Room at the Table: Cultivating Growth and Hope in Challenging Times

This post walks through in a concrete way how I use the stimulus|pause|reflect style of processing in order to cultivate growth, hope, and action.

Being involved in various reading and study groups is one of the privileges of my life. I just left my Bible study group, which serves as a grounding place for me. This group is unlike any other Bible study group I have been part of. We reflect our congregation as being diverse in many ways: gender, age, race, education, citizenship, work, cultural backgrounds, relationships, languages, and range of faith experiences and expressions.

This coming Sunday, our faith community will gather to partake in communion. As we do, this is what will happen. There will be a lot of us at that table. We will look very different from each other and it may appear to some that we do not all belong at this table. BUT what I know and celebrate is that we will ALL be called to come forward to receive communion. All will be welcomed and all will receive. I go to an open table that is welcoming and safe for all.

Recently, policies by the Trump administration have seriously impacted my church, as well as all houses of worship. We must discuss and comprehend how we can keep worshiping openly as we have throughout my entire life. In order to do that, I invite you to walk with me through my personal process of slowing down: Stimulus, Pause, and then Respond.

STIMULUS: WHAT HAS HAPPENED?

How is the Trump administration impacting churches and other houses of worship?

The most significant policy change concerning churches and other places of worship by the Trump administration is permitting ICE to conduct arrests within them without needing prior approval.

THIS ALSO IMPACTS OTHER PREVIOUSLY PROTECTED AREAS as well.

For decades, the Department of Homeland Security has maintained standing guidance requiring ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) to refrain from immigration enforcement actions in certain areas ("Sensitive Locations"). These have included schools, healthcare facilities, places of worship, places where children gather (playgrounds, bus stops), social services establishments, disaster/emergency response sites, weddings, funerals, and religious ceremonies.

Throughout our history, our nation has deemed it vital to protect sensitive locations from ICE enforcement actions to ensure community well-being and access to essential services.

We have protected the physical, emotional, spiritual, legal, ethical well-being of individuals as well as our communities. 

"Protecting sensitive locations from immigration enforcement is essential to ensuring all our community members can access basic services and support without fear—the policy’s rescission constitutes an attack on immigrant communities’ wellbeing and undermines safety for all. In the wake of a litany of cruel executive orders targeting immigrants—and sanctuary policies—the rescission is especially pernicious in its attempt to make immigrants feel unsafe even in spaces that are the core of a civil society." National Immigration Law Center

PAUSE: REFLECT BEFORE RESPONDING 

In this pause,

I remember my faith teachings and beliefs: that I am sister to my neighbor as well as the foreigner and immigrant. My faith is very clear about commanding followers to love their neighbor as themselves. This extends to immigrants and foreigners. The Bible condemns mistreating or oppressing foreigners and emphasizes the importance of ensuring they receive justice and protection.

I reflect on the history of our country: "For decades, the government has recognized that everyone — no matter their immigration status — should be able to attend houses of worship without fear of a warrantless government raid." Skye Perryman. Our country has served as a beacon for following rule of law and affording safety for all of us.

I recall experiences with others who have experienced the lack of safe spaces, who could not worship openly, who could not go to seek medical care or buy food for fear of arrests, who experienced their family being ripped apart and sent to gas chambers. I understand the fear that grips a community when there are no safe spaces enforced by the government. Some of these experiences have come to me as a therapist as clients have shared lifelong traumas. Others have been personal friends and church members.

I remember the value of my own faith, and I respect others who worship differently, who also value divine presence, guidance, and values of life. Religions and related social and cultural structures have played an important part in human history. As mental structures, they can influence the way we perceive the world around us and the values we accept or reject. As social structures, they can provide a supporting network and a sense of belonging.

Guidance from faith serves as a centering focus for many.

Lastly, when I find myself in this space between stimulus and response, I often come to worship, prayer, and to receive communion as I pause to listen and reflect. Why? Because at the core of who I am is the belief in a God who loves and cares for each of his children. Communion is a gift from God. It is a way of being nourished, reminded of God's love and the strength of the Christian community.

When I approach the table to receive communion, I do so as one of God's children, neither superior nor inferior, and I am reminded that God's grace is meant for everyone. For each of us. It is here I remember that why has sustained me. And others.

In my own reflection, I understand how crucial it is to make choices out of my core beliefs. To do otherwise is wrong for me. And wounds my soul. 

RESPONSE: OK, what choice do I make?

I will keep welcoming others to worship and do everything possible to support those who wish to worship without fear of arrest, deportation, or harm. 

I choose to endorse legal measures against the Administration's decision to revoke the protection of sensitive locations.

Others are doing the same. We are witnessing a flooding of responses:

• Among the earliest to take action was a group comprising Baptists, Quakers, and Sikhs, who are concerned about the desecration of their houses of worship. This concern prompted them to sue the administration for infringing on their religious freedom.

Update on the lawsuit: WASHINGTON -- "On Friday, a federal judge ruled in favor of the Trump administration, permitting immigration agents to carry out enforcement actions at places of worship for the time being, despite a lawsuit from religious organizations challenging the new policy." April 11, 2025

• Religious organizations nationwide persist in filing lawsuits. These legal actions contest the government's attempts to terminate protections that prevented immigration agents from detaining individuals in “sensitive locations” like churches, schools, courthouses, and hospitals.

• Beyond faith groups, others are filing lawsuits: Teacher Unions, National Education Association, American federation of Teachers, academic organizations, Academic Groups, ACLU, labor organizations, and at least 290 international students. The legal actions continue each day and are far more numerous than I can list.

I realize I am not reporting on any response actions of support for ICE now being allowed to enter houses of worship, which has been my major focus in this post. I am honestly not hearing from any houses of worship who are in support of this change. If you know of those who are supportive of this policy change, please write and let me know. I would love to dialogue for understanding of how they have made their own decisions.

In conclusion, I sincerely encourage you to take time to reflect and then form your own response.

Have you formulated a response to this issue? What actions are you taking based on that response?

 I would be delighted to hear from you if you choose to share, whether privately or in the comments below.

Today, I give thanks for the space to remember a God who welcomes and invites all to the table. 

BE WELL. BREATHE. REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE.