The bishop of Lincoln in Nebraska (United States), Mons. James Conley, said a federal detention center for immigrants proposed in the state must allow Catholic ministers to provide sacramental and pastoral attention.
The bishop made the announcement after the governor of Nebraska, Jim Pillen, announced the reuse of the state labor ethics camp in McCook to house undocumented immigrants in the country.
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He website State indicates that the camp currently offers a comprehensive program that combines evidence based on treatment and education opportunities for inmates. Pillen declared To local media this week that the facilities would become and have capacity for 300 migrants, according to the Nebraska Examiner.
In his own declaration From this week, Mons. Conley said that Lincoln’s diocese has had permission to administer the sacraments and pastoral care for detainees in the “for decades” camp. The diocese has been able to celebrate Mass there “weekly,” he added.
“It will be very important that every person detained at the Federal Center for McCok’s immigration detention can also access regular and continuous pastoral care,” said the bishop. “This is essential for the dignity of every human person, since each of us is called to union with God.”
The bishop also urged that the facilities should not be used to detain immigrants who are illegally, but “those who have committed crimes that endanger public security.”
“To do the opposite would undermine the moral legitimacy of the installation and erode public trust,” he argued.
Mons. Conley said that it is still “committed to the safeguarding of human dignity that maintains public security and respects our migrant brothers and sisters.”
The Bishop’s letter arrives a few weeks after Florida Catholic leaders were allowed pastoral access to the immigrant detention center called “Aligator Alcatraz” in the Everglades.
The archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski, had previously expressed concern about the fact that Catholic ministers were not allowed to access the facilities, although the State finally allowed the Mass to be held there earlier this month.
Translated and adapted by the ACI Press team. Originally published in CNA
Daniel Payne
Daniel Payne is a senior editor of Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.