President Barack Obama\u2019s immigration plan offers \u201ca word of mercy and a measure of justice,\u201d\u009d said United Methodist Bishop Minerva Carca\u00c3\u00b1o, co-chair of the denomination\u2019s interagency task force on immigration reform.<\/p>\n
The plan means undocumented immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for more than five years and have children who are U.S. citizens or residents \u201ccan now come out of the shadows,\u201d\u009d said Carca\u00c3\u00b1o, episcopal leader for the California-Pacific Conference.<\/p>\n
The United Methodist Council of Bishops has long supported immigration reform and encouraged local communities \u201cto participate in ministries of mercy and justice,\u201d\u009d said Bishop Julius C. Trimble, co-chair of the interagency task force on immigration reform and episcopal leader of the Iowa Conference.<\/p>\n
Trimble said critics have attacked the president\u2019s action before, saying reform is the responsibility of Congress.<\/p>\n