statement

Call for all churches to stand in solidarity with migrants and those who aid them

General Secretary Susan Henry-Crowe lifts up statements from The United Methodist Church following the arrest of Samuel Oliver-Bruno, a migrant, husband and father to a U.S.-citizen, who had been living in sanctuary at CityWell United Methodist Church.


Samuel Oliver-Bruno — a migrant, husband and father to a U.S.-citizen – was cruelly and unjustly arrested Friday, alongside over 25 people from his family and community at CityWell United Methodist Church, the church where he had been living in sanctuary for 11 months.

His arrest is one of the latest escalating actions from the U.S. government toward migrants and those who aid them, in this case, a sanctuary congregation.

I think it’s crucial, especially in the wake of last week’s arrest, to highlight several statements The United Methodist Church has made.

The United Methodist Church affirms the worth, dignity, and inherent value and rights of all people regardless of their nationality or legal status. Book of Resolutions, 3281

The United Methodist Church calls upon all United Methodist churches to support those congregations that prayerfully choose to offer sanctuary to undocumented migrants facing deportation. Book of Resolutions, 3281

The United Methodist Church has also stated its opposition to immigration policies that separate family members from each other or that include the detention of families with children and calls on local churches to be in ministry with immigrant families. Social Principles, ¶162

The United Methodist Church affirms the Christian mandate to engage in civil disobedience when laws and policies deem to be unjust, particularly in the face of anti-immigrant laws. Book of Resolutions, 3284

Drawing from these statements and from the church’s call to every United Methodist congregation to advocate for legislation that upholds the civil and human rights of all migrants, I ask United Methodists everywhere to join me in solidarity and prayer.

Not only do we stand and pray for Oliver-Bruno, his family, CityWell United Methodist Church, and other migrants and churches, but we also pray for a more just and welcoming world. As all migrants and those who aid them know, the harrowing journey to safety does not end in a church sanctuary.

And to United Methodists in the United States: contact your legislators. Urge them to oppose policies and funding that persecute migrants. We stand for the protection, not persecution, of migrants.

Let us be the church in the world.