Religious Organizations Challenge Green Card Delays: Impact on U.S. Ministry
Paterson Diocese Sues Over Procedural Change
For over a year, religious organizations across the United States have been lobbying Congress and the Biden administration to address a sudden procedural change in how green cards are processed for religious workers. This shift has threatened the ability of thousands of these workers to continue their ministry in the U.S., leading to significant disruptions in religious communities.
The Catholic Diocese of Paterson, New Jersey, and five of its priests have taken legal action against the federal immigration agencies. Their legal status is set to expire as early as next spring. The lawsuit, filed in August in U.S. District Court in New Jersey, argues that the procedural change will cause severe disruption to the lives of these priests and the hundreds of thousands of Catholics they serve.
“Our priests feel we’re doing the best we can,” said Bishop Kevin Sweeney, whose diocese covers 400,000 Catholics across 107 parishes in three New Jersey counties. Paterson is the first diocese to bring this lawsuit against the Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
The Broader Impact on Religious Communities
The procedural change has caused extensive delays in processing green cards, leaving many religious workers in limbo. Bishop Mark Seitz, who chairs the committee on migration for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, has advocated for legislative and administrative solutions, describing the delays as “not sustainable.”
In Seitz’s own border diocese of El Paso, Texas, the situation is dire, with the possibility of losing priests whose permanent residency cases now have little chance of approval before their visas expire. “One is the pastor of a large, growing parish. Now I’m supposed to send him away for a year, put him on ice, as it were — and somehow provide Masses?” Seitz remarked.
To cope with a growing shortage of religious workers, American dioceses have long relied on agreements with foreign dioceses to bring clergy from countries like Poland, the Philippines, and Nigeria. Other faith denominations, including Buddhism, Islam, and Pentecostal Christianity, depend on foreign-born clergy to serve their congregations, particularly those with non-English-speaking members.
Green Card Backlogs and the Struggle for Solutions
Most religious workers enter the U.S. under temporary R-1 visas, which allow them to work for five years. During this time, organizations assess their suitability and typically petition for permanent resident status under a particular EB-4 category. However, a recent change has caused a significant backlog, with wait times exceeding 3.5 years and potentially stretching to 10-15 years.
This backlog resulted from a March 2023 State Department decision to include neglected or abused minors from Central America in the general green card queue with religious workers. The sudden influx has overwhelmed the system, jeopardizing many religious workers.
“This is an untenable situation,” said Lance Conklin, co-chair of the religious workers group of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, which often represents evangelical pastors. The Lawyers’ Association, the bishops’ Conference, and other organizations are lobbying for long-term Congressional fixes and immediate administrative changes.
Hope for Temporary Fixes Amid Legal Challenges
Religious organizations hope the lawsuit and ongoing advocacy efforts will prompt the administration to implement temporary fixes. Suggestions include allowing religious workers to change ministry roles without losing their place in the green card line or reducing the required time spent outside the U.S. after visa expiration.
“A lot of religious orders are not wealthy,” said Mary O’Leary, a Michigan attorney representing religious orders. This financial reality makes it challenging for many religious workers to apply for alternative visas or green cards, which are often more labor-intensive and costly.
The stakes are high, with many religious workers already forced to leave the U.S., leaving significant gaps in ministry, education, healthcare, and social services. “It’s beyond ministry,” noted Miguel Naranjo, director of Religious Immigration Services for Catholic Legal Immigration Network. “They’re the last safety net of many communities.”
As the legal battle unfolds, religious organizations continue to hope and pray for swift action to preserve their ability to serve their communities.