Our Immigration and Sanctuary ministry works within our congregation and with partner organizations to provide support, advocacy, and education around issues impacting people facing deportation and/or seeking asylum or citizenship in the United States.
In the recent past, we partnered with Interfaith-RISE to provide on-site housing for a family from Afghanistan and we continue to support that family now that they live in their own apartment. We also work with The Jewish Center Refugee Resettlement Committee and the statewide legislative advocacy organization, UU Faith Action, in this ministry.
In April of 2017, our congregation voted to officially become a Sanctuary Congregation.
Our Sanctuary Resolution
Adopted by the Board of Trustees on February 19, 2017. Adopted by the Congregation on April 9, 2017
As anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies threaten, through the promise of harsh and haphazard mass deportations, the safety and dignity of undocumented people trying to make a better life for themselves and their families, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton joins many congregations of many faiths in moral opposition to these harmful plans and practices.
We do this as an expression of our faith; one that believes in the interconnectedness of everyone in the human family. We do this because we stand against fear and we believe in embracing our common humanity, practicing radical hospitality, and seeking greater understanding. We do this to promote diversity and inclusivity and seek the creation of more and more communities of mutual love and support. Beloved communities must welcome and protect people, and our faith demands that we provide refuge, however we can, for the vulnerable or helpless.
We, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Princeton, therefore declare ourselves to be a Sanctuary Congregation. With this action, we promise to support congregations serving as physical sanctuary sites for undocumented immigrants at risk of deportation. We also promise to advocate for the principles of the Sanctuary movement locally and nationally. Lastly, we also promise to serve as a physical sanctuary site should the current administration engage in unjust immigration enforcement and should our Executive Team determine that our congregation has the space and resources to serve as such a site.
It is our hope that these actions will not only serve undocumented people but will discourage the use of harsh deportation measures.
The Executive Team of the Congregation will create a Sanctuary Task Force of lay leaders and staff, with Board representation, to engage the congregation in these promises and to inform the congregation of progress in moving toward serving as a physical Sanctuary site. The Executive Team will keep the Board apprised of progress in all areas.
In declaring ourselves to be a Sanctuary Congregation, we are acting in accordance with the guidance, wisdom, and prophecy of our faith. We believe in the inherent worth and dignity of each person. We believe that we are all connected. We believe that justice and compassion should guide all human relations. And we proclaim the vision of a future world in which peace, liberty, and dignity are afforded all people, without exception.
Sanctuary Heart
On May 5, 2024, we explored our Immigration and Sanctuary ministry with a service titled “Sanctuary Heart”. You can read Reflections by Michele Ochsner and Audrey Pico, and Rev. Bill Neely’s sermon below:
Resources
The Unitarian Universalist College of Social Justice, in partnership with the Unitarian Universalist Association, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee and UURISE, has provided a number of resources, including the Sanctuary Toolkit, February 2017, which provided a significant amount of the information included in these FAQs. See UUCSJ.org. Please note that this is a living document, subject to frequent revision. It is not intended to provide legal advice.
