Catholics can be proud to be an Okie

But it seems to me an unavoidable concession that they [“illegal” immigrants] have become criminals because we have been content to maintain an outmoded and ill-equipped system of quotas, knowing that we could manipulate the outcome and benefit enormously from the labor of those whom we forbid to work.

“The Suffering Faces of the Poor are the Suffering Face of Christ”
The Most Reverend Edward J. Slattery, Bishop of Tulsa.

The ‘Oklahoma Taxpayer and Citizen Protection Act of 2007″ which went into effect Nov. 1, makes it a felony to knowingly transport illegal immigrants and creates barriers to hiring them and restricts benefits they can receive from the government.

Bishop Slattery — in the 22-page pastoral letter — said that the intention of the law is immoral. It will cause a “intolerable increase in suffering of legal immigrants, and those who must enforce the law.” He added that the new law threatens to put children in danger, punishes the morally innocent, and terrorizes parents who are forced into hiding.

The pastoral letter outlined an action plan that said no illegal immigrants will be denied access to Catholic charitable, pastoral or education programs; that offered them legal assistance; that pledged to seek guardianships and foster care for children whose parents are deported.

In late October, Archbishop Eusebius J. Beltran of Oklahoma City, priests and more than 1,000 laypeople signed a one-page “pledge of resistance” to the law, calling it “unjust and immoral.”

The Oklahoma Baptist General Assembly passed a resolution stating that they would not withhold ministry from “illegal” aliens.

Oklahoma, of course, is the bible belt, but don’t underestimate the importance of the Catholic Church in the state. Oklahoma was originally intended as a refuge for Native Americans, until “illegal immigrants” from the rest of the United States overran the place. The Diocese of Tulsa includes more Catholic Native Americans than any other. With the Baptists appearing to sign on (though I don’t know how many church goers in Oklahoma are members of the Baptist General Assembly) it appears there is some serious resistance to this very bad law.

I’d hate to be the prosecutor who has to try some bishop for giving a ride to a “illegal” taking her kids to the doctor, which is a felony now in Oklahoma.  With the tag-team Catholics and Baptists on one side, I don’t think I’d want to be on the receiving end of this holy smack-down.  Nice to be on the side of the angels (or at least the Bishops) for a change.