Bishop Jaime Soto of the Diocese of Sacramento, California has directed the Diocese to provide services to immigrants and refugees through its Diocesan Immigrant Support Network, which includes Catholic Charities, parishes, legal experts and community organizations.
About 60,000 illegal immigrants live in the 20 counties of the diocese, according to a diocesan official.
Bishop Soto has said Catholic churches in the diocese should offer sanctuary to immigrants facing deportation.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, DC has stated that, while the Catholic Church’s values mandate opposition to deportation of people already living in the United States, there is no certainty that immigrants staying on church grounds would avoid being arrested and eventually sent to their home country. Cardinal Wuerl said that providing food and legal representation for immigrants was among the Washington Archdiocese’s top priorities.
Elsewhere, Cardinal Blase J. Cupich of Chicago told priests and school officials in the archdiocese not to allow federal immigration agents onto church property without a warrant in a Feb. 28 letter. He asked parish and school officials to immediately call diocesan attorneys if agents appear at their door. At the same time, Cardinal Cupich wrote that he will not declare Catholic churches as sanctuary for immigrants. He likewise forbids anyone other than assigned priests to live in a rectory or other church facility without written permission of the appropriate regional vicar.
The situation of immigrants seems to have divided the country’s Catholics, its leaders and the faithful.
The majority of Catholics voted for President Trump, according to polling data. However, Bishops and leaders of Catholic nonprofit organizations have decried the President’s policies regarding the suspension of refugee admissions to the U.S. and stricter enforcement of immigration laws even on people in the country for years.
I, for one, support the policies of President Trump and take issue with Cardinal Wuerl’s assertion that “Catholic values mandate opposition to deportation of people already living in the United States.” Nothing of the sort is true!
I find nothing incompatible with Catholic values and the American electorate, including myself, voting into office a President who has promised to enforce the law of the land and provide for the security of the American people.
Cardinal Wuerl needs to refresh himself regarding the moral teachings of the Church regarding the right of the State to establish laws protecting the sovereignty of its borders and providing for the general welfare and security of its citizenry (a subject I have addressed in numerous previous posts).
If His Eminence chooses to derogate from these moral principles, he should be honest about it and say that his point of view on this issue is a significant departure from official teachings of the Church.
I continue to be amazed that the Catholic hierarchy in this country so boldly encourages criminal conduct as they promote the aiding and abetting of illegal immigrants. It is a wonderment to be sure!
Let these advocates of such criminality, be they Cardinals, Bishops or Directors of whatever nonprofits established by the same, be aware of the laws presently in force regarding the illegality of providing shelter to illegal aliens.
The housing of illegal aliens by churches appears to be a clear and certain violation of 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(3), which forbids the harboring of illegal aliens.
Most recent case law rejects the notion that harboring must involve actually hiding the alien or otherwise “clandestine” activity.
United States v. Acosta De Evans, 531 F.2d 428,430 (9th Cir. 1981) holds that anyone who willfully or knowingly conceals, harbors, shields from detection or anyone who attempts to do such in any place, including any building or any means of transportation shall be guilty of a felony.
From my study of the law, I believe that any Bishop’s claim of the historical tradition of offering sanctuary would not provide immunity to indictment under 8 U.S.C. § 1324(a)(3).
I and many of my fellow American Catholics (I’m sure) who voted for the New Administration of President Trump take exception to our free-will offerings, in many cases sacrificial offerings, being used to support illegal immigration and the criminal enterprise in which the Bishops are actively engaging.
I am discouraged by how the conduct of the Bishops is undermining the respect for the law which is the underpinning of any peaceful and ordered society. How do parents teach and encourage their children to respect civil laws while the Bishops themselves show such public disdain for civil authority? Parents should be rightfully outraged.
The Bishops need to be held accountable for their words and their actions. While the faithful have no power of governance over the Bishops, we sure do have the power of the purse.
I, for one, suggest that we use that power and send a strong signal that we respect the laws of our country and have every right to expect that our Bishops will do the same.
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