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Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday firmly affirmed the American bishops’ message condemning the Trump administration’s immigration raids, calling on Americans to listen to immigrants and treat them humanely and with dignity.
The pope was asked about the “special message” the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops adopted during its general assembly last week in Baltimore.
The bishops criticized President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda and the “vilification” of migrants, expressing concern about the fear and anxiety that immigration raids stoke in communities, as well as the denial of pastoral care to migrants in detention centers.
“We are disturbed when we see among our people a climate of fear and anxiety around issues of profiling and immigration enforcement,” the bishops’ statement read. “We are saddened by the state of the contemporary debate and by the defamation of immigrants. We are concerned about the conditions in detention centers and the lack of access to pastoral care,” reads the statement from the bishops, who also oppose “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people.”
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Pope Leo XIV greets the faithful after a special mass for the Jubilee of the poor, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican, Sunday, November 16, 2025. (AP)
Leo, the first American pope, said he appreciated the American bishops’ message and encouraged Catholics and all people of good will to listen to and treat immigrants with dignity, even if they are in the country illegally.
“I think we have to look for ways to treat people humanely, treat them with the dignity that they have,” Leo told reporters. “If there are people in the United States illegally, there are ways to deal with it. There are courts, there is a justice system.”
The Pope has previously invited local bishops to speak on issues of social justice. Catholic leaders have criticized Trump’s mass deportation plan as fear of immigration raids has reduced mass attendance in some parishes.
Catholic leaders have criticized Trump’s mass deportation plan as fear of immigration raids has reduced mass attendance in some parishes. (Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP/Getty Images)
Earlier this year, the federal government revoked a directive from the Biden administration that prohibited immigration agents from conducting raids in sensitive areas such as churches, schools and hospitals.
Leo acknowledged problems with the US immigration system, but emphasized that no one has advocated that the United States have open borders and that each country can choose who can enter and the methods to do so.
“But when people live a good life, and many of them for 10, 15, 20 years, to treat them in a way that is at the very least extremely disrespectful – and unfortunately there has been some violence – I think the bishops have been very clear in what they said,” he told reporters as he left the papal country house south of Rome.
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The pope said he appreciated the American bishops’ message and encouraged Catholics and all people of good will to listen to treat immigrants with dignity. (Getty Images)
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“I would simply invite all the people of the United States to listen to them,” Leo added.
The bishops’ “special message” was the first time since 2013 that they drafted a statement on a single topic at one of their meetings.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.