Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All-Ireland Dr Seán Brady has criticised immigration laws that split up family members as a serious threat to integration.
In one of his last public functions before his elevation as Cardinal, he said that the trend of introducing laws that separate children from their parents, or spouses from each other for long periods of time, was a "matter of the utmost concern".
"Any law or policy that establishes divisions between family members is a serious threat to integration and undermines a very basic human right - the right to family life," the archbishop said. "As a country which upholds the value of the family as the basic unit of society in the Constitution, it is imperative that we respect this value in all reasonable circumstances."
The Government has faced criticism from a number of migrant rights groups over the lack of a statutory right to family reunification for groups of migrant employees on work permits. The archbishop was speaking at a conference organised by the Irish Episcopal Commission for Emigrants on pastoral care and public policy relating to migrants.
He said migration had become a structural phenomenon in our world and an often bitter reality of the human condition.
"In the light of this reality, it is imperative that we have policies in place that educate not just the migrant, but also educate the citizens of the host nation." He said education, language courses and programmes of welcome were needed so that immigrants could understand cultural values and practices in Ireland.
"Whereas one has the right to observe the customs and practices of one's country of origin, the migrant is asked to commit to the building of a harmonious civil society in their new homeland."
The archbishop commended those who have sought to foster the seeds of a hospitable society in their local communities, while he said he was conscious of the many parishes that had benefited from the enthusiasm and commitment of migrants with deep and vibrant faith.
He said schools were at the front line in the work of supporting immigrants and experienced the challenges and opportunities of immigration on a daily basis.
Another speaker, Most Rev Nicholas Di Marzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, said the church in New York has learned much from dealing with the challenges of immigration over a long period.
He said a welcoming society and a welcoming church were vital to ensure migrants are successfully integrated.
"Immigrants integrate only from a position of strength. When they are affirmed and accepted, when they are welcomed, then they understand their responsibility to become part and parcel of a culture which is open to them," the bishop said.
"Whatever the images or the words we used to describe the phenomenon, we must go beyond nomenclature and look to the heart of the matter, which is the heart of society must be open to accepting new members."
Francis Davis of the Von Hugel Institute, a Catholic research institute of St Edmund's College Cambridge, said research involving migrants in the UK who were regular Catholic worshippers, revealed evidence of widespread mistreatment and exploitation of workers.
He said the Catholic Church may find itself on a collision course with government as it seeks to stand up for the rights of such workers and involves itself to a greater extent in political debate on these issues.
