Priests Walk Through Barbed Wire to Bring Communion to ICE Detainees After Landmark Court Win

Catholic Priests Enter Chicago ICE Detention Center to Deliver Communion and Ashes on Ash Wednesday After Federal Court Victory

For the first time in six years, Catholic clergy walked past barbed wire and concrete barriers to bring Holy Communion and ashes to immigration detainees held at the Broadview ICE facility west of Chicago, Illinois.

Scalabrini Father Leandro Fossa, Claretian Father Paul Keller, and Sister Alicia Gutierrez of the Society of Helpers entered the facility on Ash Wednesday, February 18, 2026, after a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on February 13 ordering the Department of Homeland Security to allow religious leaders inside.

After an hour and a half inside the facility, the clergy emerged and told reporters they had given Communion and ashes to four detainees and three facility staff members. Father Keller's palms were covered in ash as he addressed the media.

"We're dealing with what should be a very noncontroversial issue, which is praying with people who are detained and providing them some comfort," Father Paul Keller said.

The Broadview facility had been closed to clergy visits since the coronavirus pandemic began in 2020, according to the Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership. During the fall 2025 "Midway Blitz" operation, more than 4,200 people were detained and packed into the facility, with plaintiffs in a lawsuit alleging detainees were forced to sleep on floors amid overflowing toilets.

Just an hour after the clergy's visit, Chicago Archbishop Cardinal Blase Cupich delivered a powerful message to more than 3,500 worshippers at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in nearby Melrose Park, a Scalabrinian parish with a significant immigrant population.

"God does not need papers to know where you are or who you are. When you cry in secret, he sees you. When you work hard for your children while no one is watching, he sees you," Cardinal Cupich declared.

Pope Leo, who grew up outside Chicago, and other Catholic leaders have emerged as fierce proponents of immigrant rights during President Trump's immigration crackdown. The court victory followed months of legal battles to restore pastoral access that had been denied since the pandemic.

Federal Judge Orders DHS to Allow Religious Ministry Inside Broadview Immigration Detention Facility

Loyola University student Kamila Chavez, who was present at the events, emphasized the significance of the clergy's visit.

"It's letting immigrants and people in Broadview know that they're not alone and we haven't forgotten about them," Chavez said.

Rev. David Black, a Presbyterian pastor who supported the effort, reflected on the meaning of the day: "Ash Wednesday is a day that we remember that we are dust and that we will return to dust."

The Crusader's Opinion

This is what the Church is supposed to do. While governments argue over papers and policies, the Body of Christ walks through barbed wire to bring the Eucharist to the forgotten. Six years these souls waited without pastoral care. Six years without the comfort of Communion. That is an abomination in any civilized nation that claims to uphold religious freedom. Whatever your position on immigration policy, no government on earth has the right to stand between a prisoner and their God. These priests did not bring politics through those gates. They brought the body and blood of Jesus Christ. The fact that it took a federal court order to allow a priest to pray with a detained person should alarm every Christian in America, regardless of denomination.

Take Action

• Contact the Department of Homeland Security at (202) 282 8000 and demand that all detained persons be guaranteed unimpeded access to pastoral care and religious services.
• Support the Coalition for Spiritual and Public Leadership, which fought the legal battle to restore clergy access to detention facilities.
• Donate to The Shepherd's Shield to support persecuted Christians and those denied religious liberty worldwide.
• Write to your Congressional representatives and demand legislation guaranteeing religious access rights for all detained persons in federal facilities.
• Pray for the more than 4,200 detainees held at Broadview and in facilities across the country. Organize a prayer vigil at your local church this Sunday.