Day 20—Thursday, March 27, 2025

Jeremiah 31:33

"This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel after that time,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

We all need to be aware that, on February 11, an important and under-reported lawsuit was filed by twenty-seven denominational bodies and associations against the federal government for violation of their religious freedom regarding their practices of serving immigrants and immigrant communities. The plaintiffs represent most mainline denominations (including our own Presbyterian Church U.S.A.), the Brethren, Mennonites, Unitarians, Quakers, Reform Jews, and many more. Their concern is the power given to U.S. Immigrations and Enforcement (“ICE”) “to conduct immigration enforcement actions at places of worship, during religious ceremonies” without warrants. Included is this story of the arrest of a legal immigrant, in Georgia:

“An usher standing in the church entrance saw a group of ICE agents outside…The agents said that they were there to arrest Wilson Velásquez, who had traveled to the United States from Honduras with his wife and three children in 2022. Immediately after crossing the border, they turned themselves in to U.S. authorities and requested asylum. They were given a court date and then released after federal agents cinched a GPS-tracking monitor on Velásquez’s ankle. After settling in suburban Atlanta, the family joined a Pentecostal church where they worshipped several times a week and helped with music. They were listening to the pastor’s sermon when ICE agents arrived to arrest Velásquez. Although Velásquez had attended all his required check-ins at an Atlanta ICE office and had a court date scheduled to present his asylum case to a judge, ICE agents arrested him anyway, explaining that they were simply ‘looking for people with ankle bracelets.’ The pastor, Luis Ortiz, tried to reassure his congregation, but he could see the fear and tears on their faces”… The Plaintiffs go on to say that “an immigration enforcement action during worship services, ministry work, or other congregational activities 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.”

The First Amendment ramifications are obvious. In that regard, the position of the PCUSA states is that it “faithfully works to serve Christ in the world through new and existing communities of faith, hope, love, and witness. Guided by their call to welcome the stranger and belief in the inherent dignity of all people, PCUSA actively advocates for and works toward more just immigration laws and processes.” All plaintiffs agree that their freedom of religion is being seriously violated.

But there’s something else going on here, more symbolic than legal. By speaking out, this demonstrates that American Christianity is more than one group’s beliefs, more than one denomination’s radical agenda that wants to turn our country into a Christian nationalist theocracy. The people of God have a broad range of beliefs, traditions, practices, and even values. There are hundreds of denominations in the United States, and tens of thousands globally. So it is vitally important that this lawsuit puts that variety and richness on full display. Freedom of religion is a guarantee that you can practice your own faith without someone else’s beliefs being imposed on you. Mainline churches must keep telling that truth.

Dear God, may we live lives of mercy, peace, justice, grace, hope, and love. Amen

-Eric Lawson