LONDON

The head of the Church of England on Sunday criticized the government’s new immigration strategy in his annual Easter Sunday sermon.

Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby addressed the "serious ethical questions" of sending refugees and asylum seekers to Rwanda, describing the idea as the "opposite of the nature of God," amid growing concerns about the legal implications of the plan.

“This season is also why there are such serious ethical questions about sending asylum seekers overseas. The details are for politics and politicians. The principle must stand the judgment of God, and it (the plan) cannot,” Welby said at the Canterbury Cathedral in southeast England.

“It cannot carry the weight of our national responsibility as a country formed by Christian values; because sub-contracting out our responsibilities, even to a country that seeks to do well like Rwanda, is the opposite of the nature of God, who Himself took responsibility for our failures,” he added.

The archbishop expressed his concerns over the cost of the living crisis faced by millions of families across the UK, who he described as “waking up in fear” following two years of national lockdowns and isolation inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic.

He also called for a cease-fire in Ukraine, urging the Russian government to withdraw and engage in peace talks with the Ukrainian government in order to prevent further deaths of innocent civilians.

“Let this be a time for a Russian cease-fire, withdrawal, and a commitment to talks. This is a time for resetting the ways of peace, not for what bismarck called blood and iron. Let the darkness of war be banished,” the archbishop said.

Archbishop of York Stephen Cottrell echoed Welby's remarks, saying that as a nation, "we can do better than the Rwanda scheme."

He added: “It is so depressing and distressing this week to find that asylum seekers fleeing war, famine and oppression from deeply, deeply troubled parts of the world will not be treated with the dignity and compassion that is the right of every human being, and instead of being dealt with quickly and efficiently here on our soil will be shipped to Rwanda.”

On Thursday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that thousands of asylum seekers and refugees attempting to enter the UK would be sent to Rwanda for reprocessing in an effort to, what he calls, regain control of the UK’s borders and put an end to illegal smuggling of people across the English Channel.

Johnson’s new plan has been widely criticized as cruel and inhumane, with leaders of the main opposition Labour Party, the Liberal Democrats, and the Scottish National Party all condemning it. The government could face legal action and a possible mutiny from civil servants in the Home Office who advised against the plan.

Human rights organizations, including the UN Refugee Agency, Amnesty International UK, and Refugee Action have also denounced the government for endangering the lives of vulnerable and persecuted people by sending them to a country allegedly notorious for human rights abuses.