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Pope Leo Presses U.S. Bishops to Confront Trump Deportation Tactics

A pair of Vatican meetings signaled a call for unified, forceful church action on migrants.

FILE - Pope Leo XIV blesses a child at the end of a Mass for the Jubilee of Migrants and Missionaries in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File)
Bishop of El Paso Mark Joseph Seitz talks with the Associated Press about the situation at the US border with Mexico during an interview at the Vatican, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Silvia Stellacci)
Pope Leo XIV attends the International Conference ''Raising Hope for Climate Justice'' as part of the 10th Anniversary of the Encyclical Laudato Si, at Mariapolis Center in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, on October 1, 2025. Arnold Schwarzenegger, founder of the ''Schwarzenegger Climate Initiative,'' joins Cardinal Jaime Spengler, President of the Brazilian Bishops' Conference and the Latin American Bishops' Council CELAM, Sister Alessandra Smerilli, Secretary of the Vatican Development Dicastery, and Maina Talia, Minister of the Interior and Environment of the island state of Tuvalu in the Pacific Ocean, for the climate conference on the tenth anniversary of Pope Francis' environmental encyclical ''Laudato si'.'' The aim is to find the next steps towards ecological change in the light of the Church's magisterium. (Photo by Massimo Valicchia/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Pope Leo XIV blesses a child as he arrives for a general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, October 8, 2025. REUTERS/Yara Nardi

Overview

  • During a Wednesday audience, Pope Leo urged visiting U.S. bishops to address the treatment of immigrants under President Trump’s policies, with Bishop Mark Seitz saying the pope wants the bishops’ conference to speak strongly.
  • A border delegation gave the pope letters from migrant families and a four‑minute video; participants said he watched the entire video, grew emotional, and pledged, “You stand with me and I stand with you,” signaling continued church accompaniment.
  • On Tuesday, Leo met privately with about 100 Latino Catholic ministers, encouraging their pastoral work with communities living in fear of deportation.
  • The White House rejected the pope’s critique of inhumane treatment, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt saying the administration enforces immigration laws in the most humane way possible.
  • On Thursday, Leo released his first major document, calling Catholics to help immigrants and echoing Francis-era criticism of border walls as he broadens his focus on the dignity of the poor.