OPINION:
In his message on the 250th anniversary of America’s independence, Pope Leo XIV, who is very free with his advice, urged the United States “to receive immigrants with compassion and generosity.”
Like most other advocates of open borders, Pope Leo refuses to distinguish between legal and illegal immigration. America admits 1.1 million to 1.3 million legal immigrants each year, more than any other nation.
In the past, the pope has said that turning away immigrants is “a grave sin.” Yet President Reagan, who worked closely with Pope John Paul II to defeat Soviet communism, declared, “A nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation.”
How about a little compassion for the Americans who are murdered, robbed and raped by illegal immigrants? In 2026, the United States experienced one of the lowest homicide rates in a century, partly because President Trump deported thousands of illegal alien criminals since his second term began.
Immigration — legal and illegal — is turning the continent once known as Christendom into part of international Islam. The alarming rise of European antisemitism is directly related to the influx of Muslim immigrants. As a leader in Christianity, one would think Pope Leo would be concerned about this.
At about the same time that he was advising America on immigration, Pope Leo excommunicated a group of dissident bishops and priests, members of the Society of St. Pius X, for consecrating bishops without the Vatican’s approval. It warned ordinary members that they also face excommunication for participating in the group.
It would seem, then, that the Catholic Church under Pope Leo may have rules and may punish those who transgress them, but America may not.
Someone who enters the United States illegally is breaking our rules, just as someone who defies Rome on the consecration of bishops is defying its rules. Both should be subject to appropriate punishment.
For the Vatican, that punishment is excommunication. For America, it is deportation.
Pope Leo may think unrestrained immigration is a human right, but what about its impact on the current inhabitants of a country who would like to control who is coming in for the purpose of public safety, as well as to maintain their unique culture?
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