Bishop Conley Calls on the US Government to Reform and says Immigration Detention Center Detainees Need Ongoing Pastoral Care - FULL TEXT
Bishop James D. Conley of Lincoln, Nebraska, expressed concern on Aug. 22 about “safeguarding human dignity” of detainees following the state’s governor announced plans for a migrant detention center commonly called “Cornhusker Clink.”
The detention facility is part of a series of new U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centers, was announced by ICE and Republican Gov. Jim Pillen on Aug. 19th. ICE said beds for the detention center will be made available at the Work Ethic Camp in McCook, Nebraska, U.S.A.
Bishop Conley on the Immigration Detention Center in McCook
Statement of Bishop James D. Conley regarding the Immigration Detention Center in McCook
Aug. 22, 2025
With Governor Jim Pillen’s recent announcement to repurpose the Work Ethic Camp in McCook as a federal immigration detention facility, Bishop James D. Conley offered the following response.
For decades, the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln has experienced an excellent relationship with the Work Ethic Camp in McCook. In response to Jesus’ call to visit the imprisoned, we have celebrated Mass and provided sacramental and pastoral care on a weekly basis for those imprisoned all those years.
It will be of utmost importance that any person detained in the federal immigration detention center in McCook can also access regular and ongoing pastoral care. This is fundamental to the dignity of every human person, as each of us is called to union with God.
Further, the facility in McCook should not be used to detain migrants without documentation who are in the United States simply seeking a better life, but instead those who have committed crimes that endanger public safety. To do otherwise would undermine the facility’s moral legitimacy and erode public trust.
Also for decades, Catholic Bishops across the United States have called for public officials to engage in meaningful immigration reform. This reform cannot be delayed any longer. The president and Congress must work together to develop laws that both respect our borders and also respect the rights of each person to migrate.
Finally, we must never forget: every person—whether an immigrant or not, documented or not—is a human being made in the image and likeness of God. This human dignity must be recognized and respected. Let us constantly see each other with the eyes of Jesus Christ, who looks mercifully and lovingly upon each one of us.
As the Bishop of Lincoln, I remain committed to safeguarding human dignity which maintains public safety and respects our migrant brothers and sisters, and I invite all Nebraskans to this shared vision of hope in the Good Life.
Bishop James D. Conley
Catholic Diocese of Lincoln
Statement of Bishop James D. Conley regarding the Immigration Detention Center in McCook
Aug. 22, 2025
With Governor Jim Pillen’s recent announcement to repurpose the Work Ethic Camp in McCook as a federal immigration detention facility, Bishop James D. Conley offered the following response.
For decades, the Catholic Diocese of Lincoln has experienced an excellent relationship with the Work Ethic Camp in McCook. In response to Jesus’ call to visit the imprisoned, we have celebrated Mass and provided sacramental and pastoral care on a weekly basis for those imprisoned all those years.
It will be of utmost importance that any person detained in the federal immigration detention center in McCook can also access regular and ongoing pastoral care. This is fundamental to the dignity of every human person, as each of us is called to union with God.
Further, the facility in McCook should not be used to detain migrants without documentation who are in the United States simply seeking a better life, but instead those who have committed crimes that endanger public safety. To do otherwise would undermine the facility’s moral legitimacy and erode public trust.
Also for decades, Catholic Bishops across the United States have called for public officials to engage in meaningful immigration reform. This reform cannot be delayed any longer. The president and Congress must work together to develop laws that both respect our borders and also respect the rights of each person to migrate.
Finally, we must never forget: every person—whether an immigrant or not, documented or not—is a human being made in the image and likeness of God. This human dignity must be recognized and respected. Let us constantly see each other with the eyes of Jesus Christ, who looks mercifully and lovingly upon each one of us.
As the Bishop of Lincoln, I remain committed to safeguarding human dignity which maintains public safety and respects our migrant brothers and sisters, and I invite all Nebraskans to this shared vision of hope in the Good Life.
Bishop James D. Conley
Catholic Diocese of Lincoln
Source: https://www.lincolndiocese.org/bishops/bishop-james-conley/statements/18999-bishop-conley-on-the-immigration-detention-center-in-mccook
Comments