Pastor arrested for obstructing immigration officers

[Cairycat]

https://themennonite.org/daily-news/mennonite-pastor-arrested-resisting-ice-arrest/?fbclid=IwAR0FpxNTZbSqQfnI6fMOxtSU0SFWe4Z1zJ6nZwDsCNhjkkQVJ0YaWZc9YjE

Sometimes Christianity does live up to its principles.

From the article: "Isaac Villegas, pastor of Chapel Hill (North Carolina) Mennonite Fellowship, was arrested Nov. 23, along with 26 others, for obstructing immigration officers who were arresting Samuel Oliver-Bruno, who was to be deported from the United States. Oliver-Bruno’s son, Daniel Oliver Perez, a U.S. citizen, was also arrested for refusing to let go of his father, whom ICE agents were pulling into their van.

His own congregation is part of a coalition of North Carolina churches that provide sanctuary. See “Honduran woman fleeing violence takes sanctuary at Chapel Hill Church.”

there is also support from the broader church:

"Support has also come from the wider church, from Central District Conference of Mennonite Church USA, which Chapel Hill belongs to. Sue Park-Hur, denominational minister for leadership development of MC USA, wrote in an email: “Historically, Mennonites in our peace witness as Christ followers have taken risks to confront unjust laws that dehumanize and diminish the image of God in all people. Isaac is one of many who have taken that risk for the sake of a stranger who has become a neighbor, a brother.”

In her email, Park-Hur also noted MC USA’s 2014 Churchwide Statement on Immigration, which says: “If we truly ‘see the misery, hear the cries and know the sufferings’ of undocumented immigrants among us, our authentic response will be to choose, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to walk the difficult and sometimes risky journey of growth in confronting these complex immigration issues. As people who look to Scripture for guidance, we believe that the stories of our spiritual ancestors in the Old Testament and Jesus’ teachings in the New Testament are clear: we are to welcome the stranger.”