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His motto, he says, is “to prepare for the worst and pray for the best,” as the Trump administration’s rescission of policies protecting immigrants in sensitive locations, including churches, has put dozens of his pastors at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thirty-two of the 70 Latino evangelical denomination’s pastors in De La Rosa’s jurisdiction are undocumented, serving vulnerable communities now facing heightened fear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
De La Rosa has instructed each affected congregation to train three laypeople to potentially take over leadership duties should their pastor be deported. He has also mandated the livestreaming of all services, with instructions to “keep recording even if something happens.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The fear is palpable. “Some of my pastors are holding services with doors locked because they are scared that immigration agents will burst through the door at any moment,” De La Rosa said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His concerns resonate with other faith leaders representing thousands of Latino evangelical Christians across Florida and the Southeast, who are increasingly worried about the potential for raids and arrests within their sacred spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A statement from the Department of Homeland Security on 20 January said the president’s executive order will empower officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection to enforce immigration laws and that \u201ccriminals will no longer be able to hide in America\u2019s schools and churches to avoid arrest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Agustin Quiles, a spokesperson for the Florida Fellowship of Hispanic Councils and Evangelical Institutions, said community members, including many who supported Donald Trump in the last election cycle, now feel devastated and abandoned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe messaging appears to be that anyone undocumented is a criminal,\u201d he said. \u201cLatino evangelicals for the most part voted Republican and hold conservative views on issues like abortion. We want to ask the president to reconsider because these actions are causing pain and trauma to so many families in and beyond our churches. Their suffering is great, and the church is suffering with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Quiles said his organization will lobby legislators in Washington and Florida to reinstate laws that protected sensitive spaces like houses of worship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur main focus is the unity of families and the many children who will be impacted or left behind without their parents,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pastor Samuel Rodriguez, president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, who advised President Trump on immigration during his first term, says he has been assured on multiple occasions \u201cby those in the know\u201d that houses of worship have nothing to fear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere should be zero angst as it pertains to churches because no one is going to come into a church with or without guns blazing,\u201d he said. \u201cThat is never going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, Rodriguez said agents may surveil a church if they suspect someone engaged in criminal activity is seeking shelter there. And he said those who are here illegally \u2014 even if they have lived in the United States for decades \u2014 may be deported if they are living with or are around someone who is here illegally and has committed a crime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The National Association of Evangelicals, which says it represents 40 congregations and serves millions, expressed dismay at the executive order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWithdrawal of guidance protecting houses of worship, schools and health facilities from immigration enforcement is troubling,\u201d it said on Jan. 22, asserting that the move has deterred some from attending church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pastors who are seeing the impact of these orders on the ground agree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Rev. Esteban Rodriguez, who leads Centro Cristiano El Pan de Vida, a mid-size Church of God of Prophecy congregation in Kissimmee, Florida, said Latino evangelical churches \u201care like a big family that is composed of families.\u201d In his community, those who are here without legal status have even been afraid to go to work, church and to food pantries to fulfill their basic needs, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rodriguez said he has been helping some congregants with reference letters for their immigration applications and speaking with lawyers to see how the church can help proactively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Rev. Ruben Ortiz, Latino field coordinator for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, says Latino churches have spent decades creating these sacred spaces at great cost, without relying on government assistance. Ortiz said he was distressed to hear about an incident outside an Atlanta-area church where an individual was arrested while a service was being held inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Bible clearly states that a church is a place of refuge and these laws challenge that sacred belief, Ortiz said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are getting calls from members who say they don\u2019t feel safe in our churches,\u201d he said. \u201dWe are going to respond by giving shelter. We are going to embrace all regardless of their immigration status. Everyone can and should find refuge in our churches.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Thomas A. Saenz, president and general counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, said he does not expect immigration authorities to engage in raids on churches that violate people\u2019s constitutional right to gather and worship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat they may do and have done is target a specific individual who might be attending church,\u201d he said. \u201cI would expect more of that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The law is murky as to whether churches can legally shelter those who are here illegally as part of their faith, but there are strong arguments to be made, Saenz said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cPeople should know they have rights that protect them, and that they have allies inside and outside the church who will express their outrage if their constitutional rights are violated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Latino evangelicals are in a unique spot because they are influenced by the theology of right-leaning white evangelical churches, whose pastors and leaders are also the strongest voices against immigration, said Lloyd Barba, assistant professor of religion at Amherst College in Massachusetts who studies Latino immigration and religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Barba said the Latino evangelical community includes many independent churches and diverse organizations that lack a unified, central teaching on immigration \u2014 unlike mainline denominations such as the United Methodist Church or the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n