(RNS) — An interfaith event hosted Thursday by Union Theological Seminary aims to provide faith leaders with spiritual and legal resources to continue their work.
Union Theological Seminary in Morningside Heights, Manhattan.
(Photo courtesy of UTS)
Fiona André
January 15, 2025
(RNS) — On Thursday (Jan. 16), Union Theological Seminary will host a “Know Your Rights, Find Your Voice” interfaith event that will convene faith leaders, immigration advocates and legal experts. Organized in collaboration with Columbia University’s Office of Religious Life and New York’s Episcopal Diocese, the event aims to provide spiritual and legal resources for faith communities as they prepare for the incoming Trump administration’s promised immigration crackdown.
“There’s no greater issue at this moment in time that calls out for response from religious communities,” said the Rev. Serene Jones, Union Theological Seminary’s president, adding that it’s crucial for different faith communities to organize and rally together.
President-elect Donald Trump announced he would rescind a policy preventing ICE agents from arresting undocumented immigrants in sensitive places, undermining the sanctuary movement, a growing list of houses of worship that offer shelter to immigrants facing deportation. Trump also announced he will orchestrate the “largest deportation operation in American history.”
Since the immigration crisis peaked in 2022, more than 200,000 asylum-seekers have settled in New York, and the city’s religious organizations have been a source of critical support for them. Days before the Trump administration takes office, many fear his proposed policies will hinder that work, especially as New York City Mayor Eric Adams said he would work closely with Trump’s incoming “border czar,” Tom Homan, on immigration.
RELATED: Churches consider what sanctuary might look like in Trump’s second term
The Rev. Frederick Davie. (Photo courtesy of UTS)
In addition to Union Theological Seminary, Thursday’s event is co-sponsored by New York’s Interfaith Center, the Jewish Theological Seminary, and Riverside Church and will feature Imam Musa Kabba of the Bronx’s Masjid-ur-Rahmah mosque and New York’s Episcopal bishop, the Rt. Rev. Matthew Heyd. The day’s first panels will offer Abrahamic perspectives on the work done by faith organizations and will also be an occasion to reflect on these groups’ past achievements.
“We would not be faithful to our various faith traditions if we were not doing this. It would actually be an act of unfaithfulness to see this hugely vulnerable population beset by the state and authorities and to turn away from it,” said the Rev. Frederick Davie, vice president for public theology and civic engagement at Union Theological Seminary.
Adama Bah, who will participate in this discussion, said it was crucial to protect faith-based organizations’ unique status as shelters for migrants. Houses of worship inspire trust and are often the first stop for migrants arriving in the city, she explained. Bah runs Afrikana, an organization that provides legal help, shelter and benefit assistance to Black, Arab and Muslim migrants in Harlem and the Bronx.
Many Black and African migrants come to her organization knowing they will be able to connect with members of their community and speak their languages.
RELATED: As New York’s migrant crisis grinds on, some faith-based organizations go it alone
“When you arrive, you go to what you recognize and who you recognize. These folks recognize a mosque, they recognize a church, they recognize a synagogue. So they are comfortable going to those places and saying, ‘I need help,’” she said.
Bah said she’s worried the new administration won’t make efforts to ensure documents addressing migrants are available in all languages. Afrikana serves individuals who mostly speak Wolof, French and Creole, and finding documents in adequate languages is crucial to the asylum and visa application process. “This administration doesn’t want people to understand their rights, and that’s what I’m more afraid of,” she said.
As a Black Muslim woman running an organization that serves many Muslim migrants, Bah also fears Islamophobia and that organizations like hers will be stigmatized. The support of other faith leaders, especially from different traditions, will help face this, she said.
“We really are in this together. So if you are Muslim, if you are Jewish, if you are Catholic, you know that if they go after one thing, they’re going to go after all of them,” she said.
The event will also focus on educating faith communities on the legal framework they’re working in. The day’s second panel will evoke the rules and laws affecting their work to ensure faith groups know what they can and can’t do. Since Trump announced his intent to rescind sanctuary, speakers will ensure organizations that might overstep the law know what they are facing.
“If faith organizations bump against the law and decide they want to step over it, because their tradition, in some ways, demands it, we want them to be clear about what that means as well,” said Davie.
This panel will feature professor Alina Das, who co-directs NYU School of Law’s Immigrant Rights Clinic. Das is the author of “No Justice in the Shadows: How America Criminalizes Immigrants” (2020), a book in which she highlights how Trump’s immigration strategies revolve around criminalizing immigrants.
The Rev. Serene Jones. (Photo courtesy of UTS)
“As an immigrant rights lawyer, I’ve seen the difference that faith leaders and congregations have made when they connect immigrants with legal and social services, support them in court proceedings, and open hearts and minds to the importance of protecting immigrants’ rights,” wrote Das in an email to RNS.
The event will also offer a networking session dedicated to connecting faith organizations to other groups working in their neighborhoods.
Jones said that despite the difficult times ahead, faith groups remain committed to providing shelter and assistance to migrants.
“It’s near and dear to our hearts and our hands and feet, and how we move into the world, that we don’t shy away from this moment,” she said.
This article was updated to correct in paragraph 5 that Union Theological Seminary is also a sponsor of the event.’
In Newark, Catholic bishops host interfaith leaders to oppose mass deportation
(RNS) — On Monday, the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey, and the multifaith community organizing group Faith in Action held a day of prayer and dialogue with immigrant families at St. Lucy’s Catholic Church.
Faith leaders representing various religions from across the U.S. gather to pray with immigrants at an interfaith gathering presented by the Archdiocese of Newark and Faith in Action at St. Lucy’s Church in Newark, N.J., on Jan. 13, 2025. (Photo by Archdiocese of Newark/Sean Quinn)
Aleja Hertzler-McCain
January 14, 2025
(RNS) — Back in November, just a week after Donald Trump was elected to a second term as U.S. president, Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, chair of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ committee on migration, said the bishops would be cautious not to overreact to Trump’s immigration promises, as “the reality is different from the rhetoric.”
Now, one week ahead of Trump’s inauguration, after the administration has said it will cast aside a restriction on Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids on sensitive spaces, including houses of worship, and after Customs and Border Patrol conducted a large-scale raid near Bakersfield, California, Seitz is taking a more urgent tone.
“We are at risk of losing part of our soul as a nation, so this is a time of great concern,” Seitz told RNS, saying immigration policy must acknowledge the importance of fundamental human dignity and inalienable rights.
Seitz, like many immigration observers, believes the Bakersfield area raid foreshadows the types of raids that might take place under the Trump administration, which made mass deportations a cornerstone of Trump’s campaign promises.
January 14, 2025
(RNS) — Back in November, just a week after Donald Trump was elected to a second term as U.S. president, Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, chair of the U.S. Catholic bishops’ committee on migration, said the bishops would be cautious not to overreact to Trump’s immigration promises, as “the reality is different from the rhetoric.”
Now, one week ahead of Trump’s inauguration, after the administration has said it will cast aside a restriction on Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids on sensitive spaces, including houses of worship, and after Customs and Border Patrol conducted a large-scale raid near Bakersfield, California, Seitz is taking a more urgent tone.
“We are at risk of losing part of our soul as a nation, so this is a time of great concern,” Seitz told RNS, saying immigration policy must acknowledge the importance of fundamental human dignity and inalienable rights.
Seitz, like many immigration observers, believes the Bakersfield area raid foreshadows the types of raids that might take place under the Trump administration, which made mass deportations a cornerstone of Trump’s campaign promises.
RELATED: Catholic bishops say they will defend migrants if Trump violates rights
On Monday (Jan. 13), Seitz traveled to Newark, New Jersey, to join Cardinal Joseph Tobin, his archdiocese and Faith in Action, a multifaith community organizing group, at St. Lucy’s Catholic Church for a day of prayer and dialogue with immigrant families. After the event, Seitz went to visit the Statue of Liberty, which has “great meaning” for him, especially now, he told RNS en route.
Bishop Mark Seitz, center with microphone, with Cardinal Joseph Tobin, left, and Pastor Omar Coronado, right, during an interfaith gathering presented by the Archdiocese of Newark and Faith in Action at St. Lucy’s Catholic Church, Jan. 13, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (Photos by Archdiocese of Newark/Sean Quinn and Maria Margiotta)
Bishop Dwayne Royster, a United Church of Christ minister and the executive director of Faith in Action, said that beyond the Catholic bishops, there were faith leaders from the United Church of Christ, as well as Jewish and Muslim leaders. In addition to Tobin and Seitz representing Catholic prelates, auxiliary bishops from Newark, and New Jersey bishops from Camden, Metuchen and Paterson were all present.
The Faith in Action leader said the presence of many different faith leaders together was meant to send a strong message against mass deportations, that “we’re going to do everything within our power to prevent this from happening.”
Royster said the leaders also meant to convey to the decision-makers in government who are pushing mass deportation policies: “If you’re a person of faith, you are operating contrary to the will of God.”
The Rev. Stephen Ray Jr., former president of Chicago Theological Seminary and senior minister at United Church on the Green in New Haven, Connecticut, who spoke at the event, told RNS he felt it was important to engage in interfaith action because “an entire part of the way that this is being weaponized against people who are very vulnerable is presented as if deportations, etc., are somehow some sort of Christian response.”
“It’s important to show a picture of people of goodwill across religious traditions, that we stand together for the best society,” Ray said.
Seitz told RNS that a critical element of the event was listening to immigrants themselves, and he, Royster and Ray all said they were moved by the testimonies of immigrants who are now fearing deportation under the Trump administration’s proposed policies.
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center, Oct. 11, 2024, in Aurora, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
“One of the things that makes one most fearful is being alone in times of trial,” said Seitz. “That’s one of the things the church certainly can do is to be present to people who might otherwise feel forgotten.”
In his speech at the event, Tobin said: “We’re deeply concerned about the potential impact of mass deportation on children and families. Within the Catholic tradition and other faith expressions represented here today, we’re able to see the humanity in everyone.”
RELATED: On US-Mexico border, Catholic leaders prepare for return of Trump anti-migrant regime
Tobin said faith communities could show their love to immigrants through four actions: encounter, a Catholic term involving listening, accompaniment, prayer and advocacy.
Royster, who also leads a religious order called the Society for Faith and Justice, highlighted that not only houses of worship, but also schools and hospitals, which had previously had some protection from ICE raids, often have ties to religious traditions.
“The interruption of the government is actually invading religious liberty when they invade those spaces,” Royster told RNS of the proposed change in ICE raid policy. “We ought to be able to minister to those who are sick, those that need education, those who are seeking to have deeper connection.”
In his prepared remarks, Seitz also spoke to the importance of those spaces. “It is to sanctuaries like this one, to churches and temples and holy places like this one that the community comes to be formed into a people,” he said in a speech that warned against the division created by fear and unjust laws.
“When the law is used to divide, to instill fear, to separate, this is not good law. This is not humane law. This is not just law. To elected officials I say, mass deportations are not good law,” he said.
Seitz added a caveat that has been part of his rhetoric, especially in recent months. “We do not oppose legitimate law enforcement actions against those who would threaten the safety and security of our families and our communities with violence,” he said.
But, he made clear, “in the face of tactics of intimidation and division, the Catholic Church will work to protect our families, to witness to human dignity, to defend our religious liberty, to oppose the shutting down of our borders and our hearts, to march and work for immigration reform and good laws, to pour cool water on embers of hate, to preach the good news.”
Faith-based immigrant rights activist faces threat of deportation
(RNS) — Ravi Ragbir has helped thousands of immigrants as the co-founder of New Sanctuary Coalition. Now he faces the threat of deportation.
In this March 9, 2017, file photo, Ravi Ragbir, center, executive director of the New Sanctuary Coalition, a Trinidad-born immigrant who works to protect New York's immigrant families from detention and deportation, walks with supporters as he arrives for his annual check-in with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)
Greta Gaffin
January 14, 2025
Ravi Ragbir has accompanied thousands of immigrants in New York City at their check-ins with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency known as ICE that oversees undocumented immigration.
Soon he must face his own fateful appointment with ICE.
“The stress and anxiety of not knowing my future will not abate, and I know that I will only get through this with the support of my community, and particularly of the faith leaders who have walked with me for so many years, and have committed to do so throughout this long journey,” Ragbir said.
Ragbir came to the U.S. from Trinidad and Tobago in 1991 in his 20s and became a lawful permanent resident in 1994. After Ragbir was convicted for mortgage fraud and served a 30-month sentence, an immigration judge ordered that he be deported in 2006 without a hearing. Ragbir has been seeking ever since to vacate his felony conviction.
Ragbir spent two years in immigration detention after his time in prison. The experiences, which he describes as “harsh,” led him to work for Families for Freedom, which fights deportation orders.
In 2007, Ragbir co-founded the New Sanctuary Coalition, which partners with Judson Memorial Church in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village to pair Americans with immigrants who are afraid to go to their ICE check-ins alone. He has since testified for the New York City Council and met with congressional representatives about immigrants’ needs.
Not everyone facing a deportation order will have to leave the country, but they also never know when they may have to leave. Daily life becomes uncertain. When Ragbir needed a new office computer, he decided not to buy one until after his check-in with ICE officials. He didn’t know if he’d be allowed to stay.
It’s especially tough for an immigration activist who has frequently criticized ICE. In 2017, ICE banned New Sanctuary Coalition volunteers from accompanying immigrants to their check-ins.
Then in 2018, Ragbir was arrested and detained at his own check-in. After much public outcry, he was released and not deported. He successfully argued his arrest was in retaliation for his anti-ICE comments and that the agency violated the First Amendment by arresting him. Ragbir won a three-year stay of the deportation order, which ended on Dec. 16, 2024.
His next ICE check-in was initially scheduled for Monday (Jan. 13), but he was granted an extension until March. ICE did not respond to a reporter’s email seeking comment for this story.
“This reprieve allows me to breathe a bit easier, at least for the moment,” Ragbir said. “It also gives me more time to continue fighting to stay here with my community and my family, and to continue fighting for other people living with the same level of uncertainty.”
Ragbir’s activism led him to his now wife, Amy Gottlieb, who is the U.S. migration director of the American Friends Service Committee. Their honeymoon was in the Rockaways, a part of Queens, because Ragbir’s parole required him at that time to stay within New York City limits. He also has an American daughter in the U.S. from a previous relationship.
“We have created a life together, and the idea of living that life without my husband is devastating,” Gottlieb said in a statement.
Before 1996, when the most recent immigration legislation passed, immigration officials had more discretion to consider an immigrant’s situation — like marriage to a U.S. citizen — and assign green cards. But Ragbir’s marriage has not been considered for his case.
“A lot of the safety valves were taken away” in 1996, said one of Ragbir’s lawyers, Alina Das, who is the co-director of the Immigrants Rights Clinic at the New York University School of Law. “Now the only safety valve left is a presidential pardon.”
It’s unlikely President Joe Biden will pardon Ragbir before President-elect Donald Trump assumes office Jan. 20.
Ragbir asked for his case to be reconsidered after his marriage to Gottlieb, but the federal government declined to hear his appeal. His supporters are worried that because he faced retaliation for his activism during the first Trump administration, he will face similar retaliation during the second one. Trump has said the first mass deportations should prioritize criminals, without specifying which crimes.
Ragbir’s lawyers have been trying to secure him a pardon since 2016. Last year, they appealed directly to the White House instead of the Department of Justice.
“We’re hoping that since the president has done some really important pardons, that he doesn’t forget about Ravi before he leaves office on the 20th,” said the Rev. Cece Jones-Davis, a Disciples of Christ minister and activist who has been involved with his case.
Ragbir’s work has been closely tied to his faith.
He was awarded the Bishop’s Cross by the Rt. Rev. Lawrence Provenzano, the Episcopal bishop of Long Island, in 2018 for his service to the community. Provenzano also made Ragbir an honorary canon of the Diocese of Long Island, which makes him an honorary member of the cathedral chapter that advises the bishop.
“Through his sanctuary work as Ecumenical Canon for Immigration, he has helped thousands and forged a vital connection between the immigrant rights movement and our mission to preach the Gospel,” Provenzano said in a statement. “His ministry is a living testament to our Baptismal Covenant: to seek Christ in all, love our neighbors, and strive for justice and dignity for every human being.”
Judge William Bassler, who sentenced Ragbir to prison, wrote to the Office of the Pardon Attorney, who assists the president in writing pardons, that Ragbir “has fully paid the price for his actions, and deserves not only to do invaluable work, but to care for his wife and daughter, free from the threat of deportation.”
Ragbir has also received support from 16 members of Congress, retired Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church Michael Curry, the Rev. Al Sharpton and the Rev. William Barber.
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