Catholic bishops take aim at Trump policies
In one of the president’s first executive actions after being sworn in, Trump took aim at longstanding immigration policy, prompting criticism from members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The new Department of Homeland Security policy ended the precedent of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) being prohibited from “mak[ing] arrests in or near ‘sensitive’ areas, such as churches, hospitals, or schools.”
The USCCB’s migration committee chairman, Bishop of the Diocese of El Paso Mark Seitz, took particular issue with “conducting a raid or enforcement action in a church service [or] at a school.” Vice President J. D. Vance voiced his disagreement with the USCCB, and Vance, a practicing Catholic himself, said in reference to Bp. Seitz’s comment that he “was actually heartbroken by [the] statement.”
Catholic groups in the U.S. are a significant recipient of migrant aid, and Vance has used this fact to argue that the bishops are “more worried about their bottom line,” since “they received over 100 million dollars to help resettle illegal immigrants” last year. In fact, “total federal grants and contributions made to the [USCCB]” has skyrocketed “from 14.6 million dollars under the first Trump administration in 2019 to 122.6 million dollars in 2022.”
In a further escalation of the conflict, Archbishop of New York Timothy Cardinal Dolan criticized Vance’s spat with the USCCB. Card. Dolan condemned Vance’s remarks as “scurrilous” and “nasty” weeks after attending Vance’s inauguration. In response to Vance insinuating that the Church only wants to protect migrants to protect their pocketbooks, Card. Dolan said, “You think we make money caring for the immigrants? We’re losing it hand over fist.”
During his January 26 interview with Margaret Brennan on CBS News’ Face the Nation, Vance stated that the USCCB has “not been a good partner in commonsense immigration enforcement that the American people voted for.” However, there are some within the Church establishment who differ with USCCB majority opinion.
Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington released a January 31 pastoral letter titled, “A Pastoral Statement on American Immigration Law and the Catholic Imperative of Upholding Human Dignity and the Common Good.” In the statement, Bp. Burbidge writes, “We are a Church that stands for justice, not against the enforcement of law, but for its application with mercy and understanding for the good of all persons and our country.”
Throughout the statement, Bp. Burbidge emphasizes that his opinion is informed by Catholic Social Teaching and Christ’s example, but maintains his opinion that proper law enforcement can fit within these teachings. Bp. Burbidge went on to say that “our laws exist to safeguard the good of all, and they must be respected.”
Freshman Chris Qian disagreed with Bp. Burbidge, arguing that the new immigration enforcement policy may overstep unspoken boundaries by violating the sanctity of schools and churches. Qian stated, “We should allow the churches to have their way, but we should carefully monitor the situation so that if illegal immigrants decide to use churches as hideouts, then the government will have the jurisdiction to detain and deport them.”
While the ongoing debate has been primarily between the Trump administration and USCCB, the migration issue has long existed and has been addressed under multiple papacies. Pope Francis, in a 2017 interview, when asked “Can borders be controlled?” said, “Yes, each country has a right to control its borders, who enters and who leaves, and countries that are in danger—of terrorism or the like—have more right to control them more …”
Pope Francis has since modified his opinion and said in a 2024 statement that “working to turn migrants away from the prospect of peace and security in a new country is ‘a grave sin.’” Nonetheless, he acknowledged that state sovereignty must be maintained and migrants handled “compassionately.”
The question of migration was also addressed by Pope Saint John Paul II in a message to the Church on World Migration Day in 1996. John Paul stated that “Illegal immigration should be prevented, but it is also essential to vigorously combat the criminal activities which exploit illegal immigrants.” Echoing Francis’s sentiments, the Church under Pope John Paul II did not condone breaking the law, but they also recognized the complexity of the migration issue.
The USCCB has not always stood in opposition to Trump policy; they have welcomed the changes in the cases of “school choice, restricting federal support for gender transitions, and limiting foreign aid to organizations that provide or promote abortion.”
Colin Heil is a freshman studying political science from McLean, Virginia. In his free time he enjoys reading up on world events and can be found in the Rock/Duncan each night at closing time. He can be reached at cheil@nd.edu.
Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons
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