Well, in five days, President elect Donald Trump returns to the White House with what he calls an unprecedented mandate from voters to tackle immigration issues.

His exact plans are still unclear, but New Jersey leaders are taking him at his word and preparing for mass deportations.

Ted Goldberg went to a joint prayer in Newark this week where faith leaders urged lawmakers to protect the state's immigrants.

In the face of tactics of intimidation and division of the Catholic Church.

We'll work to protect our families, to witness to human dignity, to defend our religious liberties.

And let me be clear.

To oppose mass deportation.

Faith leaders came to Newark Monday to pray for anyone who could be deported after Donald Trump retakes office.

We now find.

Ourselves in a time when a new regime pretends not to know the values and.

True history of its people.

When we must choose to follow God's commands of preserving life and reducing human suffering.

Catholic, Protestant and Jewish leaders came together at Saint Lucy's church to say that they're not planning on violating laws that keep people safe.

These are necessary for good order.

And the common good.

But to intimidate God's people in their temples and schools and hospitals, this would not be a good use of the law.

While they warned against demonizing immigrants.

In the present political climate, there has been a well-organized and well-funded effort to cultivate fear and suspicion towards immigrants.

And yet, throughout our history, immigration has provided an infusion of Italian vitality.

Energy.

Culture, imagination and, yes, faith, which has always nourished the American project.

Their arguments were moral as well as biblical.

This is not a time for apathy.

This is not a time for neutrality.

This is not a time for silence.

So majority resides with you shall lead.

To you and the native born and among you.

You shall know that Sobejana as you yourself says in the Talmud, the basic book of Jewish law that if you cannot make a living where you live, then you should move.

That immigration is in fact something that is a positive thing.

You are not supposed to stay where it is, not safe.

When equity does not occur.

It is antithetical to good governance.

The Garden of Eden was a place where all creation lived in harmony until the dark side of humanity.

The dark side when it was attempted and manifest.

President Trump's inauguration is on Monday, which has raised fears that he'll initiate large scale deportation.

One immigrant who spoke on Monday says the next four years are a huge concern in the Peruvian American community.

Oh year they know.

They can do the sweep of peace.

We cannot spend gatherings with our friends and family because we worried that the next president is Donald Trump.

They cannot call the police because of certain problems that they were going through the community because they're afraid that we will call these.

People who prayed at St Lucie showed their support by writing down names of people afraid of what might come and adding them to these stones as.

We bring the names up front.

Let us be reminded of the pain that has existed for undocumented immigrants and the pain and fear that we, we fear will continue through this difficult time.

In Pueblo, Needle.

We stick together will never be defeated to the idea that we're standing here in this house of God.

According to estimates, New Jersey has between 400 and 700,000 immigrants who either came here illegally or overstayed their visa.

Efforts to deport them could face stiff resistance, at least from these faith leaders.

In Newark, I'm Ted Goldberg.

NJ Spotlight News.