Faith Groups Condemn All Time Low Refugee Resettlement Goal
Statement published October 31, 2025 by Interfaith Immigration Coalition, of which the ELCA is a member.
‘Biased’, Abandoning Those At Risk, And In Need of Reversal
Washington, DC – Faith communities from multiple traditions condemn President Trump’s historic-low refugee admissions goal of 7,500, designated primarily for a group of predominantly white South Africans and others deemed a priority for the administration, at the expense of the most at-risk refugees around the world. This shocking and immoral Presidential Determination was published on the Federal Register today and explicitly keeps the ongoing refugee ban Executive Order in place, leaving over 100,000 refugees who were already vetted and approved for resettlement stranded overseas.
Faith communities have been at the forefront of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program since its founding over 45 years ago. Our worshipping communities have sponsored refugees, walked alongside refugees during their resettlement, and have seen how refugees from all backgrounds strengthen our faith communities. Recently, we urged the U.S. government to welcome 125,000 refugees in FY26, without discrimination, standing ready to welcome.
Guided by our diverse faith traditions, we share moral outrage that the Trump administration intends to abandon those facing the world’s most severe humanitarian and displacement crises including in Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Myanmar, and elsewhere. As faith groups, we are especially concerned that this Presidential Determination disregards statutory mandates to welcome those fleeing religious persecution.
The Refugee Act of 1980 requires the President to consult with Congress before determining refugee resettlement numbers; however, it appears the President failed to hold any such consultations
We call on the administration to reaffirm America’s longstanding commitment to protecting people fleeing persecution by fully restoring the refugee program to reflect and align with humanitarian values. We ask all of our elected leaders to stand up for the over 100,000 refugees still stranded overseas who were approved for resettlement as the refugee ban took effect and to support legislation to require a refugee admissions target that is responsive to global humanitarian need. We also urge our elected officials at all levels of government to maintain and strengthen critical investments in welcoming infrastructure, including health care, nutrition assistance, and education, so refugees and the communities that welcome them can thrive and flourish.
Today’s news is an affront to the legacy and humanitarian principles of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program and the desires of the American people. We urge President Trump to reverse course and work to reestablish the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program to welcome those at greatest risk around the world.
“For decades, the United States stood as a global leader in refugee admissions, offering hope and safety to those fleeing war, persecution, and violence,” said Rabbi Jonah Dov Pesner, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. “As Reform Jews, our commitment to protecting refugees is guided by Jewish text and tradition, including the Torah’s commandment to welcome the stranger, for we were strangers in the land of Egypt. Reducing refugee admissions to a historically and dangerously low level violates our moral obligation to protect the vulnerable, and reflects a shameful retreat from our nation’s historic leadership in refugee resettlement. Given our own experiences of persecution and refugeehood, we are acutely aware of how each person admitted can represent a life saved; indeed, as the Talmud teaches, ‘Whoever saves a single life is considered to have saved an entire world.’ As Jews and as Americans, we call on the administration and Congress to reverse course and recommit to a refugee policy rooted in compassion, fairness, and the fundamental dignity of every human being.”
“The administration’s refugee resettlement goal is deeply troubling. Our moral outrage continues,” said Pablo DeJesús, Executive Director of Unitarian Universalists for Social Justice. “Our U.S. program should focus on the most at-risk refugees and those already in the established process. This goal supports neither priority. The goal and policy behind it seem willfully blind to the historic patterns of racial injustice across the global south. The goal is profoundly unfair to refugees in the pipeline, mid-process. It ignores the fact that some refugees have already begun seeking entry or relocating to the U.S. Therefore, we urge Congress to side with refugees and our country’s resettlement programs. If the administration will not take the long view, the systems view, and will not sustain basic functions or structures, Congress must assert its authority, its oversight functions. Congress must defend our refugee policy and funding imperatives, and the compassion Americans have shown for those fleeing harm.”
“The administration’s refugee resettlement goals are unserious and even worse, they are overtly racially biased,” said Dylan Corbett, Executive Director of the Hope Border Institute. “At a time when the growing reality of human displacement around the world demands creativity and action, the United States is abandoning its leadership role on the protection of refugees and asylum-seekers.”
Kristyn Peck, Chief Executive Officer of Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area, said, “This decision, made without meaningful Congressional consultation, abandons the very spirit and intent of the Refugee Act of 1980—a bipartisan law grounded in compassion, international responsibility, and moral leadership. Amid unprecedented displacement—with more than 123 million people forcibly displaced worldwide—this administration’s decision dismantles U.S. humanitarian leadership. By setting a cap shaped by politics rather than need, the administration rejects decades of bipartisan consensus that recognized refugee resettlement as both a moral duty and a reflection of American strength.”
“Through both Democratic and Republican administrations, this bipartisan, public-private partnership has been a model of humanitarian leadership,” Erol Kekic, Chief Strategy Officer at Church World Service, said. “Together, we have resettled millions of refugees, saved countless lives, and strengthened and enriched communities across the country. With today’s determination, the administration is going far further than it ever has before–not only to dismantle our humanitarian infrastructure but to undermine and corrupt the core moral principles upon which our work rests. Over 100,000 refugees who had been through years of vetting and were approved to come to the U.S. remain stranded. We cannot abandon them, and we call on this administration to immediately reverse course to preserve this country’s proud legacy of protecting those in harm’s way.”
Rev. Amy Reumann, Senior Director of Witness in Society for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America stated: “As Lutherans, many of our ancestors faced the pain of having to flee their home countries and the joy of being welcomed in new communities across the United States. Building on this tradition, for over 80 years, Lutherans in the United States have united in response to God’s call to love our neighbors who come to us seeking refuge. Welcoming refugees is a true expression of our faith, and also a continuation of an American tradition of providing a home to those facing persecution because of who they are or what they believe. We urge the administration not to abandon this tradition, but to restore refugee resettlement in keeping with the significant need globally and the more than 100,000 individuals who have already passed strict vetting and are ready to make their home in the United States. Our values call for a refugee admissions process that does not discriminate based on race, religion, or nationality, but that welcomes all based on need. Each of these people, we know, is a beloved child of God; each of them bears the image of God.”
“The National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd is bitterly disappointed that the administration, without meaningful Congressional consultation, has set its refugee resettlement goal for 2025 – 2026 at the insensitive, record-low number of 7,500,” said Fran Eskin-Royer, Executive Director of the National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd. “We know that we are stronger and better when we remain rooted in our commitment to welcome. More than 100,000 vetted refugees are ready to add their energy and spirit to our country. For decades, both sides of the aisle have seen the importance of welcoming those fleeing violence and persecution into the United States. We must lean into that solidarity with those most in jeopardy and open our doors to refugees once more.”
“At the Christian Community Development Association, we believe in cultivating communities where everyone can flourish,” Christina Foor, Director of Engagement & Mobilization at the Christian Community Development Association, said. “Our communities know the beauty and strength that refugees bring. We must not allow fear, discrimination, or inconvenience to determine who is worthy of welcome. This historic reduction in refugee admissions denies that possibility to thousands of families who have already endured unimaginable hardship. Our faith compels us to stand with those seeking refuge and to call for a more just refugee policy.”
“The President’s plan to reduce the refugee admissions to the lowest level in history for predominantly Afrikaners over the most at-risk populations is both a moral failing and a humanitarian catastrophe,” said Rev. Michael Neurotic, Director of the United Church of Christ Office of Public Policy and Advocacy. “The dream and uniqueness of the United States lies in our diverse population, many of whom are refugees. The decision to leave one’s home country is far from easy, and there are over 100,000 refugees already conditionally approved waiting bravely and patiently for their opportunity. The President has failed to follow the 1980 Refugee Act to consult Congress before setting the determination, which he clearly failed to do in this instance, further eroding democratic norms. We, as followers of Christ, urge the President to repent for this disturbing realignment of the refugee admissions program, and to instead welcome the most at-risk refugees as the program was designed to do with historic bipartisan support. When we welcome refugees, we all thrive and prosper together. As the United Church of Christ, we affirm refugee resettlement as an expression of our civic duty and sacred call to love our neighbor, to uphold dignity for all God’s people, and to build a just world for all.”
The Interfaith Immigration Coalition is made up of over 56 national, faith-based organizations brought together across many theological traditions with a common call to seek just policies that lift up the God-given dignity of every individual. In partnership, we work to protect the rights, dignity, and safety of all refugees and migrants.