Catholic Charities draws fire over video coaching illegal migrants on how to duck ICE workplace probes
New York PostJAN 25
Pope Condemns Trump's Mass Deportation Plan in Rare Letter
Above: Pope Francis leads a Mass on the occasion of the Jubilee of the armed forces, police, and security personnel in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, on Feb. 9, 2025, in Vatican City, Vatican. Image copyright: Alessandra Benedetti/Contributor/Corbis News via Getty Images
The Facts
Pope Francis issued a direct rebuke to the Trump administration's mass deportation program in a letter to US Catholic bishops on Tuesday, warning that forceful removal of people based solely on illegal status violates the "dignity of every human person."
The pope, who cited both Catholic doctrine and the Magna Carta in his statement, specifically challenged Vice Pres. JD Vance's interpretation of the Catholic concept of "ordo amoris" (order of love), arguing that Christian love "builds a fraternity open to all, without exception."
The White House has reported over 8K arrests in immigration enforcement actions since Trump took office on Jan. 20, with individuals being deported, held in federal prisons, or detained at the US naval base at Guantánamo Bay in Cuba.
The Spin
Left narrative
Trump's policy of rounding up immigrants, especially at churches, starkly contradicts the Christian values he claims to defend. Not only is he violating the sanctity of these spaces but also undermining the core Christian principle of offering sanctuary and compassion to those in need. This radical anti-immigrant policy disregards the dignity of individuals seeking refuge, betraying the very tenets of faith and decency.
Right narrative
Pope Francis is a hypocrite and a fraud whom liberals use to cudgel Catholics into accepting open borders. Not only does his religion not require open borders, but he sits in a heavily fortified city surrounded by 40-foot-high walls. There's also a financial incentive, as the Vatican's liberal partner in the US, known as Catholic Charities, receives billions of dollars of government funding to help facilitate illegal alien smuggling.