Deportation of Bishop Frey
Diocesan Press Service. October 5, 1971 [95-12]
NEW YORK, N.Y. -- The Rt. Rev. William C. Frey, Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Guatemala, together with his wife and their five children, arrived in Miami, Fla., Sunday, October 3, under orders of deportation by the Department of Immigration of the Republic of Guatemala, according to Dr. Paul A. Tate, the Presiding Bishop's Deputy for Jurisdictions of the Episcopal Church.
The reason given by the Immigration Department for the expulsion of the Bishop was "interference in political affairs of the country."
Bishop Frey and nine other Christian leaders had signed a statement two weeks earlier "calling for the cessation of violence and restoration of constitutional guarantees," Dr. Tate said.
Bishop Frey was summoned to appear at the Department of Immigration office on October 1, at 7:30 a.m., at which time he was ordered to leave the country within 72 hours.
Bishop Frey, a native of Waco, Tex., was elected the first Bishop of Guatemala by the House of Bishops at the General Convention held in Seattle, Wash., in September, 1967. He was consecrated the following November.
(The text of Dr. Tate's statement is attached.)
The Rt. Rev. William C. Frey, his wife Barbara, and their five children arrived in Miami Sunday afternoon, October 3, 1971, under orders of deportation by the Department of Immigration of the Republic of Guatemala.
The Episcopal Church recognizes and respects the right of a sovereign government to determine who are and who are not appropriate guests of that government. At the same time it is regrettable that one of the Bishops of the Episcopal Church has been separated from his people within the space of 72 hours for exercising his function as a spiritual leader, when he had been found to be persona grata for a continuous period of four years.
A statement signed by Bishop Frey and leaders of other Christian groups calling for the cessation of violence in the country and restoration of constitutional guarantees has been classified by the government as "interference in political affairs of the country. " We have read the statement, and support Bishop Frey in his belief that he must lead his people through his own life and ministry in the way that he feels God has called him.
Paul A. Tate
The Presiding Bishop's Deputy for Jurisdictions