Pastors in Texas find new ways to serve fearful immigrants
HOUSTON — On one of his recent visits to the home of an immigrant family, Julio Barquero asked everyone sitting in the living room to stand and join hands. They formed a circle, closed their eyes, and prayed.
“Help us in the name of God,” Barquero, a lay minister with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), said in Spanish. “And help the Latino community and the state of Texas.”
Barquero is among pastors serving Texas’ estimated 1.5 million people living in the U.S. illegally who are offering new programs and, in some cases, visiting families fearful of crackdowns on immigration. A new Texas law targeting so-called sanctuary cities comes just as immigration arrests have gone up dramatically in the state’s biggest cities.
In Texas and nationally, some parishes and communities with large populations of immigrants in the U.S. illegally have reported slightly lower attendance on Sundays, or significant drop-offs in attendance at classes or programs outside of prayer services. Others say more immigrants without legal permission are coming to church in search of reassurance and help.