The Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN), through its Migrants and Refugees Unit (MRU), has published a new resource titled, Spiritual Advocacy for Migrants and Refugees in Nigeria, dedicated to strengthening the spiritual care of migrants and refugees in the country. The document presents a general understanding of migration, articulates the Church’s pastoral response, and addresses a critical need within the national migration landscape. It draws from the Pastoral Orientations on Internally Displaced Persons issued by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development at the Vatican.
Established by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) in September 2023, the MRU formally commenced its operations in July 2024 with several key initiatives. These included capacity-building programmes for newly appointed diocesan coordinators and pastoral agents, as well as the initial launch of the “Spiritual Advocacy for Migrants and Refugees” as a national programme for prayer and reflection.
Through this initiative, the Unit began to highlight an often-underemphasized dimension of the Church’s engagement with migrants. The newly published resource builds on the momentum of the Spiritual Advocacy programme by offering a structured framework for projecting the spiritual dimension that is essential to the Church’s apostolate of migration. It reflects a profound awareness of the spiritual and psychosocial needs of migrants and refugees – needs that exist alongside material and developmental concerns.
Serving as a guiding tool, the resource provides diocesan coordinators and religious congregations appointed to the pastoral care of migrants and refugees, as well as other pastoral agents, including clergy, religious, catechists, seminarians, community and group leaders, with theological reflections and practical insights that are crucial for offering meaningful spiritual accompaniment and support to migrants and refugees of all categories. Indeed, this valuable resource is available and offered to all Catholics who can collaborate in this important ministry in the country.
