Catholic Diocese Sues U.S. Government Over Potential Removal of Priests

For over a year, various religious organizations have been urging Congress and the Biden administration to address a recent procedural shift in the processing of green cards for religious workers. This change poses a significant threat to the ability of thousands of these individuals to serve in their ministries across the United States.

The Catholic Diocese of Paterson, along with five priests facing expiring legal status in the coming spring, has filed a lawsuit against the federal agencies that govern immigration. The lawsuit asserts that the procedural changes “will cause severe and substantial disruption to the lives and religious freedoms” of the priests and the hundreds of thousands of Catholics they serve.

Bishop Kevin Sweeney, who oversees 400,000 Catholics and 107 parishes in the New Jersey diocese, remarked on the situation, saying, “Our priests feel we’re doing the best we can.”

Paterson is the first diocese to challenge the Department of State, Department of Homeland Security, and the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in this manner, according to attorney Raymond Lahoud. He noted that “there is a buzz out there” among other religious groups similarly affected, particularly since many depend heavily on foreign-born clergy who forge strong connections within their U.S. parishes.

Bishop Mark Seitz, who leads the migration committee for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, described the situation as highly disruptive. The group has called for both legislative and administrative remedies due to what they see as unsustainable delays in green card processing.

In Seitz’s border diocese of El Paso, Texas, he faces potential losses of priests whose permanent residency applications seem unlikely to be finalized prior to their visas expiring. Federal law usually requires these individuals to leave the United States for a period of at least one year.

Seitz expressed concern about the implications of sending away a pastor of a large, growing parish. “Now I’m supposed to send him away for a year, put him on ice, as it were — and somehow provide Masses?” he said.

American dioceses have historically relied on agreements with foreign dioceses to bring in clergy, including seminarians, priests, and nuns from various countries such as Poland, the Philippines, and Nigeria. This practice has only become more crucial over recent decades as the shortage of religious workers continues to grow.

Various faith denominations, from Buddhism to Islam and Pentecostal Christianity, also seek foreign-born clergy for diverse reasons. These include meeting the needs of expanding non-English-speaking congregations and obtaining specialized religious training from foreign educational institutions steeped in their traditions.

Most of the religious workers in the United States are classified under temporary R-1 visas, which permit them to work in the country for a period of five years. This timeframe was previously sufficient for organizations to evaluate the suitability of clergy and petition for their permanent resident status under a special category known as EB-4.

Each year, Congress sets a cap on the number of green cards available within specific categories, which are usually determined by employment types or familial ties to U.S. citizens. The wait period for approval can vary significantly based on demand and available visas.

Citizens from countries with particularly high demand find themselves in longer queues. Currently, the most overwhelmed category involves married children of U.S citizens from Mexico, where applications submitted over 24 years ago remain unprocessed.

The situation has worsened due to a recent decision by the State Department that compounded delays for neglected or abused minors from Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. These groups, experiencing a surge in humanitarian green card requests since the mid-2010s, were erroneously placed in separate processing lines. They have now been merged with the clergy in processing queues, exacerbating backlogs that currently exceed three and a half years and could extend to as long as 10-15 years.

“This is an untenable situation,” stated Lance Conklin, co-chair of the religious workers group within the American Immigration Lawyers Association, who regularly represents evangelical pastors. Conklin believes the lawsuit reflects widespread feelings of frustration among many affected individuals and organizations.

In collaboration with the bishops’ conference and other groups, the lawyers’ association has been advocating for enduring congressional solutions, recognizing that any reform related to immigration is politically sensitive. They are also seeking simpler administrative changes that federal agencies could make quickly.

Proposed changes include allowing applicants to switch ministry roles without risking their place in the green card line or reducing the mandatory duration they must stay outside the U.S. after their visa expires before they can reapply.

Bishop Seitz emphasized that even shortening this duration to a month would be manageable, contrasting it with the current requirement of twelve months.

Organizations are remaining steadfast, hoping that the administration will implement at least these temporary adjustments, potentially influenced by the lawsuit filed in August in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey.

Many of these religious organizations find themselves without alternatives, as other employment visa and green card processes are often more complicated and costly, with many clergy members being ineligible for these options. A pertinent example is with Catholic nuns, who often don’t have any salary to demonstrate prevailing wages, a requirement meant to protect native workers in non-religious employment sectors.

Mary O’Leary, an immigration attorney representing religious orders, pointed out that “A lot of religious orders are not wealthy,” which adds to the difficulty of their situation.

In the Archdiocese of Chicago, a nun who serves as a school aide is required to leave the U.S. as her visa will soon expire. Archdiocese senior immigration counsel Olga Rojas expressed the desolation felt by the sister and many others in similar situations. “They want to stay and finish their work,” she stated.

Some organizations are making concerted efforts to repatriate religious workers from abroad, recognizing that beyond their ministry roles, these individuals provide essential education, healthcare, youth programs, and various social services — acting as a crucial support system within many communities.

Source: Associated Press