A Catholic parish outside Boston has replaced the traditional figures of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in its outdoor nativity scene with an empty manger and a stark sign reading “ICE was here”, reigniting fierce debate over the church’s role in America’s polarised immigration crisis.
The provocative display at St Susanna parish in Dedham includes a placard bearing the telephone number of an immigrant-rights hotline.
Parish priest Father Stephen Josoma defended it as “religious art” intended to ask what Christmas would mean if Christ were born into today’s world of family separation and deportations.
Within hours the Archdiocese of Boston condemned the scene as “divisive political messaging” that violated church norms on sacred objects.
“The people of God have the right to expect that when they come to church they will encounter genuine opportunities for prayer and Catholic worship, not political statements,” a spokesman said, demanding immediate removal and restoration of a conventional crib.
Acting director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement Todd Lyons called Josoma an “activist reverend” whose actions risked inflaming violence against officers, citing a reported 1,150% rise in assaults this year.
Josoma, who in 2018 placed the infant Jesus inside a cage to protest Trump-era border policies, remained unapologetic. “It is supposed to affect people deeply, it is supposed to move people,” he told Fox News. “If it evokes strong reaction, perhaps that is worth examining.”
The clash exposes deeper tensions within American Catholicism between progressive parishes that view solidarity with migrants as gospel imperative and institutional leaders wary of alienating conservative worshippers.
