In the United States, the Bishop of Pensacola-Tallahassee, Bishop William Wack, this week called for immigration reform and urged the faithful to welcome immigrants amid continued deportations and detentions in Florida and across the country.
In a letter dated October 14the bishop told the faithful of his diocese that he has “reflected with regret” on the difficulties faced by immigrants in the United States “who suffer under the weight of a failed immigration system.”
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The Trump administration has continued to aggressively push for greater immigration enforcement, ensuring that more than two million immigrants have been expelled or self-deported in approximately the last eight months.
In his letter, Bishop Wack acknowledged that law enforcement “has a responsibility to apprehend and detain people who commit crimes,” but criticized what he described as “the dangerous narrative that every immigrant is a threat.”
“At the same time, we must also advocate for reform—of immigration law, due process, and law enforcement practices—so that justice and mercy stand together, and families are not unnecessarily separated,” he said.
The bishop suggested that “a pro-life people” should not support “the separation of families with mixed immigration status.”
“Can we in good conscience support policies that deport a working father—knowing the devastating impact this will have on his family—without also recognizing his contributions to our communities?” he wrote. “Can we accept more children being sent to foster care because both parents have been deported?”
Bishop Wack said Catholics in his diocese should “put aside partisan arguments” and focus on the messages of Christ and the Gospel.
“We are called to care for our neighbors, to shelter the stranger and to welcome the stranger; because each of us has been created with love in the image and likeness of God,” he said.
The Christian faith has always required the faithful to pay “special care” to the poor and vulnerable, Bishop Wack said, including immigrants who come to the United States “in search of safety and a better life.”
The prelate urged the faithful to “use all your gifts and influence to join me in bringing about this necessary change” in American immigration policy.
“Our nation has long been a beacon for those fleeing violence, persecution and extreme poverty. As people of faith, let us choose hope and life, not only for ourselves and our loved ones, but for every child of God,” he said.
Earlier this year, Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski similarly urged the government to expand legal avenues to grant citizenship to migrants who are in the country illegally and have not committed any other crimes.
“Rather than spending billions deporting people who already contribute positively to the well-being of our nation, it would be more financially sensible and morally acceptable for Congress, in collaboration with the administration, to expand legal pathways for non-criminal migrants to access permanent legal status,” the archbishop stated at the time.
In July, in Venice, Florida, Bishop Frank Dewane criticized the proposal to create the Alligator Alcatraz immigration detention center. He said it was “alarming to see enforcement strategies that treat all unauthorized immigrants as dangerous criminals.”
“Decency demands that we remember that the detained people are fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters of relatives in difficulty,” he said.
Translated and adapted by the ACI Prensa team. Originally published in CNA.
Daniel Payne
Daniel Payne is senior editor at Catholic News Agency. He previously worked at College Fix and Just the News. He lives in Virginia with his family.