Fratelli ma non troppo: La chiesa cattolica e gli immigrati in Italia

The article aims at distinguishing and deepening various aspects of the relation between the Catholic Church and Catholic immigrants, taking the cue from the Italian case. It argues that the Catholic Church is very active in providing services to people in need, advocacy, political representation in favour of immigrants; quite open in supplying spaces and gathering opportunities to Catholic immigrants’ communities and to their clergy; less active, often indifferent, on the side of the inclusion of Catholic immigrants in its structures and in usual pastoral activities. The “ecclesial citizenship” of Catholic immigrants in Italy remains largely to build. From the Italian case the article draws a more theoretical consideration: it is possible to identify several dimensions of the relation between the Catholic Church and immigrants, and these dimensions can diverge. The relation between mainstream religions in a given country and immigrants of the same religious affiliation is not monolithic, but it is multifaceted and fraught with tensions, beyond the alleged fraternity.