“This order, in essence, is saying the church is a sanctuary, but it is not established as law,” the pastor wrote. Fife had initially thrown out the letter on account of its final few paragraphs: the pastor had traced the history of church sanctuary all the way back to the Middle Ages, which struck Fife as academic and naive. But now the concept made more sense. They could continue to help Central Americans cross the border, then give them sanctuary. Using the church as a public platform would be a form of protection and a statement of principle.
