Pope calls for ‘open borders’ in midst of nationalism, xenophobia in U.S., Europe

Photo: Humberto Chavez via unsplash.com/@betoframe.

On Pentecost, Pope Leo XIV didn’t mince words. He reminded the world—loud and clear—that when the Holy Spirit came down, it didn’t divide people by race, language, or nation.

It united them.

The message of God was spoken in every tongue, to every people.

That moment was a divine rejection of borders, walls, and national pride.

So how dare we, in the U.S. and Europe, claim to follow Christ while we round up migrants, slam shut our borders, and treat desperate families like criminals?

The Pope called it what it is.

It is a betrayal of the Gospel.

He warned that nationalism—the dangerous lie that our country matters more than human life—is poisoning the soul of our faith.

It is anti-Christian.

It is anti-Gospel.

It turns the Church into a fortress, when Pentecost calls us to be a sanctuary.

The Holy Spirit didn’t fall only on citizens. It didn’t descend only on those with the right documents or the right language.

It fell on everyone.

And if we claim to be Spirit-filled people, then we must live like it.

That means opening our borders.

That means welcoming migrants, not hunting them.

That means choosing love over fear, and justice over power.

If we reject the stranger, we reject Christ.

If we build walls, we block the Holy Spirit.

If we stay silent while people are dragged from courthouse lines, or left to drown at sea, then our Pentecost songs mean nothing.

Pope Leo XIV is right. This is the line in the sand. Christians must choose—Spirit or fear, Gospel or nationalism, love or cruelty.

Because you can’t claim Pentecost and close the door in someone’s face.

You cannot be Christian and still cheer for a border that tears families apart.

Not anymore. Not ever.

Read the Pope’s homily: https://www.vatican.va/content/leo-xiv/en/homilies/2025/documents/20250608-omelia-pentecoste.html