CENTRAL FALLS — Only three days before Christmas, a sizable group of about 50 committed Catholics assembled around noon in the parking lot of Fuerza Laboral, a self-described “workers’ rights center … founded by a group of immigrant workers” in Central Falls.
Under cloudless blue skies, but with temperatures hovering just below freezing and a persistent breeze intensifying the wind chill factor, attendees gradually summoned the courage to abandon the comfort of their vehicles and brave New England’s seasonably frosty air. “We can go inside for a few minutes, where it’s warmer,” suggested Most Reverend Bruce A. Lewandowski, C.Ss.R.
The 10th Bishop of Providence, just seven months into the role, chose to observe his first Rhode Island Christmas in part by calling together religious and lay people throughout his new diocese for a unique devotion. From the designated meeting point, they would first walk two blocks south to the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility. Then, from a street corner outside the building, they would pray the Holy Rosary, meditating on the Five Holy Migrations of Jesus and the Holy Family: their journey to Bethlehem, flight into Egypt, return to Nazareth, voyage to Jerusalem, and finally, the Lord’s excursion to Galilee.
“This will be a very difficult Christmas for many of our brothers and sisters in Rhode Island, across New England, and across the country because of detentions and deportations,” the bishop emphasized to his group at the outset. “We’re gathering for a peaceful time of prayer for those who are in detention. We’re praying, and we’re not here to provoke anyone. We want to leave the best impression possible. We’re doing what our faith communities do best, to pray and intercede for each other, asking the Lord’s help and assistance for our brothers and sisters.”
Earlier in December at the Cathedral of SS. Peter and Paul, Bishop Lewandowski hosted Northeast regional faith leaders, Diocese of Providence staffers, and other like minded advocates for a day-long strategy session centered on Catholic teaching with regard to various immigration issues. From this first-of-its-kind forum in Providence sprang the idea for a unique rosary recitation.
Volunteers, using a bull horn so that those inside Wyatt might hear, would take turns before each decade of the rosary reading specially prepared introductory reflections on the particular journey they represented.
Among those who accepted the invitation, Father Dan Sweet, pastor of Holy Trinity Parish in Woonsocket, a diverse, multilingual parish from that city and next-door North Smithfield. “Immediately,” he recalled, “I just was thinking about how many people from my community have come up, asking me for help, for prayers, for that someone whom they love who’s being detained.”
Four of the five introductions were written in English. Yokaty Lugo, a parishioner from St. Ann’s in Providence, read the one in Spanish. Having come with her family to the United States from the Dominican Republic during the 1990s, she decided to participate in the bishop’s rosary to help bring a measure of hope to those being held at Wyatt, even though she does not know any of them personally.
“But it’s heartbreaking, too, to be here,” she confessed, “especially during this Christmas season. Some people that are being detained might have a lot of uncertainties about what the future will hold. I’m glad that I’m able to do it, in the sense that I have the freedom to speak up for those who cannot speak out for themselves.”
Father Sweet, who read the fifth Holy Migratory Mystery introduction, felt similarly inclined, explaining afterward, “If something seems daunting, I just bring it to our Blessed Mother and pray the rosary. I’m sure that some of the people inside there are dear to the people I see every Sunday at Mass. So that’s why I’m here. I was really impressed with the work of creativity in these five new, beautifully written mysteries of migration. It was a real honor to speak out boldly some words of solidarity for the dignity of every human being.”
Honorable though the group’s intentions may have been, many Americans—Catholics among them—hold opposing views on the issue.
Asked how he would respond to those who differ with him, Father Sweet replied, “I would simply say, please try to be understanding of the difficulties that people face, both in this country and in other countries as well, and to be ready to learn more about what motivates them to leave their countries and seek a better life here, and to take the risks, the many risks that are involved.”
For one reason or another, countless foreign citizens have entered the United States over the years without following this country’s long-standing immigration procedures, in clear violation of the law. Bishop Lewandowski acknowledged as much during his first appearance on Newsmakers, a television news interview program that he recorded on Dec. 19 and which aired on Rhode Island’s CBS network affiliate the day before his Wyatt rosary gathering.
“My hope,” the bishop told the show’s hosts, “is that at some point we get comprehensive immigration reform that respects the dignity of every person and family unit and, for the good of society, allows people who’ve been here for decades to regularize their status somehow, by paying a fine, by doing some kind of service, or complying with some kind of requirements. Reform means we look at how we’ve handled immigration in the distant past, in the recent past, and then adjust our laws accordingly.”
Until such time, it appears the prayers will continue outside Wyatt and beyond. As organizers finalize plans for a trip to take their message to Washington, D.C., in early 2026, Bishop Lewandowski revealed that similar rosary recitations are expected at the Central Falls facility every first Saturday of the month after January 12. He and others in the group were particularly heartened by the response they appeared to receive from within.
On more than one occasion during this inaugural migration-themed rosary, the sound of detainees banging on their cell windows interrupted the proceedings—a sign the group outside interpreted as evidence that their voices, united in prayer, had reached their intended audience. In return, they either waved at the detainees or made the universal sign of peace with their fingers.
Later, back at Fuerza Laboral, as he said his goodbyes to those who answered yes to the last-minute invitation, Bishop Lewandowski thanked and encouraged them, “Let’s keep praying and advocating for our brothers and sisters. It was very nice to know they heard us.”
