LOS ANGELES — For the first time in 12 years, U.S. Catholic bishops have issued a unified statement to support the country's immigrants and oppose the Trump administration's "indiscriminate mass deportations of people."

The move marked a voice of support for immigrants — long a vital part of the U.S. Catholic Church — amid a year of unprecedented upheaval. It also continues a long tradition of the church as an institution of support for those in the country illegally that dates to the massive immigration sweeps in Los Angeles in the 1980s.

The special statement was issued Wednesday during the annual United States Conference of Catholic Bishops gathering in Baltimore. It was the first time since 2013 that the bishops had collectively voiced their concerns over an issue. The last time they did so was in response to the federal government's contraceptive mandate.

To show the consensus of the body, the bishops must vote to approve the special message, which was overwhelmingly supported with 216 votes in favor, five against and three abstentions.

At St. Joseph Catholic Church in Hawthorne on Thursday, Marisela Trujillo, 45, said she was grateful for the bishops' stance.

"They're basically speaking on our behalf," Trujillo said. "They're amplifying our voices."

On a cloudy morning, six Catholic women wearing white veils and dresses sat under a tree. They each carried tote bags with images of Jesus Christ and rosaries.

Amparo Duarte said the bishops' statement was a bold move given the harsh immigration tactics employed in recent months by the Trump administration.

Duarte recalled one sweep that had taken place in June just a street away from St. Joseph in which federal agents had detained three men and a pregnant woman.

The woman and one of the men, U.S. citizens, were eventually released. Duarte said she hoped the Trump administration would take the bishops' statement seriously.

"If you wanted to go to church and pray, you can't because you're afraid you'll get picked up by federal immigration agents," she said.

About 58% of people living in the United States who were born abroad consider themselves Christian, according to findings from the Pew Research Center. Of those, 30% identify as Catholics, the largest share of any denomination.

In Los Angeles, 28% of all Christians consider themselves Catholic, the highest of any denomination by 12 percentage points, according to Pew.

The bishops in their statement noted the toll the raids have taken on communities.

"We are disturbed when we see among our people a climate of fear and anxiety around questions of profiling and immigration enforcement," the statement read. "We are concerned by the state of contemporary debate and the vilification of immigrants. We are concerned about the conditions in detention centers and the lack of access to pastoral care."

The bishops called for immigration reform and said they were troubled by threats against the "sanctity of houses of worship and special nature of hospitals and schools."

"We oppose the indiscriminate mass deportation of people," the statement read. "We pray for an end to dehumanizing rhetoric and violence, whether directed at immigrants or at law enforcement."

On Thursday, White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson said: "President Trump was elected as the president of the United States based on the many promises he made to the American people, including his promise to deport criminal illegal aliens. He is keeping his promise."

Wednesday's action underscores the bishops' united front against the Trump administration's immigration crackdown and their support of Pope Leo XIV, the first pope from the U.S., who has spoken out against the mistreatment of immigrants and called on federal authorities to allow clergy and other pastoral workers access to detainees.

Some priests and other religious leaders have been on the front lines in the protests against the Trump administration immigration policies, even being fired upon with less-lethal ammunition by federal agents.

In Los Angeles County, immigration raids have contributed to a drop in the number of people attending Mass at some parishes.

In July, a day after an arrest at or near a local church, Bishop Alberto Rojas told his San Bernardino diocese of about 1.2 million people that they could stay home on Sundays amid concerns about immigration sweeps.

"I want our immigrant communities to know that their Church stands with them and walks with them through this trying time," he said in a statement.

Given the large percentage of parishioners affected by the crackdown, the church has taken a number of steps in recent months to address those targeted.

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles announced plans to bolster delivery of hot meals, groceries and prescription medicines to parishioners living in fear of deportation amid ongoing enforcement raids.

"This is a challenging moment for our community," Los Angeles Archbishop José Gomez said in a statement in July. "Many of our friends and family, our neighbors and fellow parishioners, are afraid and anxious. These are good, hard-working men and women, people of faith, people who have been in this country for a long time and are making important contributions to our economy."

The church's advocacy on behalf of immigrants goes back decades.

Former Los Angeles Cardinal Roger Mahony, an outspoken defender of immigrants in the 1980s and 1990s, was a leading opponent of California's Proposition 187 — the 1994 voter-approved measure that stripped benefits to immigrants who were in the country illegally.

In 2000, the national Catholic bishops called for reforms to immigration laws, saying immigrants are denied basic human rights.

Before he died, Pope Francis criticized the Trump administration's deportation plans.

"The act of deporting people who in many cases have left their own land for reasons of extreme poverty, insecurity, exploitation, persecution or serious deterioration of the environment, damages the dignity of many men and women, and of entire families, and places them in a state of particular vulnerability and defenselessness," Francis wrote in February.

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—Times staff writer Andrew Campa contributed to this report.

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