The Trump administration has filed a lawsuit to take control of church property in New Mexico that sits at the base of Mount Cristo Rey, a mountaintop pilgrimage site crowned by a 29-foot limestone statue of Jesus Christ. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin initiated the action against the Catholic Diocese of Las Cruces to acquire roughly 14 acres in Dona Ana County through eminent domain.
According to the legal complaint filed last week, the government values the land at approximately $183,071 in just compensation. The move marks an escalation in the Trump administration's push to construct the border wall, now directly targeting religious property that has served as a destination for tens of thousands of worshippers annually.
Mount Cristo Rey draws up to 40,000 pilgrims each year, particularly on the feast day of Christ the King each fall. Visitors climb the mountain to attend mass and view the monument and surrounding landscape. The Diocese argues the site holds deep religious significance and that seizing the land would violate the First Amendment right to religious expression as well as protections under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
Attorneys representing the Diocese stated in their response that the mountaintop shrine is essential to the faithful's ability to practice their faith and participate in annual religious gatherings. They have mounted both constitutional and statutory defenses against the government's eminent domain claim.
Resistance to border wall construction has emerged across the region, with local landowners in West Texas delaying projects and even forcing removal of wall sections in national and state parks. However, the Trump administration has signaled that property owners have limited options. Letters sent to private landowners indicate that refusal to grant access voluntarily could result in land seizure through eminent domain.
Neither the Department of Homeland Security nor the Diocese of Las Cruces responded to requests for comment on the lawsuit.
Author James Rodriguez: "When government power meets sacred ground, the First Amendment becomes more than abstract principle, and this case will test whether religious liberty survives when border security priorities collide with decades of pilgrimage tradition."
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