When I ask people in Chestnut Hill what is top of mind for them, lately I have been hearing a similar answer.

Many are concerned about the President and his administration’s actions and policies that are raising costs for families and putting industries and entire communities at risk.

People want to know what we can do to ensure Washington respects the boundaries of local institutions and the rights we hold dear.

Immigration enforcement often comes up in those conversations. Regardless of where people stand on immigration policy, many worry that enforcement is starting to come at the expense of our basic freedoms.

Recently, while knocking on doors near Market on the Fareway, I spoke with a couple about some of our efforts to protect community spaces from intimidation by immigration officers, including at polling places, state government buildings, hospitals and health care facilities, and schools.

They asked a simple question: Are we doing enough to protect houses of worship?

And I realized we weren’t.

For generations, churches, synagogues, mosques, and temples have been treated as sacred spaces. They are places where people gather to pray, seek guidance, and support one another through life’s most important moments. These are the spaces where families celebrate births, mourn deaths, and find comfort during difficult times.

But recent changes in federal policy removed guardrails that once discouraged immigration enforcement at sensitive locations, including houses of worship.

We are already seeing the consequences.

Earlier this year in Union City, New Jersey, two men were detained by immigration agents outside a church just as they were about to enter Sunday services. The arrest did not take place inside the sanctuary. It happened right outside the door.

But to the congregation, the fear was the same.

When immigration enforcement happens in or around a house of worship, it affects entire congregations. Attendance drops. Families stay home. Parents think twice before bringing their children to religious instruction.

And increasingly, houses of worship are not only places of prayer. They are also places where families turn for help.

Across Pennsylvania, faith communities operate food pantries, counseling services, addiction recovery groups, and other programs that support families facing hardship. When fear keeps people from walking through those doors, communities lose more than a place of worship. They lose a vital support system.

That is why I am introducing the Let Us Pray in Peace Act.

Pennsylvania cannot control federal immigration policy. But we can decide how our own state and local resources are used.

This bill establishes a simple safeguard. Pennsylvania state resources, including state police and local law enforcement, will not assist civil immigration enforcement in or around houses of worship without a judicial warrant.

This legislation focuses on civil immigration enforcement. It does not affect criminal investigations backed by a judicial warrant, and it does not change federal immigration law.

What it does is ensure that sacred spaces are treated with the respect they deserve.

I recently spoke with congregants of a local church in Chestnut Hill about this bill, and there was strong support for protecting houses of worship in this way.

The First Amendment guarantees the free exercise of religion. But religious freedom isn’t just about the choice of your faith. It also means people should be able to walk into their place of worship without fear.

Pennsylvania was founded as a commonwealth of religious freedom. Across faith traditions, there is a shared teaching: welcome the stranger and care for those in need. Our laws should respect the sacred spaces where those teachings are lived out.

Houses of worship should be places of prayer, reflection, and community support. They should not be places where families worry about immigration enforcement waiting outside the door.

People should be able to pray in peace.

Rep. Khan’s 194th legislative district includes Chestnut Hill, East Falls, Manayunk, Roxborough and Wissahickon.