(ZENIT News / Rome, 10.01.2025).- The morning of Tuesday, September 30, the Vatican Film Library hosted the official launch event for the Mother Cabrini Institute on Immigration at Villanova University, marking a significant milestone in advancing education, research, advocacy, and service with migrants and refugees. The event included a special screening of Cabrini (2024), the acclaimed film produced by Eustace Wolfington, which celebrates the life and legacy of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini, the patron saint of immigrants.
The Institute, led by Michele R. Pistone, J.D., LLM, founder and faculty director of The Mother Cabrini Institute on Immigration, professor of Law in the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law and chair of Refugees & Migrants in Our Common Home, seeks to bring together university and community partners to conduct research, engage in innovative, teaching, and conduct outreach that address migration challenges. Inspired by Villanova’s Augustinian values of Veritas, Unitas, and Caritas, and aligned with the University’s “Rooted. Restless.” Strategic Plan, the Institute carries forward the foundational work of Cabrini University and its Center on Immigration. “This Institute will be a home for collaboration and innovation, a place where universities and communities can work together to imagine solutions that don’t yet exist and then bring them to life,” said Pistone.
The launch was attended by academic and religious leaders, including Fr. Joseph Farrell, O.S.A., Prior General of the Augustinian Order. He emphasized how the Augustinian tradition of unity and service resonates with the Institute’s mission to respond compassionately to migration and displacement. “On behalf of the Augustinians throughout the world, we are truly thrilled and honored that the new Cabrini Institute at Villanova University is taking on the great work of evangelization by helping those most in need, especially immigrants and migrants. We know that none of us can do this alone, and the Institute will bring people together to work for a common cause—to help improve our society and make the world a better place.”
As sponsor of the Refugees & Migrants in Our Common Home conference taking place October 1–3 at the Pontificium Institutum Patristicum Augustinianum, in Rome, the Mother Cabrini Institute on Immigration signals Villanova University’s leadership in building global academic networks for systemic change. This connection highlights the Institute’s dual role: honoring the legacy of Mother Cabrini while spearheading innovative responses to the urgent realities of migration. “As an institution founded to educate immigrants, this is an issue that is inherently tied to our history as a University,” said Villanova University President the Rev. Peter M. Donohue, O.S.A., PhD. “Villanova is proud to take purposeful action in an initiative that reflects our core values by seeking to uphold the dignity of every person, foster community and advocate for justice for migrants and refugees.”
With its official launch, the Institute begins a new chapter in Villanova’s global engagement, providing space for dialogue, research, and collaborative action on migration. Upcoming initiatives will continue to be developed in close collaboration with international partners and will be announced in the coming months.
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