Philly priest: New immigration arrest policy threatens freedom to worship

PHILADELPHIA (OSV News) -- A Philadelphia priest has called new Trump administration policies on immigration arrests a threat to the church's religious freedom and people's right to worship without fear.

Since returning to the Oval Office Jan. 20, President Donald Trump has issued a number of executive orders on immigration, pledging to tighten border security and threatening mass deportations of migrants in the country without authorization.

Among the changes are a reversal of a long-standing policy limiting where immigration officials could make arrests. On Jan. 21, the Department of Homeland Security announced that previously designated "sensitive locations" such as houses of worship and schools would no longer be off-limits. The agency said in a statement that day the action "empowers the brave men and women" of Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement -- its two key immigration law enforcement agencies -- to ensure that "criminals will no longer be able to hide in America's schools and churches to avoid arrest."

But Msgr. Hugh Joseph Shields -- who is the son of Irish immigrant parents and who has several years of pastoral ministry experience with the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's various immigrant communities -- said he was "concerned" by the lifting of the restriction.

"It is within these places of worship, in the Catholic tradition as well as many other faith traditions, that we hear proclaimed God's message of love, acceptance, justice, mercy, and accompaniment," wrote Msgr. Shields in a Jan. 23 opinion column for The Philadelphia Inquirer.

The priest, now in residence as a retired pastor at St. John the Baptist Parish in Philadelphia, wrote that "constant references in sacred Scripture down through the ages have reminded us of our obligations to the stranger, the foreigner, the needy.

"We need only look to Exodus 25:8, where God tells of dwelling among us, and 1 Kings 6:11-13, where we hear that he dwells specifically in our places of worship," wrote Msgr. Shields.

In churches and other houses of worship, "for Christians, 'hospitality' is to be offered to the stranger … love is to be shown to the foreigner … and the hungry and thirsty are to be tended to," he wrote, citing Lev 19:33-34, Deut 10:19 and Mt 25:35.

He also pointed to the "words of acceptance and service to those in need" found in the epistles to the Romans, Ephesians and Hebrews, "which remind us of the social doctrines of our faith that are meant to accompany our faith professions."

Msgr. Shields said that he believed Trump's change to the "sensitive locations" arrest policy was initially intended as a deterrent to unauthorized persons who might seek sanctuary in houses of worship to avoid immigration arrest.

But, warned the priest, "a more extensive use of the policy" could have a chilling effect on religious celebrations, by keeping "people from attending funerals, weddings, noon parish Mass" due to "fear of arrest, separation from family, and deportation."

"Our church believes we are all God's children and entitled to the same respect," wrote Msgr. Shields. "It becomes painfully evident that those celebrations of our union with God will be shattered when members of our family are taken away in handcuffs."

The priest spoke from experience, pointing to an Indonesian couple from his former parish, St. Thomas Aquinas in Philadelphia, who "left for work, were arrested by ICE, and then separated from their teenage daughters for months.

"Where they were was a mystery until neighbors helped them finally locate their parents," he recalled.

The couple had fled to the U.S. to escape religious persecution in their homeland, and had been active members of their parish. Their case prompted outrage among immigration advocates, while receiving extensive coverage from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's news outlet, CatholicPhilly, including interviews conducted in two Pennsylvania prisons with the mother and father, who eventually obtained U.S. citizenship.

"When I think of this administration's plans, I think of the human cost (and courage) of participating in a religious procession" -- such as the large-scale ones Philadelphia hosts for its annual celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe -- "when all the 'voices' you hear in society are saying you are illegal," wrote Msgr. Shields.

"God never created an illegal person; systems do that," he wrote, adding that the "heartache, fear, confusion and lack of respect visited on our undocumented brothers and sisters is not God's plan, and should not be our tool of choice."

Such actions and policies are "a far cry from Pope Francis declaring this is a 'Jubilee Year of Hope,'" said Msgr. Shields.

He stressed that "we are capable of addressing this immigration challenge," but that "we are asked to do it as a faith-filled people" under God's guidance. He said God regards "all people, documented and undocumented," as "our brothers and sisters."

Msgr. Shields said that rather than "misdirecting energies" toward permitting arrests at places of worship, schools and hospitals, the nation must address the true causes of its immigration crisis, including its "broken immigration laws" and "cluttered legal pathways."

He also urged fellow Catholics to remember "what God teaches us" in both the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, which "will go a long way in ensuring we are truly living our faith."