Last week and this week, I have been receiving calls from various missioners in the field about families being picked up by immigration. Many of these stories are sad and difficult.
Most recently was in Livingston, Tennessee, where the individual was put into jail. This is the third person in three weeks who has been detained by immigration, and they will not allow for Father Mike or Lorenzo (Glenmary missioners in the area) to come and visit them. Authorities said they have to go through training, even though Father Mike is trained by the state prison to have Mass there in a neighboring county. It’s kind of a cruel situation. This person is separated from their family and separated from the sacraments. And so they’re asking for prayers for this individual and his family and the others.
A couple of weeks ago, in a different mission in Tennessee, I was also given a call. And this particular person I know very well, as the former pastor of Saint Teresa of Kolkata in Maynardville, Tennessee. This individual has three children. He has been in United States since he was age 15. He owns his own construction company, and he actually built and framed the church for us without cost. We only paid for the materials.
Currently, his youngest son is a senior in high school going to a Catholic school. His middle daughter is a single mom of two kids, and he has been supporting those children, grandchildren, and the people who work for him.
He was at Home Depot and was picked up because he was Latino and in a construction van. He has papers in a process, but they’re not yet complete. So his status is uncertain, and thus he is being held in Louisiana. It took them two days to even know where he was, because no one would answer their questions.
I recognize that immigration is a difficult situation and very controversial in the United States, and it’s not easy to know what the solutions are. But I ask for you to pray for these families, for these parishes, for these children and grandchildren who are fearful.
Many of them are without the only income they have now. And so the church has to support them with food and rent as they figure out a new solution with this sudden change.
So I ask that you join me in prayer for a compassionate solution, for a just solution to immigration. One that yes, protects our borders and respects our laws, but also one that holds families together and allows them a pathway to legalization for documentation so they may live here without fear and not be taken advantage of by the system.
Please join me in praying for them and praying for just solutions. Thank you.
—Father Steven Pawelk
