Leaders of a Catholic church near Boston kept a Nativity display with an anti-ICE message in place on Monday, defying an order from the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston to remove it.
The display, outside St. Susanna Parish in Dedham, Mass., includes the traditional shepherds, sheep and wise men gathered around a hay-filled manger. But Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus are missing, replaced by a sign reading “ICE WAS HERE” in bold blue letters.
“The Holy Family is safe in the Sanctuary of our Church,” adds a smaller note inside the Nativity scene, which is protected by a plastic shield. “If you see ICE please call LUCE.” The display includes a phone number for LUCE, an immigrant advocacy group, which tracks the activity of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in Massachusetts.
ICE began a major immigration enforcement campaign in the Boston area in September, the forefront of a wave of similar efforts in other major cities.
Speaking to reporters late Monday outside the brick church, the Rev. Stephen Josoma said the intent of the display was to “evoke dialogue,” not cause a furor. He said parish leaders would confer with leaders of the archdiocese before making a final decision on its fate.
But, he added, “that some do not agree with our display does not render it sacrilegious.”
Last week, the Catholic Archdiocese of Boston told the parish to take down the signage in its Nativity display. In a statement, archdiocesan leaders said that churchgoers “have the right to expect that they will encounter genuine opportunities for prayer and Catholic worship — not divisive political messaging.”
That statement also cited church norms prohibiting “the use of sacred objects for any purpose other than the devotion of God’s people.”
Todd Lyons, the acting director of ICE, added his own criticism in recent days, telling The Boston Herald that the Nativity scene was “absolutely abhorrent” and part of “a dangerous narrative” responsible for a sharp increase in assaults on ICE officers.
Some members and supporters of the Dedham parish said they were confused by the demand from the archdiocese, which came one month after a rare and nearly unanimous statement from U.S. Catholic bishops condemning the Trump administration’s aggressive immigration enforcement campaign.
