Church is called to aid immigrants, Presiding Bishop says in letter
Episcopal News Service. April 18, 2007 [041807-01]
Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has written to the Episcopal Church decrying Congress' inability to pass immigration-reform legislation and supporting Episcopalians who answer the call to hospitality, which she called "the core of the Gospel mandate which defines our faith."
Jefferts Schori's letter echoes the stance of the Episcopal Church on immigration issues. The 75th General Convention adopted Resolution A017 stating its fundamental immigration principles.
(En Espanol: Carta Pastoral sobre la Reforma Inmigratoria)
The Executive Council also passed resolutions a year ago (INC/NAC044) and in June 2005 (NAC032) which supported comprehensive immigration reform and advised members of the church to follow the call of the Baptismal Covenant to "seek and serve Christ in all persons" in ministering to illegal immigrants, despite any laws that would criminalize such assistance.
Her letter comes as the federal government, responding to Congressional inaction on passing comprehensive immigration reform, has been mounting raids against companies employing large numbers of migrants. The raids have been prompted at least in part by calls for increased enforcement of existing immigration laws.
"We have promised at baptism to seek and serve Christ in all persons," Jefferts Schori wrote. "Therefore we share the pain of those workers being rounded up by our government for lack of legal status. Their families are experiencing the pain of separation and uncertainty, and untold hardship is being inflicted upon those struggling to support themselves and their families in a land which often wants their labor but denies them basic human dignity. As their brothers and sisters, we are diminished by their suffering."
Operation Return to Sender, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) program aimed at arresting and deporting undocumented workers, began in December 2006 at six Swift Co. meatpacking plants. Some 1,282 people were arrested on charges of identity theft and illegal immigration. In February, ICE agents arrested 51 foreign nationals who were believed to be working illegally at two Auburn, Washington warehouses operated by UPS Supply Chain Solutions.
Again on April 4, ICE agents used the same charges to arrest 62 sanitation workers in a raid at Cargill Inc.'s pork plant near Chicago, Illinois. Just four days ago nearly 100 people were arrested in Willmar, Minnesota, at their homes by ICE agents who came to their homes. All of these individuals are now subject to deportation.
Among the consequences of the raids is the separation of family members. Children have arrived home from school to parentless houses and infants were left behind at daycare centers as they waited for friends or family members to pick them up.
"Many hard working families who are here seeking a better life have been harshly affected by these events," said the Rev. Anthony Guillen, Hispanic/Latino missioner for the Episcopal Church. "We are grateful to the compassionate clergy and lay leaders who are working daily to meet the spiritual, emotional and physical needs of these families as well as walking with them through the legal complications."
Last year, the 109th Congress was unable to pass immigration-reform legislation that would have helped to end the separation of families by placing undocumented immigrants on a path toward earned citizenship.
On March 22, Representatives Luis Gutierrez (Democrat-Illinois) and Jeff Flake (Republican-Arizona) introduced comprehensive immigration reform legislation, H.R. 1645, known as the Security Through Regularized Immigration and a Vibrant Economy (STRIVE) Act of 2007.
"We believe that the STRIVE Act is a good template for comprehensive immigration reform but there is more work do be done to create a fair and workable immigration system," said Molly Keane of the Episcopal Church's Office of Government Relations.
Keane attended an April 17 news conference held by the National Immigration Forum in collaboration with many other faith-based organizations applauding the House for introducing the STRIVE Act and calling on Congress to enact comprehensive immigration reform. She said that if comprehensive legislation passes, undocumented immigrants who contribute much to the U.S. economy and its social fabric would no longer need to fear deportation and the separation of their families.
The Senate is expected to introduce similar legislation soon with floor action the last two weeks in May while the House will likely take action in June.
"We are hopeful that this is the beginning of a long-awaited bi-partisan and comprehensive solution to immigration reform," said C. Richard Parkins, director of Episcopal Migration Ministries, the Episcopal Church's refugee resettlement and immigrant advocacy arm. "Until Congress acts, our church with its faith-based partners must continue to embrace the stranger, offer hospitality, and strive for peace and justice for the most vulnerable."
The complete text of Jefferts Schori's letter follows.
April 17, 2007
Dear Friends in Christ,
As Christians, we are called to embrace the stranger, to render hospitality to those who are most vulnerable, and to find Christ in all who come to us in need. We are commanded to love our neighbors as God loves us. We have promised at baptism to seek and serve Christ in all persons. Therefore we share the pain of those workers being rounded up by our government for lack of legal status. Their families are experiencing the pain of separation and uncertainty, and untold hardship is being inflicted upon those struggling to support themselves and their families in a land which often wants their labor but denies them basic human dignity. As their brothers and sisters, we are diminished by their suffering.
For much of last year, as our nation debated immigration reform, the Episcopal Church joined in advocating for legislation that would repair the serious flaws of our current system. A broad coalition of faith-based and other groups sought an immigration system that would acknowledge our nation's need for workers and create a system to: permit workers outside our boundaries to enter the U.S. as legal workers and seek permanent residence; support the early reunification of family members; and create a pathway to permanent residence for the approximately 11 million workers in the United States who lack legal status but have faithfully contributed their labor to our common good. Unfortunately, the legislation we sought was not enacted and our flawed immigration system remains.
Had that legislation passed, we would now have a way of responding to migrants in our midst and those outside our country seeking to escape grinding poverty as legitimate workers in the United States, where their gifts would be respected. Instead, our government is engaged in an unprecedented pursuit of undocumented workers. Punishment, and not reform, has regrettably become the official response. The Episcopal Church remains committed to the principles that defined our earlier advocacy efforts.
I commend those persons of faith, within the Episcopal Church and beyond it, who are deeply offended by our government's action and who understand that the call to hospitality is the core of the Gospel mandate which defines our faith. We are called to find ways to protect and care for those strangers in our midst, who are often shunned by others. We must welcome these strangers in our own congregations and communities, and we must call upon our government to enact just immigration reform. Our call to faithful hospitality takes on special meaning during this blessed season of new life. As Christians, we are called to bring the Easter hope of new life to those who now live in fear and despair.
Your servant in Christ,
Katharine Jefferts Schori
Presiding Bishop and Primate
The Episcopal Church