Last October, without objection, the people of our diocese passed a resolution committing ourselves to working towards and offering Sanctuary and Support for immigrants and refugees.
We affirmed that our faith calls us not only to compassion in theory, but to concrete action. Not only to prayer, but to presence.
The people we’ve committed to support are all children of God. Each with their own stories, their own names, their own faces.
Today, the story and face of our commitment belongs to Andrés.
Andrés is currently detained at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, an 1,800-bed ICE detention facility operated by a for-profit prison company. We were alerted to Andrés and his story through our friends in the Diocese of Chicago, with whom we’ve worked before in supporting a detainee, and in the Diocese of Michigan, where Andrés and his family live. While he awaits his immigration hearings, Mtr. Radha Michel-Trapaga of the Central Michigan Episcopal Covenant (St. Mary’s, Cadillac and St. Andrew’s Big Rapids) has been visiting him regularly to offer pastoral care.
La Historia de Andrés | Andrés’s Story
Andrés is an asylum seeker.
In his home country of Venezuela, Andrés was part of a political organization protesting the dictatorship. During one protest, he was shot and knocked unconscious by military forces. When he regained consciousness, he was in the custody of another group who interrogated, tortured, and beat him because of his political involvement. Eventually, he was left for dead.
He survived. He hid. He recovered. And he fled.
Four and a half years ago, Andrés made his way to the United States seeking safety. He received a valid work visa. He worked as an electrical technician and delivery driver. He has a social security number. He paid taxes. He built a life.
Here, he met his wife. Together they are raising two sons, now 22 and 16. Andrés has been the family’s primary breadwinner and the primary physical caregiver for his older son, who lives with severe muscular dystrophy.
Several weeks ago, his wife, María, was diagnosed with cancer.
Months ago, despite his valid work visa and his pending asylum case, Andrés was sought out by immigration officers and detained and transferred to North Lake. He has remained there awaiting his hearings.
When Mtr. Radha visits him, Andrés speaks most often not about himself, but about his family. He worries about how they will afford treatment. He worries about how his son’s physical needs will be met. He asks for prayer for his upcoming asylum and deportation hearings.
Even in detention, Andrés searches for where God is present. During visits, he and Mtr. Radha pray together. They trade mini language lessons, Spanish for English, primarily through psalms and prayers from the Book of Common Prayer. They also have fun with the many oddities of English in Michigan (Mtr. Radha clued him in about “pop” instead of soda!). In one of the hardest seasons of his life, Andrés continues to seek meaning, faith, connection, and hope.
His story came to our attention through our partners in the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago. A small parish in The Episcopal Diocese of Michigan has helped the family to pay rent while they are separated and has helped connect his wife with translators so that critical legal forms can be completed in time for court.
This is collaborative ministry across dioceses. It is pastoral. It is practical. It is urgent.
Sé Fiel en la Oración | Be Faithful in Prayer
Andrés’s first master calendar hearing is February 20. Please be faithful in prayer:
- for Andrés’ upcoming hearings,
- for protection from deportation which would almost certainly be deadly,
- for healing for María,
- for strength and care for his sons, and
- for justice and mercy in our immigration system.
These prayers from the Episcopal Public Policy Network are a great place to start.
Dios de todo consuelo, nuestros corazones se quebrantan por las personas actualmente detenidas en detención por asuntos de inmigración en los Estados Unidos y en el extranjero, especialmente nuestro hermano Andrés. Lamentamos los decesos bajo la custodia de ICE (Inmigración y Control de Aduanas), y lloramos con todos los que sienten miedo y dolor. Envía Tu espíritu de misericordia y sabiduría sobre los que están en el poder, para que salvaguarden los derechos humanos y la dignidad de los detenidos. Fortalece a quienes trabajan y abogan por la liberación de los injustamente detenidos y por la reforma del sistema migratorio, en nombre de Tu Hijo, Jesús, que libera a los cautivos. Amén
God of all consolation, our hearts break for the individuals currently held in immigration detention in the U.S. and abroad, especially our brother Andrés. We grieve the deaths in ICE (Immigrations and Customs Enforcement) custody, and we mourn with those feeling fear and pain. Send your spirit of mercy and wisdom upon those in power, that they may safeguard the human rights and dignity of those detained. Strengthen those who work and advocate for the release of those unjustly detained and for reform of the immigration system, in the name of your son, Jesus, who sets the captives free. Amen.
Cómo Puedes Ayudar | How You Can Help
On Ash Wednesday, some parishes read together in Isaiah 58 about the fast, the show of worship and honor to God, that God chooses. That fast is
to loose the bonds of injustice,
to let the oppressed go free,
to share bread with the hungry,
and not to hide ourselves from our own kin.
Sanctuary and Support is not abstract. It is showing up in detention centers. It is helping families complete legal paperwork. It is raising funds for legal defense. It is prayer. It is presence. It is partnership. It is urgent.
Our own Standing Committee has approved paying for a portion of Andrés’s upfront legal fees so that he is able to start his legal process with as much support as possible.
Our diocesan staff is going to do the best we can to share with you practical things you can do as an individual or as a parish to support immigrants and refugees in our communities during this particularly fraught and dangerous time. Keep an eye on our new Take Action: Migration Ministry space for closest-to-real-time updates about ways to be the hands and feet of Christ for our immigrant and refugee neighbors. If you’re a member of our Circle Community, you can join the space or invite others to join it so that you get push notifications when we make updates. If you’d like to join Circle or have questions, please reach out to Rachel Rose, Director for Communication.
When we repair the breach, then our light will break forth like the dawn. When we repair the breach, God says, “Here I am.”
Let us enter the fast God chooses together.