Letter from Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe on Episcopal Migration Ministries
May 12, 2025
Dear People of God in The Episcopal Church:
I am writing today with some significant news about Episcopal Migration Ministries, the organization that leads The Episcopal Church’s refugee resettlement ministry.
Since January, the previously bipartisan U.S. Refugee Admissions Program in which we participate has essentially shut down. Virtually no new refugees have arrived, hundreds of staff in resettlement agencies around the country have been laid off, and funding for resettling refugees who have already arrived has been uncertain. Then, just over two weeks ago, the federal government informed Episcopal Migration Ministries that under the terms of our federal grant, we are expected to resettle white Afrikaners from South Africa whom the U.S. government has classified as refugees.
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. Accordingly, we have determined that, by the end of the federal fiscal year, we will conclude our refugee resettlement grant agreements with the U.S. federal government.
I want to be very clear about why we made this decision—and what we believe lies ahead for Episcopal Migration Ministries’ vital work.
It has been painful to watch one group of refugees, selected in a highly unusual manner, receive preferential treatment over many others who have been waiting in refugee camps or dangerous conditions for years. I am saddened and ashamed that many of the refugees who are being denied entrance to the United States are brave people who worked alongside our military in Iraq and Afghanistan and now face danger at home because of their service to our country. I also grieve that victims of religious persecution, including Christians, have not been granted refuge in recent months.
As Christians, we must be guided not by political vagaries, but by the sure and certain knowledge that the kingdom of God is revealed to us in the struggles of those on the margins. Jesus tells us to care for the poor and vulnerable as we would care for him, and we must follow that command. Right now, what that means is ending our participation in the federal government’s refugee resettlement program and investing our resources in serving migrants in other ways.
For nearly 40 years, Episcopal Migration Ministries has put hands and feet to our church’s commitment to seek and serve Christ in migrants and refugees. We have served nearly 110,000 refugees during this time, many of whom are now American citizens and beloved members of our communities, workplaces, and neighborhoods. Over the years, EMM has resettled individuals from Ukraine, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Myanmar. We have supported vulnerable populations from across the globe, regardless of nationality.
Since March, a dedicated team of Episcopal Migration Ministries employees has fulfilled our commitment to serve people who arrived just before or in the first days of the new administration. Now that we are ending our involvement in federally funded refugee resettlement, we have asked the administration to work toward a mutual agreement that will allow us to wind down all federally funded services by the end of the federal fiscal year in September. We are working with the affected staff members to provide extensive outplacement services and severance packages.
I have said before that no change in political fortunes alters our commitment to stand with the world’s most vulnerable people, and I want to reaffirm that promise. While our public-private partnership as a refugee resettlement agency is no longer viable, we are hard at work on a churchwide plan to support migrants and refugees through:
- Diocesan partnerships: We have vibrant ministries around the church serving migrants of all kinds. Episcopalians support newcomers through education, direct service, and advocacy. Our dioceses also work to address the root causes of migration. We pledge to redouble our efforts to support these ministries and the migrants among us.
- Global connections: We will invest in our ministries that support forced migrants throughout the countries and territories of The Episcopal Church and the Anglican Communion. This includes our powerful ministry in Europe, where the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe has served more than 140,000 refugees in the last two years, primarily from North Africa, Ukraine, and Central Asia. We will continue to work with our dioceses and Anglican partners throughout Central America to help those seeking safety.
- Continued support for refugees: While new refugee arrivals and funding have been curtailed by the current administration, thousands of refugees welcomed by Episcopal Migration Ministries in previous years still need support. We will invite Episcopalians to connect with resettled refugees and explore how to continue services we have long provided—language services, continuing education, support with childcare, and job training. If refugee resettlement begins again with the support of private sponsors, we will explore those new possibilities.
- Fundraising: It is important to understand the scale of federal grant money from which we are stepping away. In most recent years, Episcopal Migration Ministries received more than $50 million annually in federal funds. This is not a loss that can be bridged with donor funds or proceeds from investments. However, we will raise funds for new and expanded migration ministries across the church and for our partners in this ministry. You can contribute to this new work by making a donation on the Episcopal Migration Ministries website.
In the coming weeks, Episcopal Migration Ministries will share more news about how to be involved. In the meantime, please pray for vetted refugees who have not been granted permission to come to this country, for the staff who will be affected by the end of these federal grants, and for everyone who grieves the end of our federal refugee resettlement work.
May our faith in the Risen Christ, who draws all people to himself, sustain and guide us through the tumult of these times.
The Most Rev. Sean W. Rowe
Presiding Bishop
The Episcopal Church
