Pastor Manoel Oliveira of New Life Church in Massachusetts pointed out that even immigrants with legal status are affected. “It’s not just undocumented immigrants who are being impacted emotionally. Those who have documents often have a friend or family member who doesn’t, and they share in that suffering,” he said.
The Rev. Gabriel Salguero, president of the National Latino Evangelical Coalition, said pastors in Florida have reported cases of longtime members of their congregations who have no criminal records and deep ties to their communities being detained and deported, including a small-group leader in her 60s, a worship team guitarist, the wife of a pastor, parents of young children and many others.
These are people who attend immigration hearings to regularize their status, Salguero said. “While we support due process and the deportation of violent criminals, we oppose this indiscriminate approach that targets mothers, elders and faith leaders. We are concerned that there are still some apologists who continue to say that’s not happening when we know it is happening, and we’ve seen it.”
Agustín Quiles, president of Mission Talk and board member of the Fraternidad de Concilios y Entidades Evangélicas, based in Florida, said many pastors themselves “are going to need counseling on how to deal with so many broken families and even with the law.”
He adds: “It’s real pain. Some pastors are describing heartbreaking scenes of children screaming scared, and homemaker mothers left to care for their children alone, without a source of income or community stability.”
Amid the crisis, there is growing frustration among Latinos with the broader evangelical establishment.
“There’s a sense of abandonment from the white evangelical community,” said Quiles. “The councils and denominations are growing because of the membership numbers that come from the Latino church, yet they are silent, turning their backs to their Latino Christian sisters and brothers. We need to find a bridge there. There should not be two different gospels.”
Quiles said the moment demands unity. “There are a lot of heroes on the ground,” said Quiles. “The Latino church is vibrant and rising, and these leaders and communities are at the forefront, thinking creatively on how to protect their immigrants, how to serve their immigrants despite the threats that are coming from this administration.”
What has been helping Dornas get through this situation, said the Florida pastor, is the strong sense of solidarity in his Brazilian community. His congregants are raising funds to help pay bills and buy medication for those in need — even buying plane tickets for those who, out of fear, choose to return to their countries of origin.
This article originally appeared here.
