Dear Siblings in Christ,
On May 12, 2025, Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe sent out a letter regarding Episcopal Migration Ministries (EMM). In the letter, he notes that over two weeks ago, the federal government informed EMM that due to their federal grant funding, they were expected to resettle white Afrikaners from South Africa, who the U.S. government had classified as refugees.
Bishop Rowe states in his letter, “in light of our church’s steadfast commitment to racial justice and reconciliation and our historic ties with the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, we are not able to take this step.” He also expresses deep concern that in these actions by the federal government, one group of refugees is prioritized over others, especially those who have been waiting for years to enter the U.S. enduring harsh conditions and living in refugee camps. Given this turn of events, at the end of the federal fiscal year, The Episcopal Church will conclude its refugee resettlement grant agreements with the federal government.
We commend Bishop Rowe for his actions and support his decision. As we wrote to you on January 21, 2025, we continue to conduct our ministry as followers of Jesus Christ. We are again reminded in this time of the words of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who wrote, “We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly.”
The Episcopal Church in Connecticut will continue to claim our identities as Christians and followers of Jesus Christ, standing for the very things Jesus stood for, lived for, loved for, died for, and offers to the world through his resurrection.
We ask you to pray for, and work on behalf of, all refugees everywhere, individually and within your communities. We recommend to you the work of IRIS and EMM, who continue to partner with, and advocate for, refugees and immigrants within Connecticut and across the country.
Persevere in the good work that God has called you to do, proclaiming the Good News of the resurrection, living resurrection lives, and bearing witness to the places in our world in deep need of the New Life to which Christ calls us.
Yours In Christ,
The Rt. Rev. Jeffrey W. Mello & The Rt. Rev. Dr. Laura J. Ahrens