Catholic leaders in the United States are urging prayer, restraint, and renewed respect for human life following two fatal shootings by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis, incidents that have sparked widespread protests and deepened tensions across Minnesota.
The most recent death occurred Saturday, when 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an intensive care nurse and U.S. citizen, was shot and killed during an encounter involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. According to local authorities, Pretti legally possessed a handgun and had a permit to carry it. Video footage from the scene reportedly shows him holding a phone, not a weapon, as he assisted other protesters. He was forced to the ground, disarmed, and then shot multiple times.
Pretti’s death followed the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother, who was fatally shot by ICE agents in Minneapolis just over two weeks earlier, according to Vatican News.
In response, Archbishop Bernard Hebda of Minneapolis called on Catholics to seek God’s peace through prayer and reflection. “The loss of another life amidst the tensions that have gripped Minnesota should prompt all of us to ask what we can do to restore the Lord’s peace,” he said, according to Vatican News. He emphasized that every person is created in the image and likeness of God, including “our undocumented neighbors.”
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Archbishop Hebda warned that justice and peace cannot take root where prejudice and hatred remain. “This will be not be achieved until we are able to rid our hearts of the hatreds and prejudices that prevent us from seeing each other as brothers and sisters created in the image and likeness of God,” he said, inviting Catholics to pray before the Blessed Sacrament in local churches as a “quiet place for prayer and reflection.”
National Catholic leaders echoed the call for calm. Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, urged Americans to reject violence and rhetoric that strips others of their dignity. “I prayerfully urge calm, restraint, and respect for human life in Minneapolis, and all those places where peace is threatened,” he said in a statement released Sunday, according to Vatican News. He added that “public authorities especially have a responsibility to safeguard the well-being of people in service to the common good.”
Archbishop Coakley also referenced remarks from Pope Leo XIV, recalling the Holy Father’s recent Angelus appeal. “The Gospel must be proclaimed and lived in every setting, serving as a leaven of fraternity and peace among all individuals, cultures, religions and peoples,” the Pope said, as quoted by the Archbishop. He concluded with the Pope’s reminder that “peace is built on respect for people.”
Meanwhile, civil authorities are reviewing the shootings. President Donald Trump told the Wall Street Journal that his administration is examining the fatal encounter and suggested ICE agents could eventually be withdrawn from the Minneapolis area, according to Vatican News. A federal judge is also expected to hear arguments that could temporarily limit ICE operations in Minnesota, following a lawsuit challenging the recent expansion of federal enforcement activity in the state.
As protests and vigils continue, Catholic leaders are urging the faithful to respond not with anger, but with prayer, repentance, and a renewed commitment to defending the dignity of every human life.
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