As U.S. Catholic bishops gather in Baltimore this week for their annual fall meeting, the specter of President-elect Donald Trump’s resounding victory will overshadow the proceedings.

The incoming Trump administration offers both promise and danger for American Catholic leaders’ top policy concerns, which include abortion and immigration.

While Archbishop Timothy Broglio, President of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, congratulated Trump on his victory in his statement, he emphasized that the Catholic Church “is not aligned with any political party.”

Catholic teaching prioritizes both ending abortion and providing humane care to immigrants. Catholics, like many U.S. Christians, find a flawed standard bearer in Trump.

His anti-abortion rhetoric While Trump has praised the end of federal abortion rights, he has waffled on the concept of a national abortion ban and said abortion policies should be left to the states.

He paints a less optimistic picture for Catholic clergy on immigration. Trump campaigned three times harsh immigration policies and vowed to carry out “the largest deportation operation in American history.”

“We’re very, very concerned about the impact of all of this,” said Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso, Texas, who chairs the U.S. bishops’ committee on immigration, referring to Trump’s proposed immigration measures.

Catholic and faith-based organizations most have long shoulders care of immigrants On both sides of the US-Mexico border. “We hear about the fear they experience every day,” Seitz said of immigrants fleeing violence in the border diocese or facing deportation.

Seitz said the church calls for an orderly, legal immigration system where immigrants are screened and “those fleeing unlivable situations can enter, and those who need to work in our country can obtain visas.”

Seitz will present to his fellow bishops this week about a plan to educate people in parishes about the plight of immigrants.

Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski, who also serves on the bishops’ immigration committee, expressed “cautious optimism” about Trump’s second term, believing that the reality of immigrants’ contributions to the U.S. economy will be more important than “exaggeration.” about mass deportations.

“If he wants to achieve the ‘greatest economy ever,’ he will have to work on some kind of compromise on immigration issues,” said Wenski, who works closely with him. immigrant and refugee communities.

On abortion and other issues, Wenski said the Biden administration is sometimes giving people of faith heartburn “because of policy decisions that appear to interfere with religious freedom.”

Wenski relaxed in Florida abortion rights amendment It failed; He received 57% support when he needed 60% to prevail. But he predicts that there will be “a long road ahead of us in developing a culture of life.”

In their voting guide, the bishops emphasize that fighting abortion is “our top priority.”

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, who chairs the USCCB’s pro-life activities committee, told the Catholic broadcasting company: EWTN He said last week his committee would discuss election results, particularly state ballot initiatives where the anti-abortion movement is active. lose the record.

“We will not always prevail, but I appreciate and thank the bishops and faithful in all states who have faced this challenge,” Burbidge said. “Even when we lose, we remain undefeated.”

For anti-abortion Catholics like Charles Camosy, a professor of bioethics at Creighton University School of Medicine, none of the political parties in the United States feel at home. While Vice President Kamala Harris staunchly defends abortion rights, Trump is no anti-abortion crusader.

Camosy touched on Trump’s statement that he is “great for women and their reproductive rights,” as well as his support for in vitro fertilization treatment and state autonomy over abortion. “This, in my view, is pro-choice,” Camosy said.

Camosy is cautiously optimistic that the new vice president, J.D. Vance, will be able to better represent the “integrity of Catholic teaching.” Vance, who converted to Catholicism, is part of the growing traditionalist wing of the church.

Trump strengthened his power in this election Support among Catholics Compared to 2020, according to AP VoteCast, a comprehensive survey of more than 120,000 voters.

Catholics generally supported Trump; 54 percent supported him and 44 percent supported Harris. But there was also a racial divide. About 6 in 10 white Catholics supported Trump, and about 4 in 10 white Catholics supported Harris. By contrast, about 6 in 10 Latino Catholics supported Harris, and about 4 in 10 Latino Catholics supported Trump.

In Baltimore, the bishops’ meeting will go beyond electoral politics to include dryer, bureaucratic procedures such as annual budget approval and “three action items on liturgical texts.” Latest developments will be discussed at the meeting synod meeting It is part of a process to reform the church in Rome initiated by Pope Francis, whose leadership has at times clashed with the right-leaning American Catholic hierarchy.

From his post at the U.S.-Mexico border, Bishop Seitz said the church will continue to work within U.S. law and advocate for changes to laws it finds unjust.

Two days after the election, Seitz attended a prayer service for immigrants. The next morning, he helped release water into the desert for migrants crossing treacherous terrain.

No matter who is in office, he said, “We as a church will continue to do what the church does.”

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AP reporter Giovanna Dell’Orto contributed to this report.

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