Church Protests Family Separation By Putting Holy Family In Cage

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph locked in family separation cage

To protest Donald Trump’s family separation policy, a church in Indianapolis has locked the holy family in a cage. The large exhibit is in the front lawn of the church — and it’s guaranteed to get a lot of attention. Especially online, where the church’s dean is sharing the images.

“Last evening we revealed our #EveryFamilyIsHoly campaign, designed to bring awareness to the humanitarian atrocities from our nation’s ‘zero tolerance’ immigration policies on the border and here in Indianapolis,” wrote Stephen Carlsen, Dean of Christ Church Cathedral. “Holy Scripture is clear about how we are to treat people trying to find safety for their families—we are to show mercy and welcome them.”

Carlsen hopes the display will remind people that scripture says Jesus, Mary, and Joseph were homeless and fled danger. “When I read the stories of the Holy Family in scripture, they were in the middle of some pretty heated things,” he told RTV6. “They had to flee for asylum in Egypt. … The powers of the day were threatening and indeed killing people in Jesus’s day. They were a homeless family with nowhere to stay. I think our faith tells us where we need to be.”

And for the critics who are worried about that the image of the holy family being caged is too controversial, Carlsen has a message for you, too. “The fact that it’s controversial isn’t because I want to be controversial. What’s controversial is that we are turning away from the values that should be guiding us,” he said. “The point of a religious icon is to move our hearts, and if at first people are upset by it, that might just be God trying to move their heart. And I hope their hearts soften.”

Carlsen reiterates that people of faith need to stand up to this administration and say no to this cruel policy. “We will not stand by while children are being taken from their parents, and families are being taken from our communities and congregations,” he said. “People of good will and faith must not allow this to continue. We must not be divided by race, language or culture, but reach out to care for our neighbors—because every family is sacred.”