A United Methodist Insight Exclusive
As fear stalks the United States from a tsunami of executive orders targeting immigrants, migrants and refugees, United Methodists around the country are mobilizing to help the people they've been serving in ministry for many years.
As of Jan. 29, multiple United Methodist statements have been published in support of immigrants and in defiance of President Donald Trump's executive orders halting immigration and imposing mass deportations.
By far the largest UMC response to the flood of presidential executive orders came in the South Central Jurisdiction, where some 800 participants signed into a 60-minute webinar, "A UMC Conversation: The Journey with Migrant, Immigrant, and Refugee Communities." The event was hosted by Bishop Cynthia Fierro Harvey and Rio Texas Conference director of connectional ministries Abel Vega.
Bishop Harvey, who headed the United Methodist Committee on Relief before being elected a bishop, leads the Houston-based Texas Annual Conference and the San Antonio-based Rio Texas Annual Conference. A United Methodist layman, Mr. Vega has been Rio Texas' immigration specialist for the past five years.
Seven immigrant agency leaders spoke
Organized by the South Central Jurisdiction College of Bishops, the webinar featured seven panelists who reported on their respective UMC-related immigration ministries and the effect the executive orders are having on their communities. Mr. Vega prepared a table giving the panelists' names, their agencies and contact information so pastors and churches can consult them (see accompanying chart).

Immigration Agency Leaders
Chart Courtesy of Abel Vega, Rio Texas Annual Conference
Panelists involved in direct aid to immigrants told emotional stories of fear, anxiety and disruption caused by President Trump's executive actions that have thrust the United States into chaos and confusion.
The scope of the immigration orders' impact extends beyond the U.S.-Mexico border, said Mr. Vega. He cited 2021-22 statistics that agencies had assisted 262,000 immigrants from 22 different countries.
"We're really dealing with global migration," Mr. Vega said. "It's not just about the border; mass deportation affects families and people related to immigrants. We must determine how to be the church in these times."
Deaconess Cindy Andrade Johnson of Brownsville, Texas, emphasized the importance of the United Methodist connectional system, which links churches worldwide in mission and ministry.
"We need to amplify migrants' voices; our job is to partner with them," said Ms. Johnson, who works with El Valle District Immigration Response /La Posada Providencia - San Benito. "It's really hard to do right now because they're so fearful, but accompaniment very important."
Ms. Johnson said she had met "a wonderful group of young women who are going to advocate for us at the Texas capital," but that ministry leaders decided not to identify them publicly for fear they would be targeted by immigration officers despite their legal status.
"We can't identify them because that might put them in peril, but we're not going to stop finding ways to help immigrants," Ms. Johnson said.
'There's a lot of pain'
The Rev. Liliana Padilla of Impacto Communitario said her San Antonio agency had been helping about 1,000 people per month. Since the executive orders were issued, however, participation has dropped.
"A woman called crying because her neighbor was arrested by ICE when he went out to go to work," said Rev. Padilla. "There's a lot of pain, a lot of crying. People who don't work today will need food for next week."
The Rev. Mike Smith, executive director of the Holding Institute in Laredo, Texas, said his agency is located at Mile 1 of Interstate 35. Laredo is the largest inland port in the United States and experiences "lots" of international traffic, he said.
"Tariffs are a very real, very direct effect on our community," he said, noting that his agency has Methodist roots extending back to 1860. "The number of people who come for our services – we give out food and clothing – has dropped because people are afraid to come out. But we've had an increase in telephone calls from people asking, 'Is it safe to come out of the house? Is it safe to take the kids to school?'"
Rev. Smith said his agency will continue to host "Know Your Rights" workshops and offer family support online, through social media and especially through local radio, an important media channel for many immigrant families.
Valeria Wheeler, executive director of Mission Border Hope in Eagle Pass, Texas, said her agency has a "beautiful shelter" going unused because of the heightened fear caused by the presidential orders and immigration crackdown.
"In 2023-24, we saw 1,000 people a day," she said. "We were seeing wealthy people running from oppression and also very poor people walking with little children, people with sunburned skin."
She said her agency's overnight center offers food, clothing and sanitary supplies along with non-emergency medical care to reduce the burden on the hospital in Eagle Pass, which has a population of around 35,000 people.
Crackdown could bring deadly consequences
The Rev. Javier Leyva, pastor of First UMC in Eagle Pass, said his parsonage faces a portion of the border wall that President Trump had installed during his first term in office. Rev. Leyva said that most of his congregation are legal immigrants, but that they might bring undocumented friends and relatives to church. He said he feared the immigration crackdown will lead to more human trafficking with deadly consequences.
"One thing we've been doing is holding a prayer vigil 30 minutes before sunset on the first Monday," said Rev. Leyva. "We have good relations with the Texas National Guard chaplains for our prayer services."
Rev. Lizzie Wright, executive director of the Austin Region of Immigration Law & Justice (formerly Justice For Our Neighbors) decried the "campaign of misinformation and propaganda (that) has brought us to this point." She said that immigrants' rights under the U.S. Constitution are being ignored, partly because there aren't enough attorneys willing to work with non-profit agencies to help people through the complicated immigration process.
"It's very hard work and it's not very remunerative," Rev. Wright said. She urged webinar participants to "be an advocate for people and find someone to help with casework." She cautioned churches, agencies and individuals to be "nimble and flexible" in helping people.
"Children's cases, trafficking, abuse cases are all going away because there's no funding," Rev. Wright. "Even people who have immigration papers, their papers say, "true at time of publication' because things have become so changeable."
Rev. Wright stressed that as of now, law enforcement can't enter churches or other agencies without an invitation or without an accurately worded warrant signed by a federal judge.
Know your rights
"Pastors and church leaders have a right to say ICE isn't allowed without a warrant," Rev. Wright said. "Also, you don't have to answer questions about who's there; you have the right to remain silent and to ask for an attorney to be present."
Adding that "what is legal is not always right," Rev. Wright urged webinar participants to press their congressional representatives to pass laws to protect people's rights.
Bishop Harvey said annual conference chancellors (attorneys) are working on documentation of constitutional rights for pastors and churches. She said the webinar reports from church-related agencies prompted her to suggest a new website be set up to hold immigration resources and other information related to any new presidential orders.
Mr. Vega said that churches and faith-based agencies will continue in networks formed over the past five years, including networks at the U.S. northern border with Canada.
"This is the time to be the church in ministry and solidarity with our neighbors," he said
In closing, Bishop Harvey offered a prayer referring to Luke 4:18, when Jesus announced that "the Spirit of the Lord is upon me."
"We are anointed for this very time," the bishop said. "I pray you will feel that anointing in your spirit, that you get a sense of the presence and power of God in this time."
Solidarity with immigrants widespread
United Methodists have joined other Christians opposing President Trump's executive orders on immigration.
Retired Bishop Julius C. Trimble, now top executive of the General Board of Church and Society, published another of his "Justice Takes Courage" posts Jan. 24 encouraging United Methodists to comfort and protect vulnerable people, citing the new Social Principles that went into effect Jan. 1. "Most Americans believe a country has a right to control its borders. However, we as a Church have been called to promote the dignity of every person and resist the temptation to embrace criminalization, incarceration and mass deportation as though these are the best and only solutions to the complex issue of U.S. immigration. Mass deportations [are] incompatible with our recently adopted Social Principles of the United Methodist Church, and many of the proposed Trump administration policies are deeply un-Christian."
Bishop Kennetha J. Bigham-Tsai of the Iowa and Illinois Great Rivers annual conferences published a Jan. 21 letter signed by multiple religious leaders "Time for Action: Immigration Advocacy and Support Letter from Iowa’s Ecumenical Leaders." The leaders wrote: "As members of the Body of Christ, we stand together, reminding our nation of its historic commitments to human rights. We will renew our commitment to live out God’s second greatest commandment, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself' (Matthew 22:39). We will work to protect inherent dignity and insist on fair, lawful and compassionate treatment of everyone."
Bishop Dan Schwerin advised Northern Illinois and Wisconsin United Methodists to "watch and pray." "I write to assure the Northern Illinois-Wisconsin Episcopal Area that your leaders are networking to be responsive if or when an increase in mass deportation efforts arise," the bishop said in a conference newsletter. "We are in touch with people on the ground in a group chat, meeting regularly with people who are most vulnerable, networking, and resourcing, and we have statements ready for appropriate junctures. Now let’s watch and pray and be people of sanctuary and advocacy as the days unfold."
Bishop Thomas Bickerton, in a Jan. 25 letter citing Matthew 25:35-36 in The Message version of the Holy Bible, urged United Methodists in the New York and New England annual conferences "to embrace a posture of radical welcome and hospitality. I call upon all churches to provide a safe space of welcome to immigrants and the marginalized who are afraid, intimidated, and threatened. I call upon all leaders, both lay and clergy, to take bold steps to lead our people into the gospel and into the very communities where our churches reside. As Romans 15:7 says so clearly, “Welcome one another, therefore, just as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.”
California-Nevada Annual Conference announced an online event, "CalNev Supporting Our Immigrant Family and Neighbors: A Zoom Discussion on Feb. 4, 2025 at 6 p.m. (PST) with Bishop Sandra Olewine and clergy and laity from across the conference.
Holston Annual Conference's Church and Society Ministry Area issued a statement "against mass deportation policies of the current administration. " These executive orders of the new administration exacerbate the suffering among our vulnerable—immigrants, marginalized communities, and the poor--and run counter to our shared humanity. We must remember the teachings of Christ, who calls us to embrace the stranger and defend the oppressed. In this critical moment, it is vital that we as Christians stand together as a voice for justice and mercy for those who cannot protect themselves. To remain silent or inactive now will only embolden injustice and make it harder to resist the harm that will follow." Holston leaders also said they're working on developing training and assembling information to care for those affected by the policies and to coordinate conference resources and "other necessary expertise."
General Council on Finance and Administration's legal department is monitoring the situation but hasn't recommended any specific practices for local churches yet because property laws differ state to state and the political situation is fluid, said GCFA communications director Brandy Bivens.
General Board of Church and Society issued a statement Jan. 13 prior to the inauguration stating opposition to mass deportations based on the United Methodist Social Principles. For the Church and Society Resource Guide - “How To Support Migrants and Immigrants Globally,” click HERE
United Methodist Association of Retired Clergy (UMARC) issued a "statement of solidarity" Jan. 23 in support of Episcopal Bishop Mariann Budde, who asked President Trump to have mercy on migrants and LGBTQ persons who are frightened by the executive orders. " In solidarity with Bishop Mariann Budde, our United Methodist Association of Retired Clergy (UMARC) offers a gentle reminder to President Trump and to all leaders, of the Biblical values of mercy, compassion, and humility in our relationship with vulnerable Americans."
Cynthia B. Astle serves as Editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011 as an online news-and-views journal to amplify the voices of marginalize and underserved United Methodists. Please email for permission to use this article elsewhere.