“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers for by doing so, some have entertained angels unawares.” (Hebrews 13:1)

President Donald Trump and Members of Congress, As of the Episcopal Church we implore you not to end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, known as DACA. To do so would endanger the lives of thousands of young people and their families and run contrary to the faith and moral traditions of our country. It is unfair to threaten the well-being of young people who arrived in our country as children through no choice of their own. Ending DACA without a similar replacement program will force these young people to face the future in this country with little access to education and employment, and ultimately, could very well lead to sending them to countries where they did not grow up, have few support structures, may not even speak the language and may be vulnerable to violence and persecution. Any of these scenarios, we believe, is cruel. The alternative for us as a country is to move forward, to celebrate and benefit from the presence of these ‘Dreamers’ and to provide a pathway to citizenship that enables them to remain and strengthen our country. The Episcopal Church has long advocated for bipartisan comprehensive immigration reforms that prioritize family unity and humanitarian concerns. It is time for Congress to develop long-term solutions for immigrant families. In front of most of the Episcopal Churches across the country is a sign that says, ‘The Episcopal Church Welcomes You.’ We have this sign because we are followers of the way of Jesus of Nazareth, and our Christian tradition shares with many other faith bodies the absolute importance of welcoming the foreigner in our midst. Throughout the centuries this tradition has brought us great wisdom and strength as the foreigner among us has become a part of the fabric of our country’s life. In recent years, our congregations throughout the have witnessed firsthand the benefits that the young ‘Dreamers’ have brought to our community programs and life. We have been inspired by, and gained much from, their American spirit. We urge you to enact permanent, meaningful legislation that will protect ‘Dreamers’ and enable these young people to remain a part of our country—which is also theirs.

Bishop Michael Bruce Curry Ian T. Douglas Bishop George N. Hunt Bishop David Rice XXVII Presiding Bishop The Episcopal Church in Connecticut Diocese of Rhode Island Diocese of San Joaquin Bishop C. Andrew Doyle Bishop David Colin Jones Bishop Samuel Rodman Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori Diocese of Texas Diocese of Diocese of North Carolina XXVI Presiding Bishop; Bishop Philip M. Duncan, II Bishop Russell Kendrick Bishop Jeffery Rowthorn Diocese of San Diego Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast Diocese of the Central Gulf Coast Episcopal Churches in Europe Bishop Frank T. Griswold Bishop DeDe Duncan-Probe, Ph.D. Bishop W. Michie Klusmeyer Bishop Audrey C. Scanlan XXV Presiding Bishop; Diocese of Central New York Diocese of West Virginia Diocese of Central Pennsylvania Diocese of Chicago Bishop Peter Eaton Bishop W. Nicholas Knisely Bishop Victor A. Scantlebury Diocese of Southeast Florida Diocese of Rhode Island Diocese of Central Ecuador Bishop Gladstone B. Adams III The Episcopal Church in South Carolina Bishop Thomas C. Ely Bishop Chilton R. Knudsen Bishop Alan Scarfe The Episcopal Church in Vermont Diocese of Maryland Diocese of Iowa Bishop Laura J. Ahrens The Episcopal Church in Connecticut Bishop Douglas Fisher Bishop Edward J. Konieczny, D.Min., DD Bishop Gordon Scruton Diocese of Western Massachusetts Diocese of Oklahoma Diocese of Western Massachusetts Bishop J. Neil Alexander Diocese of Atlanta Bishop Jeff Fisher Bishop Stephen T. Lane Bishop Brian R. Seage Diocese of Texas Diocese of Maine Diocese of Mississippi Bishop Craig B. Anderson, Ph.D. Diocese of South Dakota Bishop Robert L. Fitzpatrick Bishop Edward L. Lee, Jr. Bishop James J. Shand Diocese of Hawaii and Diocese of Western Michigan Diocese of Easton Bishop Marc H. Andrus the Episcopal Church in Micronesia Diocese of California Bishop Peter James Lee Bishop Allen K. Shin Bishop R. William Franklin Diocese of Virginia Diocese of New York Bishop David E. Bailey Diocese of Western New York The Episcopal Church in Navajoland Bishop Ed Leidel, Jr. Bishop Prince G. Singh Bishop Alan M. Gates Diocese of Eastern Michigan Diocese of Rochester Bishop David C. Bane, Jr. Diocese of Massachusetts Diocese of Southern Virginia Bishop Edward S. Little II Bishop Rob Skirving Bishop Wendell N. Gibbs, Jr. Diocese of Northern Indiana Diocese of East Carolina Bishop J. Scott Barker Diocese of Michigan Diocese of Nebraska Bishop James B. Magness, D.Min., DD Bishop William E. Smalley Bishop Mary Glasspool Diocese of Southern Virginia Diocese of Kansas Bishop Jennifer Baskerville-Burrows Diocese of New York Diocese of Indianapolis Bishop Paul Marshall Bishop George Wayne Smith Bishop Susan E. Goff Diocese of Bethlehem Diocese of Bishop John Bauerschmidt Diocese of Virginia Diocese of Tennessee Bishop J. Scott Mayer Bishop Kirk Stevan Smith Bishop Duncan Gray Diocese of Northwest Texas; Diocese of Arizona Bishop Nathan D. 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Benhase Diocese of Olympia; Bishop Steven A. Miller Diocese of Georgia Bishop Martin G. Townsend The Episcopal Church in Diocese of Milwaukee Diocese of Easton Bishop Tom Breidenthal Bishop Michael Hanley Bishop Hector Monterroso Diocese of Southern Ohio Bishop Mark Van Koevering Diocese of Oregon Diocese of Texas Diocese of West Virginia Bishop Gregory O. Brewer Bishop Gayle E. Harris Bishop Robert J. O’Neill Diocese of Central Florida Bishop Charles G. vonRosenberg Diocese of Massachusetts The Episcopal Church in Diocese of East Tennessee; Bishop Diane Jardine Bruce Bishop Dena Harrison Bishop Jacob W. Owensby, Ph.D., DD The Episcopal Church in South Carolina Diocese of Los Angeles Diocese of Texas Diocese of Western Louisiana Bishop Michael L. Vono, DD Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde Bishop Rayford B. High, Jr. Bishop George E. Packard Diocese of the Rio Grande Diocese of Washington Diocese of Texas; Diocese of Fort Worth Armed Services and Federal Ministries Bishop W. Andrew Waldo Bishop Joe Goodwin Burnett Bishop A. Robert Hirschfeld Bishop Claude E. Payne Diocese of Upper South Carolina Diocese of Nebraska The Episcopal Church of New Hampshire Diocese of Texas Bishop Cate Waynick Bishop Bud Cederholm Bishop Anne Hodges-Copple Bishop William D. Persell Diocese of Indianapolis Diocese of Massachusetts Diocese of North Carolina Diocese of Ohio; Diocese of Chicago Bishop Pierre Whalon Bishop Michael Creighton Bishop Herman Hollerith Bishop Kenneth L. Price, Jr. Episcopal Churches in Europe Diocese of Central Pennsylvania Diocese of Southern Virginia Diocese of Southern Ohio Bishop Terry A. White Bishop James E. Curry Bishop Mark Hollingsworth, Jr. Bishop Brian N. Prior Diocese of Kentucky The Episcopal Church in Connecticut Diocese of Ohio The Episcopal Church in Minnesota Bishop Geralyn Wolf Bishop Clifton Daniel Bishop Harold A. Hopkins Bishop Lawrence C. Provenzano Diocese of Long Island Acting , Cathedral Church of Diocese of North Dakota Diocese of Long Island Saint John the Divine, NYC Bishop Carl W. Wright Bishop Whayne M. Hougland, Jr. Bishop Rayford J. Ray Armed Forces and Federal Ministries Bishop Andrew M. L. Dietsche Diocese of Western Michigan Diocese of Northern Michigan Diocese of New York Bishop Robert C. Wright, DD Bishop Barry R. Howe Bishop David Reed Diocese of Atlanta Bishop Joe Morris Doss Diocese of Southwest Florida; Diocese of West Texas Diocese of New Jersey Bishop George D. Young, III Diocese of West Missouri Bishop Gretchen Rehberg Diocese of East Tennessee Diocese of Spokane For more information, contact The Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs at [email protected]