El Paso Bishop: Immigrants Are ‘Our Lost Brothers and Sisters’

The head of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Immigration said the United States has an obligation to welcome migrants at the border as “long-lost” brothers and sisters showing up at our door.

“Imagine some long-lost family members show up at your door. What would you do?” Bishop Mark Seitz asks in a public service announcement. “We are all part of the human family and the immigrants that are coming to the door of our country right now are our lost brothers and sisters.”

“This is the time, El Paso, for us to live up to our reputation of welcome and hospitality. We are already in the process of welcoming. Right now our diocesan family is opening four parish-based shelters and with your help we are about to open another one,” he states.

“All of our parishes and priests are working to support the effort by preparing food, by volunteering at one of our shelters and by praying for the newcomers among us,” he adds.

“The next several weeks could be challenging but we are not alone in this. The Lord is at our side,” he concludes.

Last week, Bishop Seitz sent an open letter to Congress urging opposition to the Secure the Border Act of 2023.

WATCH: MORE DRONE FOOTAGE: NewsNation Footage Shows Immigrants Gathered at El Paso Border:

NEWSNATION/TMX

An open-borders champion, Seitz claimed the bill contains “harmful measures,” among which is continued construction of the U.S.-Mexico border wall, which he stridently opposes.

“We have long opposed the construction of a wall spanning the entire U.S.-Mexico border, especially with the dangers it poses to human life and the environment,” he wrote.

In 2019, Seitz condemned President Trump’s border wall as a “monument to hate” and a symbol of exclusion, xenophobia, and racism.

WATCH: Illegal Immigrants BAIL When DPS Conducts Traffic Stop, Find 38 POUNDS of Meth:

Texas Department of Public Safety

Xenophobia is “ravaging the United States,” he asserted, in a desperate attempt to shore up white privilege and perpetuate “institutionalized racism.”

“Ancient demons have been reawakened and old wounds opened,” he insisted, and this racism shows itself in an acute way in the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.

“The wall is a powerful symbol in the story of race,” he stated. “It has helped to merge nationalistic vanities with racial projects.”

Follow @tdwilliamsrome