St. Elizabeth of Hungary Church

Actress Elizabeth Tabish as Violetta Petrosyan in the new film "Between Borders." / Credit: Between Borders movie

CNA Staff, Jan 24, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

“Between Borders,” a new film that will hit theaters Jan. 26–28, is based on the true story of an Armenian family who was forced to flee their home in Baku, Azerbaijan, during the anti-Armenian massacre that took place in the late 1980s. 

Experiencing discrimination in their home country and then in Russia, the country to which they fled, the Petrosyans — made up of husband and wife Ivan and Violetta and their two daughters, Olga and Julia — eventually found hope in a church established by American missionaries. There they became Christians and were helped to seek refuge in the United States.

Actress Elizabeth Tabish, known for her role as Mary Magdalene in the hit series “The Chosen,” portrays Violetta Petrosyan in the film. She spoke to CNA in an interview and shared how she was impacted by the role and what she hopes people will take away from the film.

Being part Armenian herself, Tabish was initially interested in the role due to the fact that there aren’t many movies telling the stories of Armenians. Once she read the script, she “fell in love with the characters and their hearts and I was just very eager to be a part of it,” she said.

While Tabish is familiar with portraying true stories, she told CNA that, typically, “there’s no direct personal feedback from the experience.” However, while filming “Between Borders,” the actress was able to meet the real-life Petrosyans, watch their home videos, and come to know the woman she was portraying in the movie.

“When I met Violetta, she’s just all love, she’s so much love, and she’s so strong,” she said. “So I think I was just trying to match the essence of that.” 

“We see this transformation throughout the story of her going from someone who’s relatively secure … and we see them lose everything and in the midst of that loss, we see her find faith and start learning about Jesus and how that can transform everything … So, when I finally got to meet her and get to know her, it’s so clear and that is so much a part of her,” Tabish recalled. 

The actress also touched on her hopes that this film will shed light on the many wars and political tensions taking place around the world right now. She shared that America has always been “a place of refuge for so many people.”

“So many of us come from immigrant parents, or grandparents, or great-grandparents — most of us are immigrants here in some capacity and the film really highlights this. In a beautiful moment [the film references] the poem at the base of the Statue of Liberty that America is supposed to be a refuge for people and it is one of the most, I think, Christian elements of America,” she said.

“I know there’s a separation of church and state, but in terms of philosophy, and in terms of concept, taking care of people who have to flee their homes because of racism, because of threats, because of danger, is one of the most Christian things we can do as a country.”

She added: “It’s one of those elements that I’m so proud of America for is opening its arms to those who have nowhere else to go and this film really highlights what that can do for people … Just by knowing the Petrosyans, of what America has done for them — and also what they have done for America now and their communities, and their church communities, and the work that they do at their school — they’ve given back so much of their hearts and love.”

Tabish shared that taking part in the film personally impacted her in many ways and left her feeling “proud to be Armenian and American.”

“It made me really think about my grandparents, my great-grandparents, and great-great grandparents and the struggles that they’ve all gone through in their own ways,” she said. “It makes you appreciate family and it makes you really appreciate what they’ve done for us.”

She pointed out that it also “inspires this sense of faith.”

“We have a home in God, we have a home in the Father in a way that this life can shift so dramatically and change so quickly, and politics and wars and things can happen so quickly, and that to have your safety and your peace and your home in God — that can’t be taken away.”

Tabish said she hopes the movie will inspire a “sort of synthesis between being from other countries and being American,” adding: “This is a melting pot; this country is about lots of different cultures coming together and making something beautiful from those differences.”

Additionally, the actress said she hopes viewers will “cling to their families and really appreciate their families and really appreciate their ancestors and those who came before them, [who] have done really difficult things and challenging things to give them, to give us new generations, better lives.”

Check theater listings near you for “Between Borders” showtimes.

Paul Vaughn with his wife, Bethany, told CNA that “it’s great to see a president like Donald Trump who understands the injustice that has gone on” after Trump pardoned him and other pro-life activists prosecuted under the Biden administration. / Credit: Madalaine Elhabbal/CNA

Washington D.C., Jan 23, 2025 / 20:30 pm (CNA).

Pro-life activist Paul Vaughn received the news that President Donald Trump had pardoned him, along with 22 other pro-life demonstrators, on Thursday in the middle of a press conference with his lawyers at the Thomas More Society.

“I have a lot of thoughts,” he told CNA. “It’s a big ordeal, and it’s been a long time going through all this.”

The pardon put an end to the Biden administration’s prosecution of Vaughn and his fellow pro-life activists, among whom were several elderly and infirm women who were serving time in prison for peacefully protesting abortion.

Vaughn was one of 11 pro-life activists convicted of violating the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act for a demonstration outside of a Tennessee abortion clinic in March 2021. 

Prosecutors had unsuccessfully sought a one-year prison sentence for him, but he was ultimately sentenced to three years of supervised release in July 2024. Prior to the pardon, Vaughn’s case was on appeal. 

Vaughn had been taking part in the conference about free speech and the abortion pill reversal process alongside several senior members of the religious liberty law firm when Steve Crampton, senior counsel with the Thomas More Society, interrupted the discussion.

Crampton read aloud a social media post announcing that Trump had signed pardons for the 23 convicted pro-life activists. Those gathered for the event rose to their feet and erupted in applause, while Vaughn and his legal team shook hands joyfully.

“On one side, it’s great to see a president like Donald Trump who understands the injustice that has gone on,” Vaughn later told CNA. “On the other side of the coin, it doesn’t erase the injustice that my family and the other 22 pro-lifers have endured for the last two years at Biden’s DOJ.” 

“We won’t get that back,” he added. 

Calling the pardon “a mixed bag,” Vaughn said he is both “rejoicing” with his family and co-defendants and hoping that “we do better as a nation going forward.” 

“Lord willing,” he said of the jailed pro-life activists who were among those that received a pardon, “[they] will be eating dinner with their families tonight and not in the federal pen, with, you know, bologna sandwiches and whatever.” 

Vaughn’s wife, Bethany, told CNA that while she is happy about the pardon, she hopes her husband will pursue his appeals case and ultimately win so that future prosecutions may be prevented from happening. 

A video posted on social media shows Trump signing the pardons on Thursday afternoon after telling the press: “Twenty-three people were prosecuted. They should not have been prosecuted. Many of them were elderly people.” 

“It’s a great honor to sign this,” the president said as he signed the order. 

Last week, the Thomas More Society petitioned the incoming president to issue 21 individual pardons for pro-life advocates who were arrested for violating the FACE Act, including several who were elderly and in poor health. 

“These peaceful pro-life Americans mistreated by [President Joe] Biden include grandparents, pastors, a Holocaust survivor, and a Catholic priest — all are selfless, sincere patriots,” the petition stated. 

Demonstrators participate in the March For Life Washington, D.C. on Jan. 19, 2024. / Credit: ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images

Washington D.C., Jan 23, 2025 / 19:55 pm (CNA).

The 52nd annual March for Life will be taking place in Washington, D.C., on Friday, Jan. 24. Thousands of pro-lifers will be coming together in our nation’s capitol to march in defense of the unborn.

Follow along here for live updates on the march. All times are in U.S. Eastern Standard Time:

A Ventura County Fire Department Firehawk on the helispot installed on the campus of Thomas Aquinas College outside Santa Paula, California. / Credit: Photo courtesy Thomas Aquinas College

CNA Staff, Jan 23, 2025 / 17:10 pm (CNA).

As a series of massive and destructive wildfires in the Los Angeles area continue to burn, a new fire that sparked Wednesday north of the city, near Castaic Lake reservoir, has quickly burned more than 10,000 acres and as of Thursday is only about one-quarter contained. 

The Hughes Fire has forced the evacuation of 31,000 people and more than 14,000 structures are threatened, according to Los Angeles County’s Coordinated Joint Information Center.

Father Vaughn Winters, the pastor at St. Kateri Tekakwitha Catholic Church in nearby Santa Clarita, told CNA by email that “yesterday was very stressful, but the immediate danger seems to be past.” 

He said “a couple hundred” St. Kateri parishioners living near where the fire is spreading were forced to evacuate, as evacuation warnings bordered the city of Santa Clarita, which is about 30 miles north of Los Angeles and home to 220,000 people.

“Our parishioners from the community of Castaic near the fire were evacuated. The evacuation warning zone came near to the actual church and our parishioners in Santa Clarita, but we did not have to evacuate,” the priest told CNA.

“Seeing all the plumes of smoke all day was very worrying and of course everyone has been on edge because of the terrible fires two weeks ago.”

Winters said the parish is willing to extend assistance to anyone who needs it through a special fire assistance fund that the Archdiocese of Los Angeles set up in early January.

The Hughes Fire, which at its height engaged about 4,000 firefighters, is about 30 miles as the crow flies from Thomas Aquinas College (TAC), a prominent Catholic institution of higher education located in Santa Paula that has been threatened by wildfire before. 

The 2017 Thomas Fire, named for its proximity to the school, sparked in early December less than a mile from campus and burned nearly 300,000 acres, including hundreds of residences in the town of Ventura. It was the largest wildfire in state history up to that point, but the college survived the fire without the loss of any major structures.

The school in 2021 opened a concrete helipad designed to accommodate the needs of a Firehawk helicopter in an effort to assist local firefighters by giving them a location to refill the craft’s water tanks. 

Christopher Weinkopf, a TAC spokesman, told CNA that “thanks be to God” the school isn’t threatened by the Hughes Fire but that they were “seeing a lot of smoke on campus yesterday.” 

He added that firefighters are not currently using the TAC helipad in their efforts to fight the Hughes Fire.

Pro-life activists protest the incarceration of nine activists charged with FACE Act violations. / Credit: Tyler Arnold/CNA

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 23, 2025 / 16:35 pm (CNA).

President Donald Trump issued pardons for 23 pro-life activists on Thursday, fulfilling a promise he made during the presidential campaign.

Trump signed the pardons on Thursday in the Oval Office of the White House on the day before the March for Life to be held in Washington, D.C., according to the Thomas More Society.

Last week, the religious liberty law firm petitioned the incoming president to issue 21 individual pardons for pro-life advocates who were arrested for violating the federal Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act and “Conspiracy Against Rights” statute while peacefully engaging in protests at abortion clinics.

Several of those convicted and imprisoned were elderly and in poor health.

At least two times during his 2024 campaign for the presidency, Trump said he intended to release pro-life activists who are currently imprisoned.

“These peaceful pro-life Americans mistreated by [President Joe] Biden include grandparents, pastors, a Holocaust survivor, and a Catholic priest — all are selfless, sincere patriots,” the petition from the Chicago-based law firm reads.

During Biden’s four years in office, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) brought charges against more than 30 people who took part in pro-life demonstrations under the FACE Act, which was legislation in the 1990s to increase penalties for people who obstruct access to abortion clinics or pregnancy resource centers.

Although the FACE Act’s higher sentences also apply to people who obstruct or damage pro-life pregnancy centers, Biden’s DOJ only brought charges in two cases regarding attacks on those facilities despite more than 100 incidents occurring under his tenure.

“While Biden’s prosecutors almost entirely ignored the firebombing and vandalism of hundreds of pro-life churches and pregnancy centers, they viciously pursued pro-life Americans,” the petition adds.

The longest sentence was given last year to Lauren Handy, who received four years and nine months in prison for her role in a protest at an abortion clinic in Washington, D.C. The second longest was also given last year to Bevelyn Beatty Williams, who received three years and five months in prison for a protest inside an abortion clinic in New York City. 

Several pro-life activists in their mid-to-late 70s also received multiyear sentences for their protests.

“These 21 peaceful pro-lifers, many of whom are currently imprisoned for bravely standing up for unborn life, are upstanding citizens and pillars of their communities,” Steve Crampton, who works as senior counsel for the Thomas More Society, said in a statement.

This is a developing story. 

Jennie Bradley Lichter, who will takes over as president of the March for Life this year, said that despite the pro-life movement’s recent losses, “we will win the fight for life.” / Credit: Photo courtesy of the March for Life

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 23, 2025 / 16:15 pm (CNA).

As pro-life advocates journey to Washington, D.C., for the third post-Roe March for Life, the incoming president of the march believes “there’s a lot of reasons for hope” for the pro-life movement to continue scoring legislative and cultural wins going forward.

The 52nd annual March for Life is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 24, and it will be the last one led by Jeanne Mancini, the outgoing March for Life Education and Defense Fund president. 

The group’s president-elect, Jennie Bradley Lichter, will take the helm on Feb. 1, about one week after the march. 

Lichter — a Catholic mother of three, a lawyer, and a longtime advocate for the sanctity of life — has been active in the pro-life movement since her childhood. She told CNA that growing up, she witnessed the example of her mother and her father, Gerard Bradley, a retired pro-life Notre Dame law professor who advocated for the unborn. 

“I grew up in a committed pro-life family,” Lichter, the eldest of eight siblings, said.

“My parents raised us to know that every life is precious,” she added. “And they really lived that [belief] by example.”

Lichter told CNA she has been a daily Mass attendee since she was a teenager and has “always tried to prioritize daily prayer and remaining in the posture of discernment and openness to the Lord’s will.”

That discernment, Lichter said, “is what brought me to say yes to making this career shift” to become the president of the March for Life. 

“We’re all called to put our lives at the Lord’s service,” Lichter added.

A longtime advocate for life

Lichter, who attended her first March for Life as a freshman in college in 2001, has worked for the Family Research Council, the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., President Donald Trump’s administration, and The Catholic University of America. In those positions, she has promoted religious liberty and pro-life values.

At the Family Research Council in Washington, D.C., where she went to work after graduating from the University of Notre Dame, she was a research assistant, focusing on religious liberty and pro-life issues. 

“I fell in love with doing that kind of work and I saw how much good … people were doing here in Washington,” Lichter said. 

Lichter later earned a master’s degree in theology at the University of Cambridge in England and then obtained her law degree at Harvard Law School, after which she worked as a law clerk and then a lawyer. As a lawyer, she helped design litigation to challenge the contraception mandate in the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. 

In 2014, she began working on the legal team for the Archdiocese of Washington, and in late 2017, she took a job at the Department of Justice during the Trump administration, where she said she “helped launch the religious liberty task force.”

In 2019, she was moved to the White House to work on the Domestic Policy Council, where she advised on “a whole lot of issues” including religious freedom, faith-based issues, and pro-life policies.

After Trump lost his reelection bid in 2020, Lichter served as legal counsel for The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and helped launch The Guadalupe Project, which provides resources to expectant mothers on the campus, both faculty and students. 

The goal of the project, she said, is to “support moms and their babies on campus” by “making Catholic University the best possible place to bring children into the world.”

Marching for life post-Roe

The first-ever March for Life was on Jan. 22, 1974, one year after the Supreme Court ruled in Roe v. Wade that every state must legalize abortion.

Two and a half years after that ruling was overturned, Lichter said: “We’re “going to keep on showing up in Washington and we’re going to keep on marching until every baby is … protected under the law and every mom is supported.”

“This issue is not over,” Lichter said. “Pro-life people are still really motivated, still showing up in Washington at a very chilly time of year.”

”The big legal goal was the takedown of Roe v. Wade,” she said, but added that the ultimate goal is to “make abortion unthinkable” and ensure mothers “feel supported and have the resources they need.”

“[The March for Life] is a hopeful day, it is a joyful day, there is a lot of energy there, [and] there’s nothing else like it in our country or in the world anywhere,” Lichter said, calling the march “a shot of energy for the pro-life movement every year [so that we] can go back sort of renewed for the fight.”

Lichter noted that the March for Life began its state marches prior to the court overturning Roe v. Wade. She emphasized the importance of “being present in the states and providing an opportunity for the grass roots at the state level to come together at their state capitals.”

Currently, the March for Life holds marches in 17 states, but Lichter said the organization will continue to expand this. 

“There’s a lot of reasons for hope,” Lichter said, and “a lot of peace and confidence knowing we’re working for a truly righteous cause.”

null / Credit: Alex Krisan/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 23, 2025 / 14:45 pm (CNA).

An annual poll released before the March for Life has found that, as in previous years, a majority of Americans support some form of limitations on abortion. 

The poll released on Thursday revealed that 67% of Americans support legal limitations on abortion and that 60% believe abortions should be limited at most to the first three months of pregnancy. 

Conducted from Jan. 7–9, the poll surveyed 1,387 adults, with each region represented in proportion to its adult population.

Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus every year and conducted by the Marist Poll, the survey also found for the second consecutive year that 83% of Americans support pregnancy resource centers and 82% of respondents said they believed “laws can protect both the mother and her unborn child.” 

Last year, the poll similarly found that 66% of Americans believe that “limits should be placed on when abortion is allowed” and only 33% believe that “abortion should be allowed without any limits” when given the two options.

“This year’s survey results show that Americans are once again firm in their belief that abortion should be significantly limited yet laws should include exceptions for rape, incest, or to save the life of the mother,” Barbara L. Carvalho, director of the Marist Poll, stated in a press release announcing the results.

“This consistent year over year trend found in the annual Knights of Columbus-Marist Poll has continued, now nearly three years after the Supreme Court’s landmark Dobbs decision,” she added. 

The survey also found that 62% of Americans shared the belief that health care professionals with religious objections should not be forced to perform abortions. 

Knights of Columbus Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly responded to the results of the poll, stating: “The Knights of Columbus-Marist Poll once again shows that a majority of Americans support legal restrictions on abortion and an overwhelming majority support pregnancy resource centers, which assist mothers and their children in greatest need.”

The Knights of Columbus in the U.S. and Canada have raised a combined total of nearly $14 million in support of pro-life resource centers through the organization’s Aid and Support After Pregnancy program. 

“Being pro-life means being pro-woman and pro-child,” Kelly said, “and helping vulnerable women and their babies is in the Knights’ DNA.”

The crowd gathers at the rally before the 2024 March for Life in Washington, D.C. / Credit: EWTN News

CNA Staff, Jan 23, 2025 / 14:15 pm (CNA).

The 52nd National March for Life — the largest annual pro-life event in the world — kicks off tomorrow, Friday, Jan. 24.

The theme of the pro-life movement’s largest annual event is “Life: Why We March,” which organizers say is meant to highlight the pro-life movement’s fundamental message to protect unborn children and support their mothers.  

Here is a rundown of events, speakers, and other important information about this year’s march.

What is the March for Life?

One of the largest annual human rights demonstrations in the world, every year the March for Life gathers tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of pro-lifers from across the country for a day of prayer and peaceful witness.

The March for Life first began in 1974 as a response to the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationwide. Even after the decision was overturned, pro-lifers continue to gather to march for the lives of unborn children as abortion continues to be legal in many states.

According to organizers, the 2025 March for Life theme “Life: Why We March” is meant to encourage pro-lifers to focus on the reason for the march — protecting unborn children and their mothers — even as pro-abortion policies crop up in various states.

Jeanne Mancini, outgoing president of the March for Life, said in a statement that she hopes the theme “can be a source of renewed energy and focus so needed for this moment.”

“Many in our nation see this issue as a cause that divides,” Mancini explained. “May our humble voices and peaceful presence serve as a reminder of the beauty and dignity of every human life, and as an invitation to all Americans to come together in recognition of this truth and to serve the most vulnerable.”

The March for Life will have a change in leadership this year, with longtime president Mancini stepping down and Jennie Bradley Lichter taking her place. Lichter is deputy general counsel at The Catholic University of America and served in the White House during the first Trump administration. 

What will the weather be like?

Though previous marchers have braved snow for the March for Life, there is only a small chance of precipitation. The weather is forecast to be cold and partly cloudy, with a high of 37 degrees and a low of 17 degrees, with 5-10 mph winds and a 6% chance of precipitation. 

What’s on the schedule?

11 a.m: Pre-rally concert on National Mall featuring Christian band Unspoken 

Noon: March for Life Rally on National Mall 

1 p.m.: March for Life, beginning at the National Mall and ending in front of the Supreme Court building

Don’t miss these speakers

The March for Life brings together pro-life advocates from those in politics to authors to survivors of abortion. From a famous surfer to U.S. senators, here are some of the speakers you won’t want to miss. 

• U.S. Vice President JD Vance, the nation’s second Catholic vice president

• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Catholic who signed Florida’s historic heartbeat bill, protecting unborn children once the heartbeat can be detected

• Bethany Hamilton, a professional surfer known for surviving a shark attack at the age of 13, now a mother and pro-life advocate

• Lila Rose, a Catholic who founded the pro-life nonprofit Live Action when she was 15 years old

• Josiah Presley, an abortion survivor

• Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, Louisiana representative and speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

• Majority Leader John Thune, a U.S. senator from North Dakota and Senate majority leader   

Click here to see a full list of speakers.

Additional events and prayer opportunities

The pro-life movement is not only political — it’s also prayerful. The March for Life is bookended by opportunities for pro-life pilgrims to gather in prayer for an end to abortion. 

National Prayer Vigil for Life: 

On Thursday, Jan. 23, at 5 p.m. at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops will hold a national prayer vigil beginning the night before the march and extending until the next morning.

The vigil will begin with the Chaplet of Divine Mercy followed by an opening Mass with Bishop Daniel Thomas of Toledo, Ohio. At 7 p.m., the “Holy Hour for Life” will begin. The following morning features a closing Mass at 8 a.m. Live events will be broadcast by EWTN.

Click here for more information on the prayer vigil.

Life Fest:

On Thursday, Jan. 23, and Friday, Jan. 24, at EagleBank Arena in Fairfax, Virginia, the Sisters of Life and the Knights of Columbus will host Life Fest.

An upbeat, youth-oriented pre-march event, Life Fest will include musical performances, inspirational speakers, Mass, and praise and worship adoration. Thursday features a night of praise beginning at 7 p.m. followed by a morning rally and Mass from 8-11 a.m. on Friday.

Click here for more information on Life Fest.

More information on related events can be found on the March for Life’s website here.

Where do I go to attend the march?

The March for Life will begin at the rally site on the National Mall lawn near the Washington Monument.

Marchers will meet for the pre-rally concert at 11 a.m. on the Washington Monument grounds between 17th Street NW and 15th Street NW on Constitution Avenue.

The march itself will go from 1-4 p.m., beginning at 17th Street NW (adjacent to Washington Monument grounds) and ending past the nation’s Capitol at the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court.

March for Life organizers recommend taking the Washington, D.C., Metro system on the day of the march. Three Metro stops are within easy walking distance from the rally point: Federal Triangle, Smithsonian, and Metro Center.

2024 Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance speaks to a crowd in Leesport, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 21, 2024. / Credit: Matthew Hatcher/Getty Images

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 23, 2025 / 13:40 pm (CNA).

Newly inaugurated U.S. Vice President JD Vance will speak at the 52nd annual March for Life on Jan. 24 in Washington, D.C., according to a news release from the March for Life Education and Defense Fund on Thursday afternoon.

Vance, who is the nation’s second Catholic vice president, will join Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson and Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune among the speakers at the event.

This is the first time Vance will address the National March for Life in Washington, D.C. He previously spoke, as a U.S. senator, at the 2023 Ohio March for Life. This is the third National March for Life since the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

“We are thrilled that Vice President Vance has chosen the National March for Life for his first public appearance in his new role — a sign of his commitment to standing up for life,” March for Life President Jeanne Mancini and President-elect Jennie Bradley Lichter said in a joint statement.

“President [Donald] Trump governed as a pro-life president during his first term, which resulted in a long list of accomplishments,” they said. “We look forward to working with him and Vice President Vance as they dismantle the Biden administration’s aggressive and unpopular abortion agenda and once again put wins on the board for vulnerable unborn children and their mothers.”

Other speakers include Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis; Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey; Live Action President Lila Rose; and Toledo, Ohio, Bishop Daniel Thomas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities. 

Trump is scheduled to be in California on Friday during the March for Life to visit areas of the state damaged by wildfires. In 2020, he became the first president to address the March for Life in person. He addressed the rally through video calls in 2019 and 2018 when he was president. In 2017, then-Vice President Mike Pence spoke at the rally.

On this occasion, Trump is expected to address the crowd with a video message.

Bishop Mark Seitz of the Diocese of El Paso, Texas, speaks at the “Responding to Changing Realities at the U.S. Border and Beyond” conference hosted by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and The Catholic University of America. / Credit: Photo courtesy of The Catholic University of America

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jan 23, 2025 / 12:40 pm (CNA).

The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ committee on migration sharply criticized President Donald Trump’s executive orders on immigration that he signed earlier this week, expressing particular concern for vulnerable families and children. 

“Church teaching recognizes a country’s right and responsibility to promote public order, safety, and security through well-regulated borders and just limits on immigration,” wrote Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas.

“However, as shepherds, we cannot abide injustice, and we stress that national self-interest does not justify policies with consequences that are contrary to the moral law,” the statement reads.

Trump upon taking office on Monday signed a series of executive orders that included tough restrictions on immigration.

The president shortly after his inauguration on Monday signed orders suspending asylum for refugees, declaring a national emergency at the southern border, reinstating the “Remain in Mexico” policy from his previous term, designating drug cartels as “foreign terrorist organizations,” and ending birthright citizenship.

Seitz’s reaction to the orders follows a statement from USCCB President Archbishop Timothy Broglio on Wednesday that criticized Trump’s executive orders on immigration and other issues such as capital punishment, warning that harm could be done to “the most vulnerable among us.” 

The El Paso bishop continued in his statement, speaking out against the use of “sweeping generalizations to denigrate any group, such as describing all undocumented immigrants as ‘criminals’ or ‘invaders’ to deprive them of protection under the law.” Doing so, he wrote, “is an affront to God, who has created each of us in his own image.”

In his inauguration speech, Trump said he would invoke the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 — most recently used to intern Japanese Americans during World War II — to remove any gang members, drug dealers, or cartel members who are in the U.S. illegally.

Seitz welcomed “an emphasis on anti-trafficking” but condemned several of the executive orders by Trump that he described as “specifically intended to eviscerate humanitarian protections enshrined in federal law” for vulnerable families and children. He also censured the deployment of military assets to enforce Trump’s initiatives at the southern border, which he called “especially concerning.” 

Denying migrants access to asylum and other protections, the bishop said, would endanger vulnerable refugee seekers “while empowering gangs and other predators to exploit them.” 

“We urge President Trump to pivot from these enforcement-only policies to just and merciful solutions, working in good faith with members of Congress to achieve meaningful, bipartisan immigration reform that furthers the common good with an effective, orderly immigration system,” Seitz wrote, concluding: “My brother bishops and I will support this in any way we can while continuing to accompany our immigrant brothers and sisters in accordance with the gospel of life.”