Bishop Mark Seitz issues first pastoral letter on mass detention, deportations

The bishop of El Paso, Texas, called on immigration enforcement officers to follow the Gospel rather than “immoral order.”

Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, released the first pastoral letter on mass detention and deportations.

The “current national campaign of mass detention and detention is a grave moral evil, one which must be opposed, with prayer, peaceful action, and acts of solidarity with those affected,” Seitz wrote.

The Diocese of El Paso will hold a vigil on March 24 to “plead for respect for human life,” Seitz announced in the letter. He invited the faithful “to march and pray” with him and Auxiliary Bishop Anthony Celino as “an act of Lenten solidarity.”

“In this holy season of Lent, God invites us to journey with the suffering Jesus to the cross and to new life in the Resurrection,” Seitz wrote. “For this reason, I take this opportunity to speak to all the faithful in our El Paso Catholic community, and in particular to immigrant families.”

“Our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, told me personally to stand in solidarity with suffering migrant families and not to remain silent,” he said. “I will do everything I can to uphold the God-given dignity of every person in our borderlands community.”

The message written by Seitz was the first pastoral letter, a message authored by a U.S. bishop, on mass detention and deportations, according to the Diocese of El Paso.

The letter follows the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) special message on immigration approved at the 2025 Fall Plenary Assembly on Nov. 12, which expressed the bishops’ opposition to “the indiscriminate mass deportation of people.”

The bishops also addressed their concerns over the conditions of detention centers and prayed “for an end to dehumanizing rhetoric and violence, whether directed at immigrants or at law enforcement.”

Deportation and detention facilities

“To those of you affected by hatred and discrimination and afraid of what comes next, know that the Church stands with you,” Seitz wrote. “As your bishop, I carry your pain daily in my heart and in my prayers.”

The bishop wrote that people in the El Paso community are being taken by law enforcement as they leave immigration court proceedings, workers are being taken from their jobs, and parents are no longer able to work because the government has taken away their work permits.

Seitz also detailed the treatment of immigrants in detention centers, specifically at El Paso’s Camp East Montana immigrant detention center.

“Young women are languishing in mental torture for months in private detention centers, even when, coerced by the conditions of their imprisonment, they beg to be deported,” he wrote. “So many people are once again being made to feel like they are less than American.”

To combat this, the El Paso Catholic Church “will redouble our ministries with those in the downtown courthouse, in the detention centers, in Ciudad Juarez and with families in our parishes,” Seitz wrote. “We will continue to celebrate your contributions to our community, to defend your human dignity, and to work to end racism and make immigration reform a reality.”

Need for ‘significant immigration reforms’

“While we do need significant immigration reforms, it is an injustice to make families, children, and the vulnerable pay the price of our inaction,” Seitz wrote. “Policies, laws, and borders must always be at the service of human dignity, genuine community security, and human flourishing.”

Addressing law enforcement, Seitz said he is “blessed with many friendships” in local law enforcement and immigration enforcement agents. “Their work to keep our community safe is vital,” he said. “But the death of those in immigration detention is unacceptable.”

… the death of those in immigration detention is unacceptable.

Bishop Mark Seitz

Diocese of El Paso

Thirty-eight people have died in custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since the start of fiscal 2025, 58% more detainee deaths in ICE custody than occurred during all four previous fiscal years combined (24 deaths), according to ICE detainee death reporting data.

Seitz called on immigration enforcement to follow the Gospel rather than “immoral order,” offering them guidance on how to decide what actions align with the faith.

“No one has to obey an immoral order. I implore all involved to carefully discern the moral requirements of the Gospel at this moment with integrity and honesty,” Seitz said.

“I promise the pastoral support of our priests, chaplains, and myself as you navigate the demands of conscience with sincerity. You are also in my prayers,” he wrote.

“May Mary of Guadalupe, who challenges us to build up a common home of tenderness and love, pray for us,” Seitz concluded.