The Forum Daily | Thursday, January 15, 2026https://www.forumtogether.org

Evangelical pastor John-Mark Hart and National Association of Evangelicals regional representative Joel Kersey speak to the need for a more balanced immigration approach in their op-ed for The Oklahoman [link removed]. 

Emphasizing the biblical principles that guide their thinking on immigration, Hart and Kersey write that with the border newly reinforced, "We now have the space to rebuild legal immigration frameworks that are effective, humane and compassionate. This requires long-term legislative reform, not just temporary executive actions." 

In the meantime, many communities of faith in Minnesota are doing what they can to help and speak out for their immigrant neighbors, Jason DeRose of NPR [link removed] reports. 

"It is a sin for any person, especially a person of faith, to watch what is happening and stay in silence," said JaNaé Bates Imari, a Christian minister and co-executive director of Isaiah, an organization in Minnesota that has worked to bring people from all faith backgrounds together on issues of civil rights and justice. 

Tim Montgomery of National Catholic Reporter [link removed] outlines specifically how Catholic communities are showing up now. 

Marty Roers of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet Justice Office in St. Paul, Minnesota, is among a group of people of faith who have prayed at a federal immigration center every month for the past 12 years. Roers said this week that he is "standing up for a better way to work with the issues and struggles of immigration." 

Elsewhere on the faith front, the Department of Homeland Security is amending rules that have required religious workers on visas to leave the United States in order to be considered for renewals, reports Andrew Kreighbaum of Bloomberg Law [link removed]. The agency said that the change would help promote stability for both the workers and the communities they serve. 

Welcome to Thursday’s edition of The Forum Daily. I’m Dan Gordon, the Forum’s VP of Strategic Communications, and the great Forum Daily team also includes Jillian Clark, Nicci Mattey and Clara Villatoro. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at [email protected]. 

**MINNEAPOLIS LATEST** — Last night a federal agent in Minneapolis shot and wounded a Venezuelan man in the leg, as the man allegedly attacked the agent during attempts to detain several individuals, Minnesota Public Radio [link removed] reports. Earlier yesterday, a judge decided not to block Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations, pending further evidence, reports CBS News Minnesota [link removed]. A team at the Associated Press [link removed] reports that this morning, the president has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy troops.  

**VISA PAUSE** — The State Department will pause all immigrant visa applications for 75 countries, reports Morgan Phillips of Fox News [link removed]. The pending move follows November guidance to consular offers regarding applicants "deemed likely to rely on public benefits," including a broad set of factors. It reportedly will begin Jan. 21 and "is expected to hit family-based immigration hardest," report Eric Martin and Alicia A. Caldwell of Bloomberg [link removed]. 

**NATURALIZATIONS BLOCKED** — In Milwaukee, naturalization ceremonies were canceled just days before refugees who had passed their citizenship exams and security checks were set to take their oaths, reports Sophie Carson of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel [link removed]. The refugees came from Myanmar, one of the countries for which the administration paused all immigration processing late last year. 

**SPECIALIZED ENGLISH LEARNING** — The Forum’s English Advance [link removed] is helping California farmers boost their workers’ productivity and safety, as well as retain talent, our own Ana Negoescu and Bryan Little, senior director of policy advocacy for the California Farm Bureau, write in this month’s AgAlert [link removed]. "English Advance is one way to solidify the foundations that make a strong labor force, retaining existing talent while giving new talent the tools they need to succeed," they write.   

Thanks for reading,  

Dan 

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