Religious leader helps man facing deportation

Associated Press

NEWARK, N.J.

The leader of the state’s largest Roman Catholic archdiocese bowed his head and prayed with a man who entered the U.S. illegally decades ago before the man walked into a federal building to face possible deportation, a high-profile example of how religious leaders are responding to recent immigration enforcement actions under Republican President Donald Trump.

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, the head of the Newark archdiocese, led a rally Friday to support Catalino Guerrero, portraying him as embodying the human cost of a broken immigration policy. Guerrero, whose immigration issues began before Trump took office this year, was given a 60-day extension to seek a stay of deportation.

Guerrero, who’s from Union City and has four children and four grandchildren, “puts a face” to what is often treated as “statistics or demons,” Tobin said before the hearing.

“You can see what Catalino looks like, and you’ve heard how he has lived,” Tobin said. “We’re now going to ask the officials determining his fate to not only see his face, but ours as well.”

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has issued a steady stream of criticisms of Trump’s restrictions on refugees and immigrants. Other faith groups, including a network of 37 Protestant and Orthodox denominations that work with the aid group Church World Service, are mobilizing their congregations to fight Trump’s policies.

Hundreds of houses of worship around the country have joined the sanctuary movement, which provides support or housing to people facing deportation.

Guerrero, who’s 59, came to the U.S. illegally from Mexico in 1991 and has worked consistently and paid taxes, owns his house and has no criminal record, Democratic U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez said. He applied for a work permit several years ago but filled out a form incorrectly and mistakenly applied for asylum, Menendez said.