Dear friends in Christ,
As we witness the aggressive immigration raids escalating under the Trump administration, I feel compelled to speak out in defense of our Catholic bishops' right—and duty—to address this crisis with moral clarity. The Church has long taught that faith demands we engage the public square, especially when human dignity hangs in the balance. Our bishops are not politicians; they are shepherds guiding us back to the Gospel amid a storm of fear and division.
At the heart of Catholic teaching on migration is a profound tension: the call to welcome the stranger and the recognition that nations must secure their borders justly. Scripture is unequivocal on hospitality. In Matthew 25:35, Jesus declares, "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me." This echoes the Old Testament: "You shall not oppress a stranger; you know the feelings of a stranger, for you also were strangers in the land of Egypt" (Exodus 23:9). Leviticus 19:34 commands, "The stranger who sojourns with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself." These words aren't optional; they're criteria for judgment (Mt 25:40).
Yet, the Church doesn't ignore sovereignty. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 2241) affirms: "Political authorities, for the sake of the common good... may make the exercise of the right to immigrate subject to various juridical conditions, especially with regard to the immigrants' duties toward their country of adoption." The USCCB's pastoral letter "Strangers No Longer" (2003) states plainly: "A country has the right to regulate its borders and to control immigration... with justice and mercy." Pope Francis has echoed this, urging nations to balance welcome with "the legitimate concern to ensure that our citizens are not threatened." Borders aren't walls of hate; they're safeguards for the common good. But enforcement must never trample the image of God in every person.
This brings us to the core issue: Immigrants, legal or not, possess intrinsic value as human beings, created in God's likeness (Gen 1:27). They are not "invaders" or "animals" to be herded like cattle. Treating them as such dehumanizes us all, echoing the worst chapters of history. We've seen heartbreaking videos circulating on social media and traditional outlets: ICE agents manhandling non-resistant migrants, slamming them to the ground without provocation. In New York City this summer, an Ecuadorian woman was tackled and detained simply for showing emotion as her husband was arrested—despite no resistance from her. Reports from July 2025 detail ICE operations at MacArthur Park in LA, where agents in tactical gear swarmed families, arresting ordinary workers whose only "crime" was crossing without papers. Even more troubling: Agents lurking outside courthouses, snatching individuals the moment a judge grants them relief or asylum, denying even the semblance of due process.
These aren't isolated incidents. Since January 2025, ICE has ramped up to over 1,000 arrests daily, often in plainclothes and unmarked vehicles, creating a climate of terror in immigrant communities. Videos show agents in raid jackets emblazoned with "ICE POLICE" cuffing people at workplaces, parks, and even near schools—places once deemed sensitive under prior policies now scrapped by executive order. In Chicago's Operation Midway Blitz (September 2025), sweeps led to crashes and tear gas deployments, arresting hundreds, many non-criminals. And in NYC, mass arrests at the Javits Federal Building detained elected officials protesting inhumane conditions, including a veteran and a disabled child misidentified as a gang member.
The Trump administration promised to target "criminal aliens" first—MS-13, drug traffickers, violent offenders. Initially, that held: Early 2025 arrests focused on such threats. But data tells a different story now. ICE stats show over 75% of those detained since October 2024 lack serious criminal convictions—mostly traffic tickets or immigration violations alone. By mid-2025, non-criminal arrests surged to meet quotas of 3,000 daily, pushed by Stephen Miller and DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Ordinary families—Ecuadorians deported en masse (1,828 in Q1 2025 alone), Venezuelan TPS holders yanked mid-process, long-term residents like a 64-year-old UW lab tech after 50 years here—are swept up. Where is due process? Where is humane treatment? These raids evoke Gestapo tactics, not justice. Yes, break the law, face consequences—but with dignity, hearings, and mercy, not brutality.
This is precisely why our bishops are speaking so strongly now. On November 12, 2025, at their Baltimore plenary, they issued a rare "Special Pastoral Message on Immigration"—the first in 12 years—condemning "indiscriminate mass deportations" and a "climate of fear and anxiety around... profiling." With 216-5 approval, they decried vilification of immigrants, poor detention conditions, lack of pastoral access, and threats to churches, schools, and hospitals. "Human dignity and national security are not in conflict," they affirmed, while urging reform that honors both. Bishop Mark Seitz, migration committee chair, called it a stand for "God-given human dignity." They're not against borders; they're against abuse.
It's heartbreaking to see self-professed Christians—especially fellow Catholics—attacking these shepherds online and in pulpits. "Traitors!" "Soros puppets!" they cry, lacking the compassion Christ demands. This isn't loyalty to country; it's slapping Jesus in the face, prioritizing man-made edicts over the Imago Dei—the Image of God in every migrant. As Pope Leo XIV (our first American pope) urges, we must echo the Gospel, not echo chambers. True patriotism builds up the vulnerable, not tears them down.
Let me be clear: I am ALL for secure borders and legal immigration. Streamline visas, enforce laws fairly, end the chaos at our frontiers—yes! But we can't achieve this through Nazi-like roundups or Gestapo fear-mongering. Quotas driving agents to grab anyone brown-skinned? Unmarked vans snatching souls outside temples of justice? No. That's not America; that's antithesis to "Give me your tired, your poor."
Some whisper the bishops' motives are financial. Yes, the Church receives government grants for refugee services—over $100M annually under Biden, resettling 18% of arrivals since 1980. But Trump's freeze in February 2025 prompted lawsuits and layoffs (50+ USCCB staff gone), ending a 50-year partnership. VP Vance accused them of "resettling illegals for cash." Absurd! As Archbishop Broglio retorted, these funds cover only part of the work; the Church subsidizes the rest through donations and volunteers. Why "poke the bear" by criticizing if you crave its money? No—their voice rises from conscience, not coffers. Even post-freeze, they serve, suing not for greed but to protect refugees already here.
Imagine if this effort were used instead to go after pedophiles, sex traffickers, gangs, the mafia, corporate greed and corruption, criminals who vandalize cars and homes, rapists, and murderers. Entering the nation illegally and living illegally pales in comparison to these crimes.
In closing, I stand with our bishops—as long as they champion human dignity and due process, as Catholic teaching demands. If they ever veered toward open borders or blanket amnesty ignoring sovereignty, I'd oppose them. But today? They're beacons of balance. Let us pray for migrants in chains, agents in the field, leaders in D.C., and our divided nation. Welcome the stranger, secure the gate—with mercy. For in the least of these, we see Him.
