Hi Mathew, there is a reason why bishops are bishops and not politicians. People who cross the border illegally are breaking the law. The church can argue that they should not be deported but if a law is broken and goes unpunished, what is the point of the law. We can't have an open border. If we have no punishment for breaking our border law then what detergent do we have from unlimited access to our border. We have legal immigration to limit disease, poverty, drains on our healthcare and welfare system. We have to vet people we let in. That is why we have a legal way to get in. The bishops are sticky looking at this on a humanitarian level. We also have to look at the survival of our nation and the people who are already here. I humbly disagree with the Bishops opinions on this.
Daniel, I appreciate your thoughtful comment. Pope Leo XIV earlier this week that "No one has said that the United States should have open borders" and "I think every country has a right to determine who and how and when people enter" (https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/pope-calls-treatment-migrants-us-extremely-disrespectful). What Pope Leo XIV and bishops appear to be concerned about is the treatment of those undergoing the judicial process for removal. With the allegations of what has taken place in Broadview, IL (prisoners denied access to sacraments) and the way enforcement is being approached in Chicago and Charlotte, there is reason for concern. It's important to note that the bishops didn't say the US ought not to enforce its borders, but that the way it is going about it appears to be violating individuals rights. Not necessarily "rights" in the way the Constitution grants us rights, but rights as in those inherent to the dignity of a human person.
Hi Mathew, there is a reason why bishops are bishops and not politicians. People who cross the border illegally are breaking the law. The church can argue that they should not be deported but if a law is broken and goes unpunished, what is the point of the law. We can't have an open border. If we have no punishment for breaking our border law then what detergent do we have from unlimited access to our border. We have legal immigration to limit disease, poverty, drains on our healthcare and welfare system. We have to vet people we let in. That is why we have a legal way to get in. The bishops are sticky looking at this on a humanitarian level. We also have to look at the survival of our nation and the people who are already here. I humbly disagree with the Bishops opinions on this.
Daniel, I appreciate your thoughtful comment. Pope Leo XIV earlier this week that "No one has said that the United States should have open borders" and "I think every country has a right to determine who and how and when people enter" (https://www.usccb.org/news/2025/pope-calls-treatment-migrants-us-extremely-disrespectful). What Pope Leo XIV and bishops appear to be concerned about is the treatment of those undergoing the judicial process for removal. With the allegations of what has taken place in Broadview, IL (prisoners denied access to sacraments) and the way enforcement is being approached in Chicago and Charlotte, there is reason for concern. It's important to note that the bishops didn't say the US ought not to enforce its borders, but that the way it is going about it appears to be violating individuals rights. Not necessarily "rights" in the way the Constitution grants us rights, but rights as in those inherent to the dignity of a human person.
Thanks again for your comment, I appreciate it.