Following Jesus, Resisting Empire: A Letter From Bishop Monnot, en route to Minneapolis
Thursday, January 22, 2026
Dear Siblings in Christ,
I write this en route to Minneapolis, where I plan to join clergy from the Diocese of Iowa, The Episcopal Church in Minnesota, and ecumenical clergy from all over the country on Friday. Together, we will take part in a gathering to protest the inhumane and unconstitutional actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents as they harass, intimidate, abuse, and detain our neighbors. Our hope as gathered clergy is to provide a peaceful and prayerful presence, to de-escalate tensions, and to promote the safety of all present. In my mind this includes protestors, people targeted by ICE, local police, members of the National Guard, and ICE agents themselves.
Three things motivate me as I travel. The first is the promises we make in the Baptismal Covenant, which many of us renewed two weeks ago in church. We promise to resist evil, to proclaim by word and example the gospel of Jesus, to seek and serve Christ in all persons, and to strive for justice, peace, and dignity for every human being. In traveling to Minneapolis at this time, I am doing my best to fulfill these promises as I believe God is calling me to do right now.
My second motivation is Jesus’ example and his commandments. Jesus commanded us to love our neighbor, and also to love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us. I take this seriously, and I pray for God to fill the hearts of the ICE agents who are perpetrating abuses in Minneapolis and all over the country. Jesus also gave us the example of disrupting abuse, even when it was legally justified. When a group of men came to him with a woman who was found in the act of committing adultery, his actions prevented them from killing her by stoning, even though the law of Moses decreed that stoning was the appropriate punishment. Later, when Jesus saw the corruption present in the temple as the moneychangers colluded to take advantage of the most vulnerable worshipers, he turned over their tables and drove them out of the temple.
The third thing that impels me to Minneapolis at this time is my own ordination vows as your bishop and the responsibility that I bear to you and all the people of the Diocese of Iowa. Over four years ago, I promised to proclaim and interpret the Gospel of Christ; to encourage and support all baptized people in their gifts and ministries; to guard the faith, unity, and discipline of the church; and to be merciful to all, show compassion to the poor and strangers, and defend those who have no helper. For all of these reasons, I believe that God is calling me to Minneapolis at this time as your bishop.
I want to be very clear that we are all called and gifted as unique individuals by the one God who created each of us. As Christians, we follow a savior who sacrificed his own life for the sake of others and was legally executed by an authoritarian regime. Some of us may be called to follow him by using our own bodies in the service of disrupting injustice and abuse. Some may not. In this I recall what I have learned about the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. At that time, many marched against injustice, and some were beaten, injured, jailed, and even killed. Others supported the marchers. They cooked, provided hospitality, took care of the children, prayed, organized bail money, and provided rides. God calls each of us to serve God’s Kingdom in our own way, according to our own spiritual gifts and abilities.
What is crucial at this time in our history is to remember that God is always on the side of the most vulnerable, the most marginalized, and the poorest. When Jesus came to save the world, he did not do so through the means of empire and force, but through the power of God’s love, which is so strong that it even disrupted death through the resurrection. All of us who are followers of Jesus are called to resist the forces of empire wherever we see them, even in our own government.
I call upon every member of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa to pray and to discern how God is calling you to act for God’s Kingdom at this time. Whether it is by risking your physical well-being in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors or by laying down your life in other ways such as prayer and supporting others, your faith impels you to act. Refusing to act in the face of evil supports those powers that we have sworn to resist. The situation we face has moved far beyond partisan politics. Now is the time for all Christians to put our faith into action, to love God and to love our neighbors as ourselves, and to dedicate ourselves to building up God’s Kingdom.
Your sister in Christ,
+ Betsey
The Rt. Rev. Betsey Monnot
Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa