In response to Francis' words, the governor wrote, "Jesus guided others to follow the law of the land."
On Wednesday, Gov. Greg Abbott rebuked Pope Francis' open letter, pushing back on President Donald Trump's mass deportation plan.
Gov. Greg Abbott schooled Pope Francis on the Bible after the Catholic leader criticized President Donald Trump's mass deportation plans.
In a statement responding to Francis's open letter this week against Trump's efforts, Abbott—a practicing Catholic—responded to Francis' calls to protect the "vulnerable and defenseless" with his own interpretation of the Holy Scripture.
"The Bible calls for strong borders and law and order," Abbott wrote. "And Jesus guided others to follow the laws of the land."
Francis indicated that he had been following "the major crisis" of mass deportations closely. He wrote that Jesus "did not live apart from the difficult experience" of being a migrant, and he acknowledged other religious leaders for their work supporting migrants and refugees.
"What is built on the basis of force, and not on the truth about the equal dignity of every human being, begins badly and will end badly," Francis wrote.
Notably, Francis, an Argentine Jesuit, is the first Latin American Pope. In his address, Francis asserted that a nation has the right to defend itself and keep its residents safe but pushed back on the act of deporting "the vulnerable and defenseless."
Abbott's comments follow a visit to D.C. on Wednesday with Trump-appointed border czar Tom Homan, who is leading the mass deportation efforts. The governor praised Homan's work on social media.
"Texas finally has a partner in the White House who will restore law and order at our southern border," Abbott wrote.
Homan, who is also Catholic, echoed Abbott's dissent, telling reporters that Francis' address was hypocritical.
"He's got a wall around the Vatican, does he not? Homan said. "So, he's got a wall around to protect his people and himself, but we can't have a wall around the United States?"
Abbott has been on the national stage in the conversation about increased immigration regulation since Trump took his Oath of Office in late January. The Lone Star state devoted roughly $11 billion throughout the Biden administration to implementing a security crackdown at the Texas-Mexico border.
The governor has signaled that Texas would help the Trump administration handle immigration. During Wednesday's visit, Abbott offered thousands of state jail cells to detain migrants while they await deportation.
This is not the first time Abbott has turned to religion to defend a stance regarding immigrants and refugees. In 2015, the governor did not allow Syrian refugees into Texas. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called on Abbott to reverse his position.
Abbott did not, and cited Romans 13 on a social media post, writing that the Biblical chapter "teaches that government's role is different than man's duty: it is to protect citizens & ensure justice." He concluded the post by writing that "Texas would abide."
https://www.chron.com/politics/article/abbott-pope-border-20165198.php
