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D.C. Cardinal Slams Trump’s Migration Reforms as ‘Crusade’“The pathway of crusade and mass deportation cannot be followed in conscience by those who call themselves disciples of Jesus Christ, and we must work to make sure that that does not happen,” Cardinal Robert McElroy said in a speech to the Jesuit Refugee Service organization in D.C.McElroy called for welcoming policies similar to those established by President Joe Biden’s border czar, Alejandro Mayorkas, saying:The first pathway — which Catholic social teaching would support — is to change our laws so that they have secure borders and dignity for the treatment of everyone...

Washington’s new archbishop expresses concern about impact of policies on undocumented immigrants and federal workersIn an interview five days before he would be installed as the new archbishop of Washington, Cardinal Robert W. McElroy expressed concern about the personal impact of the Trump Administration’s controversial policies of mass deportations of undocumented immigrants and the widespread firings of federal workers.When asked what his message would be to the immigrant community at this time, Cardinal McElroy said, “Sorrow. Love, embrace, compassion. Advocacy and solidarity. And all done in God’s name.”In the wide-ranging March 6 interview with the editors of the Catholic Standard...

[Catholic Caucus] Catholics ask Trump administration to investigate USCCB on immigration, sex abuseThe request calls into question the Catholic Church's 'commitment to protecting minors and the vulnerable from sex abuse' and states that 'the USCCB should not be involved in settling refugees and immigrants.'Catholics have been devastated by the Catholic Church’s record for priestly sexual abuse, for covering up that abuse, and for mistreating victims. We question its commitment to protecting minors and the vulnerable from sex abuse and believe the USCCB should not be involved in settling refugees and immigrants. We fear some money was spent for undesignated and...

Incoming DC archbishop McElroy says he has no plans to meet with Trump but spoke at length with BidenCardinal McElroy revealed that he ‘had a lengthy call with President Biden the other day,’ though the left-wing, heterodox prelate said that he is not currently planning to see President Trump after his installation as archbishop of Washington, D.C.Cardinal Robert McElroy has indicated that he has no plans to meet President Donald Trump after his installation as the new archbishop of Washington, D.C., next month, yet he recently had a “lengthy” conversation with former President Joe Biden. McElroy, currently the bishop of...

A federal judge on Thursday delivered a major blow to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), denying their attempt to force the Trump administration into continuing taxpayer funding for their massive refugee resettlement operations. Judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump appointee, rejected the bishops’ request for a temporary restraining order (TRO) that would have forced the administration to immediately restore funding. The lawsuit, filed by the non-profit organization USCCB in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, challenged the Trump administration’s decision to cut off federal grants that fuel the mass resettlement of migrants across America—programs that have...

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, challenging its decision to suspend federal funding for refugee resettlement. The move comes as part of President Donald Trump’s broader effort to realign American priorities—protecting the homeland first, rather than funding programs that facilitate unchecked migration. The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, names the State Department, the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM), and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as defendants. USCCB is incorporated as a non-profit and headquartered in the District of...

Vice President JD Vance fired back at the US Conference of Catholic Bishops over its denunciation of the Trump administration rule change allowing ICE raids in churches and schools. Last week, the religious group slammed the move for “turning places of care, healing, and solace into places of fear and uncertainty for those in need” and warned that it endangers “the trust between pastors” and “the people they serve.” “As a practicing Catholic, I was actually heartbroken by that statement,” Vance, 40, told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” in an interview that aired Sunday. “I think that the US Conference...

Pope describes Trump’s planned deportations of immigrants as a ‘disgrace’Pope Francis has criticized US President-elect Donald Trump’s plan to deport immigrants as a “disgrace.” The pontiff, speaking during an Italian television interview, was asked about the incoming Trump administration’s plans to expel undocumented immigrants through an aggressive slate of immigration executive orders by the incoming president, who will be inaugurated Monday. “If it is true, it will be a disgrace, because it makes the poor wretches who have nothing to pay the unpaid bill. It won’t do. This is not the way to solve things,” Francis said during the Sunday...

US Bishops Denounce Trump’s Immigration PlansThe Catholic Church has clear teachings on immigration, but US bishops stand to lose lots of money from mass deportations.Cardinal Blase Cupich of Chicago opposes Trump plan for deportationsAs President-elect Donald Trump is just days away from returning to the White House, American Catholic leaders are denouncing his immigration agenda. Chicago’s powerful Cardinal Blase Cupich warned in a recent interview that U.S. bishops “are going to have to be prophetic and denounce any abuse of human dignity that may occur” as Trump rolls out his mass deportation program. “We are going to be vigilant and...

Pope Francis named Cardinal Robert McElroy of San Diego as the archbishop of Washington, D.C., this week, a leader with a reputation for taking a progressive stance on hot-topic issues within the Catholic Church. The Vatican announced on Monday McElroy's appointment as the new archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., to replace the retiring Cardinal Wilton Gregory. As McElroy has made headlines over the years with his views on abortion, LGBT rights and immigration, the following pages highlight four things to know about Cardinal McElroy. Supports communion for pro-choice Catholic politicians The election of Democratic President Joe...

[Catholic Caucus] Pope Francis’ remarks on sex abuse ring hollow after appointing McElroy as DC bishopWhile Pope Francis may call for better protection of the young and vulnerable, his elevation of Cardinal Robert McElroy as Archbishop of Washington, D.C., demonstrates that his actual regard for them is somewhat different to what his words suggest.Pope Francis with Cardinal McElroy (L), Cardinals Tobin & Cupich, on Oct 10, 2024.While Pope Francis decried any form of neglect or maltreatment of children on Wednesday, numerous commentators have opined that by appointing Cardinal Robert McElroy to the Archdiocese of Washington, Francis shows he has no...

[Catholic Caucus] McCarrick Successor McElroy: Francis’s Response to Trump?Back in 2018 during the “Summer of Shame,” the successor to (Cardinal) McCarrick was Donald Wuerl. The latter claimed he knew nothing of McCarrick’s crimes crying to heaven, but many were skeptical, and with good reason. He initially denied knowledge, and then admitted he did, in fact, know. After the Vatican assured us that they would speedily get to the bottom of the McCarrick scandal, a man aligned with McCarrick and his agenda was appointed in 2019: Wilton Gregory, shortly thereafter Cardinal. The next year, the McCarrick report was released by the...

ROME — The newly appointed Catholic archbishop of Washington, DC, said Monday that President Trump’s plans for deporting illegal immigrants is “incompatible with Catholic doctrine.”“At the same time,” he continued, “we are called always to have a sense of the dignity of every human person. And thus, plans which have been talked about at some levels of having a wider indiscriminate massive deportation across the country would be something that would be incompatible with Catholic doctrine.” (snip)The cardinal did not elaborate on which elements of Catholic doctrine he believes prohibit the deportation of migrants who enter a country illegally.