House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) unwittingly showcased her hypocrisy in a record-breaking 8-hour speech on immigration and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Ironically, she cited the position of the Roman Catholic Church (of which she claims to be a member) and quoted a Bible passage about welcoming children, despite her strong support for the killing of unborn children in the womb.

“The Catholic Church has long watched with pride and admiration as DACA youth live out their daily lives with hope and determination to flourish and contribute to society,” Pelosi declared. She quoted a statement from Catholic bishops who referenced Mark 9:37, a passage about welcoming children.

“The bishops go on to say, ‘The church has recognized and proclaimed the need to welcome young people. Whoever welcomes one of these children in my name welcomes me. And whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me. Mark 9:37.’ That’s so beautiful, because what they are saying is, when you reject these newcomers, you are rejecting those who sent them,” the congresswoman said.

It is supremely ironic that Pelosi would quote Roman Catholic bishops and this particular Bible passage. Though she attends a Roman Catholic church, she supports legal abortion and opposes restrictions to it. The Roman Catholic Church’s official position is that abortion falls under murder as a violation of the Fifth Commandment (Protestants refer to it as the Sixth Commandment).

Pelosi waxed eloquent on accepting the children of illegal immigrants, but she had nothing to say about welcoming the unborn children in the womb. She has claimed that she is personally pro-life, but she still supports largely unfettered access to abortion.

Elsewhere in her speech, Pelosi quoted Matthew 25:31-46, the parable of the sheep and the goats, in which Jesus says that anyone who helps the “least of these brothers and sisters of mine,” they are really helping Him. She also quoted Luke 10:25-37, the parable of the Good Samaritan, in which Jesus taught that even those we despise and distrust are our neighbors.

Pelosi was correct in teaching the Christian ethic of love and charity toward other people, and indeed American Christians ought to embrace and help immigrants, be they legal or illegal. Jesus called His disciples to show love and compassion to all people, even their enemies, to be “perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

The difficulty with her argument comes when applying this wonderful (and nearly impossible) biblical principle to government. The Bible emphasizes love toward neighbors, but it also emphasizes justice. There is to be no “partiality in judgement,” and that means that if people break the law, they should be judged by that law.

Romans 13 emphasizes that government’s role is different from the role of a Christian. Government exists to honor the good and punish the wicked. Naturally, it is an imperfect instrument to that end, but it must be equally applied to all.

There is also no biblical suggestion that governments have no right to protect their own borders and sovereignty. One of the biblical prophets, Nehemiah, built a wall on God’s orders.

Christians, in their private capacity, should welcome and serve immigrants. That does not mean, however, that they must advocate for amnesty for illegal immigrants. Indeed, those who break the law should be punished so that there be no partiality in judgment. Legal immigrants who went through the system are cheated when illegal immigrants are given the same rights and status. Perhaps illegals and “Dreamers” should be given a fine, a slap on the wrist, and then a path to citizenship. Congress needs to work this out.

Democrats push for amnesty — not even a slap on the writs — partially because they are banking on identity politics. If immigrants vote Democrat, members of that party are likely to cater to them. A January memo from Jennifer Palmieri, a former staffer for Barack Obama’s White House and Hillary Clinton’s campaign, explicitly laid this strategy out, urging Democrats not to budge on DACA, so that immigrants would become committed to the party. This is a clear case of partiality in judgment.

(On a side note, Republican Florida Governor Rick Scott has wide discretion over whether or not to restore voting rights to felons and reportedly turned a blind eye to a man who cast an illegal vote, because he said he voted for Scott. If this story is true, this also is partiality in judgment and should be condemned just as harshly, if not more so.)

DACA involves deferred action, and it was always intended to be a stop-gap measure before dealing with the presence of children of illegal immigrants in America. Most Americans do not want these people deported, and Congress should come up with a solution to their plight. President Trump has even promised the Democrats a very clear deal including amnesty for the so-called “Dreamers,” but Democrats have refused to accept it.

Democrats were willing to shut down the government last month over immigration, and they continue to stall the process.

Pelosi’s embrace of abortion and her obstinacy on the immigration issue — ostensibly based on the principle that immigrants will vote Democrat — show utter hypocrisy in selectively applying a biblical teaching for her own ends.

Watch the part of Pelosi’s speech referencing welcoming children below.