate role of government in enforcing our laws, but enforcement alone is not the answer. We need comprehensive immigration reform that includes wise immigration policies that respect due process, protect the human rights of all people, and values the unification and integrity of families. And we should be working with our neighbors across the border to address the root causes of migration that cause people to leave all and come here. I invite you to be in solidarity with these brothers and sisters of ours, to ENCOUNTER AND ACCOMPANY THEM, to meet them as people whose experiences might be different than yours, but whose hopes and aspirations for themselves and their families will be familiar to you – they are the same as what brought most of our immigrant ancestors here in the past. I challenge you to advocate for them in whatever way you can, using the gifts God has given you to Share the Journey with them. – Most Rev. Edward M. Deliman, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia
Will you stand with us in welcoming them? Contact us here to find out how you can help.