The Trump Administration recently authorized immigration enforcement actions in places such as churches and schools. I offer here reflections on what this decision could mean for Eucharistic celebrations, grounding the discussion in the theme of the dignity of the human person.
In the English translation of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World on the Vatican website, the word “dignity” appears more than fifty times. A number of such appearances are in connection with “human dignity” or the “dignity of the human person.” Paragraph 19 is a case in point.
The root reason for human dignity lies in man’s call to communion with God. From the very circumstance of his origin man is already invited to converse with God. For man would not exist were he not created by God’s love and constantly preserved by it; and he cannot live fully according to truth unless he freely acknowledges that love and devotes himself to His Creator.1
For Roman Catholics, the paradigmatic sacramental instance of this communion with God is the Eucharistic celebration. Quoting the 1967 Instruction Eucharisticum Mysterium, the Catechism of the Catholic Church holds in no. 1325:
The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being. It is the culmination both of God’s action sanctifying the world in Christ and of the worship men offer to Christ and through him to the Father in the Holy Spirit.2
In the Apostolic Letter Desiderio Desideravi, Pope Francis specifies who is invited to this communion.
The world still does not know it, but everyone is invited to the supper of the wedding of the Lamb (Rev 19:9). To be admitted to the feast all that is required is the wedding garment of faith which comes from the hearing of his Word (cf. Rom 10:17).3
I juxtapose these statements about human dignity, the ground of which rests on God’s call to communion—which communion is manifest above all in the Eucharistic celebration to which all are invited—with this statement from the United States Department of Homeland Security, dated 21 January 2025.
Yesterday, Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Benjamine Huffman issued two directives essential to ending the invasion of the US southern border and empower law enforcement to protect Americans.
The first directive rescinds the Biden Administration’s guidelines for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) enforcement actions that thwart law enforcement in or near so-called “sensitive” areas. . . . The following statement is attributable to a DHS Spokesperson:
“This action empowers the brave men and women in CBP and ICE to enforce our immigration laws and catch criminal aliens—including murders [sic] and rapists—who have illegally come into our country. Criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches to avoid arrest. The Trump Administration will not tie the hands of our brave law enforcement, and instead trusts them to use common sense.”4
While strong enforcement aims to keep communities safe, the reality is that allegations of criminal activity can arise in many situations, and anyone accused faces serious legal consequences. Navigating the complexities of the justice system requires clarity, strategy, and careful attention to procedure. The defence lawyers Perth can assist in reviewing the charges, evaluating evidence, and building a defense that protects rights while ensuring a fair process. Having skilled legal support helps individuals respond appropriately to accusations and seek the best possible outcome under the law.
Challenging this policy change, 27 religious organizations5 filed a lawsuit on 11 February, which states in part:
Plaintiffs’ congregations and members face an imminent risk of . . . immigration enforcement actions at their places of worship. Consistent with their call to welcome and serve all people, many have undocumented congregants and many offer social service ministries—such as food and clothing pantries, English as a Second Language (“ESL”) classes, legal assistance, and job training services—at their churches and synagogues that serve undocumented people. An immigration enforcement action during worship services, ministry work, or other congregational activities would be devastating to their religious practice. It would shatter the consecrated space of sanctuary, thwart communal worship, and undermine the social service outreach that is central to religious expression and spiritual practice for Plaintiffs’ congregations and members.6
Notably, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops was not one of the plaintiffs and as of this writing has not joined this lawsuit, even though in his letter of 10 February to the US bishops on immigration and deportation, Pope Francis wrote: “The rightly formed conscience cannot fail to make a critical judgment and express its disagreement with any measure that tacitly or explicitly identifies the illegal status of some migrants with criminality.”7 Nevertheless, from the perspective of Roman Catholic theology and practice, immigration enforcement actions which disrupt the Mass are precisely disruptions of the divine-human encounter so longed for by our God and for which humans, in the image of God, are made. In the same letter to the US bishops, Francis wrote: “Jesus Christ, loving everyone with a universal love, educates us in the permanent recognition of the dignity of every human being, without exception.”8
Without exception.
UPDATE: In a separate lawsuit, a federal judge on 24 February
temporarily barred the federal government from conducting immigration enforcement in certain places of worship after faith groups argued that the threat of raids infringed on their religious liberty.
Six Quaker congregations, the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship and a Sikh temple sued in the U.S. District Court of Maryland last month,challenging the Trump administration’s order overturning a long-standing policy that restricted immigration authorities from making arrests at churches and other “sensitive locations.”
. . . .
U.S. District Judge Theodore Chang on Monday levied a temporary injunction blocking the Trump administration’s order from taking effect as the lawsuit proceeds because he said the order could violate religious freedom.9
2Source: http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/1325.htm , quoting Eucharisticum Mysterium 6.
3Desiderio Desideravi 5. Emphasis in original. Source: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_letters/documents/20220629-lettera-ap-desiderio-desideravi.html . Writing about the Last Supper of Jesus with his disciples in paragraph 4, Francis underscored that “no one had earned a place at that Supper. All had been invited.” Emphasis added.
4Source: https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/01/21/statement-dhs-spokesperson-directives-expanding-law-enforcement-and-ending-abuse . Emphasis in original.
5Plaintiffs include African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, Central Atlantic Conference of the United Church of Christ, Central Conference of American Rabbis, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), Church of the Brethren, Convención Bautista Hispana de Texas, Episcopal Church, Friends General Conference, General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA), Massachusetts Council of Churches, Mennonite Church USA, New York State Council of Churches, North Carolina Council of Churches, Rabbinical Assembly, Rhode Island State Council of Churches, Union for Reformed Judaism, and United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism.
6Source: Case 1:25-cv-00403 Document 1 Filed 02/11/25 // Par 7 page 8
7Letter of the Holy Father Francis to the Bishops of the United States of America (10 February 2025) 4. Source: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2025/documents/20250210-lettera-vescovi-usa.html
8Letter of the Holy Father Francis to the Bishops of the United States of America 3.
9Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/24/judge-blocks-immigration-enforcement-churches
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