Bishop stuns priest by telling immigrant Catholics to skip Mass if they fear ICE

A California bishop is taking the unusual step of urging Catholics in his diocese to refrain from attending Sunday Mass if they fear they are at risk of being arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Jesuit priest Father James Martin, a frequent critic of the Trump administration's treatment of migrants, flagged the announcement by Bishop Alberto Rojas of the Diocese of San Bernardino on Wednesday afternoon.

"Recognizing that fear of immigration enforcement, such as raids by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), may deter some members of our diocese from fulfilling the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation (cf. Canon 1247, and acknowledging that such fear constitutes a grave inconvenience that may impede the spiritual good of the faithful," wrote Rojas, he granted a "Dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass" and "encouragement of alternative spiritual practices," along with "pastoral care and assurance" during this time.

"In an extraordinary move, the Bishop of San Bernardino 'dispenses' (frees the person) from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass if the person fears ICE. Bishop Rojas (wisely) says he is guided by a desire to extend his pastoral care to those who 'face fear and hardship,'" wrote Martin. "It is a dramatic sign that not even Catholic churches are considered safe places any longer."

"Where are the voices for religious freedom now?" he added.

This follows the outspoken criticism by other high-ranking Catholic clergy against President Donald Trump's tax cut megabill, passed earlier this month, with Cardinals Robert McElroy of Washington, D.C., and Joseph Tobin of Newark, New Jersey, stating in an interfaith open letter that the legislation will “sow chaos in local communities,” “be used to target faith communities,” and “harm the poor and vulnerable in our nation, to the detriment of the common good.”