08/19/2026
“About halfway through the service at First Universalist Church of Minneapolis on Sunday, Aug. 16, the Rev. Jen Crow delivered the news: Recent court filings, she said, revealed that U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents had spied on churches, including First Universalist, as part of a broader investigation into activists opposing the work of Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
‘We know what the work of the church is,’ Crow said, referring to the church’s efforts to push back against President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign. She spoke from a pulpit positioned next to a flickering open flame burning in a chalice, a symbol of Unitarian Universalism.
‘Our spiritual practice grounds us in that work,’ the pastor said, adding, ‘Amen.’
In response, the congregation burst into applause.
It was a defiant moment, capping more than a year of rising tensions between federal immigration officials and religious communities in the Twin Cities. Since January, when thousands of federal agents arrived in the area as part of a targeted mass deportation campaign known as ‘Operation Metro Surge,’ faith-led groups have joined others in resisting the government’s efforts — be it through protests in the streets or even a religious freedom lawsuit demanding the government allow faith leaders access to immigrant detainees.”
(RNS) — Church leaders were outraged and vowed to continue their advocacy for immigrants.
