The fourth book in the series Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church, Living with(out) Borders is a collection of cross-cultural, interdisciplinary essays that challenge simplistic understandings of migration today. The twenty-two essays in this volume incorporate theology, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, history, and gender studies in order to “analyze ethical challenges and claims to rights arising” from the experiences of migrants and “examine them in light of the Christian tradition” (1). The book is organized into seven parts, beginning with a sociological perspective on the reasons people migrate, followed by essays that explore migration in conversation with human/cultural rights, gender and embodiment, marriage and family, virtues, theological anthropology, and the meaning of state borders.

The contributions of this volume are many. The editors conclude their introduction by noting that what is needed in the face of the many ethical challenges surrounding migration is “a contextual, indeed, an incarnate response, one where migrants’ lives and concerns intersect and interrupt the church, nongovernmental organizations, nation-states, and regions” (7). These essays offer just such contextual responses, providing a window into the lives of Sudanese refugees in Egypt, environmental refugees from Pacific Island communities, immigrants in the Czech Republic in search of work and better opportunities, and victims of sex trafficking and femicide along the US-Mexico border, to name a few. Many of the early essays are more descriptive than normative, but offer a valuable introduction to the harsh, violent, uncertain realities faced by migrants and refugees. Readers will learn about new categories of displaced people, such as environmental refugees and mujeres desechables (disposable women), and that organized recruitment is often a catalyst for migration and also the source of many problems for migrant workers. Several essays in the volume speak to the ethical challenges faced by temporary migrants, including impediments to their desired return home.

Later essays provide nuanced normative ethical arguments responding to the injustices facing migrants and refugees. William O'Neill's essay, “The Place of Displacement: The Ethics of Migration in the United States,” focuses on the virtue of hospitality to the vulnerable, but also conveys that such hospitality transforms the host as well: by exercising hospitality, we come to see rightly and to belong. Diego Alonso-Lasheras’ essay on the Centro Astalli, the Italian branch of the Jesuit Refugee Service in Rome, similarly concludes that defending the rights of refugees leads to the Ignatian experience of consolation: an increase in faith, hope, and charity. Kristin Heyer's essay, “Familismo across the Americas: En Route to a Liberating Christian Family Ethic,” utilizes Christian family ethics to evaluate and condemn the treatment and separation of mixed-status families, and also challenges idealized notions of family that ignore marginalized voices and reinforce oppression. Alexandre Andrade Martins approaches Bolivian and Haitian migrants in Brazil from a liberationist-theological perspective, using the pastoral method of Latin American communities: “see—judge—act” (92). This methodology is seen in the volume as a whole: many essays describe the unjust conditions and experiences of refugees and migrants, while other essays offer normative critique and recommendations for action at the local, church, and state level. Almost every essay mentions Pope Francis at least once, in particular calling attention to his denunciation of the globalization of indifference.

This volume is timely and invaluable as an introduction to the multitude of issues and injustices that surround migration. It should be read in undergraduate classrooms and church groups. Individual essays would be useful in introductory theology and ethics courses, as well as undergraduate courses on family and sexual ethics, politics, sociology, and women's and gender studies that seek to incorporate conversation about migration. One hopes that politicians will read it also. The essays are accessible reading on this critical global issue and Christian theological responses to it.