Florida Catholic bishops have called on President Trump to pause immigration enforcement during the Christmas season, but the White House has confirmed that operations will continue as usual.
Florida’s Catholic bishops have made a heartfelt appeal to President Donald Trump for a pause in immigration enforcement during the Christmas holidays, citing heightened fear within communities during this time of year. The request was formally presented on Monday by Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski, who was joined by seven other members of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops.
“The border has been secured,” Wenski stated in the appeal. “The initial work of identifying and removing dangerous criminals has been accomplished to a great degree. Over half a million people have been deported this year, and nearly two million more have voluntarily self-deported.”
Wenski expressed concern that the current enforcement strategy, which targets irregular immigrants en masse, often results in the detention of individuals who are not criminals but are simply seeking work. He highlighted that a significant majority of those detained in facilities like “Alligator Alcatraz” have no prior criminal background.
He further noted that immigration sweeps can sometimes apprehend individuals who possess legal authorization to remain in the United States. Surveys indicate that many Americans believe immigration enforcement operations are overreaching and causing unnecessary distress.
“Eventually these cases may be resolved, but this takes many months, causing great sorrow for their families,” Wenski explained. “A climate of fear and anxiety is infecting not only the irregular migrant but also family members and neighbors who are legally in the country.”
Wenski urged the government to pause apprehension and round-up activities during the Christmas season, arguing that such a gesture would demonstrate compassion for the families affected by immigration enforcement. “Now is not the time to be callous toward the suffering caused by immigration enforcement,” he said.
While the White House did not directly respond to the bishops’ request for a holiday pause, it reaffirmed that immigration enforcement activities would proceed as usual. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson stated, “President Trump was elected based on his promise to the American people to deport criminal illegal aliens. And he’s keeping that promise.”
Wenski, along with many other Catholic leaders, has been a vocal advocate for humane treatment of illegal immigrants. In September, he participated in a panel at Georgetown University where he criticized the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration policies for causing family separations, instilling fear, and disrupting church life.
He also emphasized the vital contributions that illegal immigrants make to the U.S. economy. “If you ask people in agriculture, the service industry, healthcare, or construction, they’ll tell you that some of their best workers are immigrants,” Wenski remarked. “Enforcement is always going to be part of any immigration policy, but we have to rationalize it and humanize it.”
Wenski has been active in the “Knights on Bikes” ministry, an initiative led by the Knights of Columbus that aims to address the spiritual needs of migrants held in immigration detention centers, including “Alligator Alcatraz” in the Florida Everglades. He recounted a poignant experience of praying a rosary in the sweltering heat outside the facility before being granted permission to celebrate Mass inside just days later.
“The fact that we invite these detainees to pray, even in this very dehumanizing situation, is a way of emphasizing and invoking their dignity,” he said.
Last month, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted a “special message” condemning Trump’s mass deportation agenda and the vilification of illegal immigrants. The message expressed concern over the fear and anxiety that immigration raids are instilling in communities, as well as the denial of pastoral care in detention centers.
The special message received endorsement from Pope Leo XIV and Bishop Ronald Hicks, who has been appointed as the next archbishop of New York, succeeding Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Dolan announced earlier this year that he would resign upon reaching the age of 75, as required by Catholic law.
“I think we have to look for ways of treating people humanely, treating people with the dignity that they have,” Leo stated last month. “If people are in the United States illegally, there are ways to treat that. There are courts, there’s a system of justice.”
The pope has previously encouraged local bishops to address social justice issues and has suggested that those who support the “inhuman treatment of immigrants in the United States” may not align with pro-life values.
According to The Associated Press, the ongoing dialogue surrounding immigration enforcement continues to evoke strong reactions from various sectors of society.