The more than 20 pastors wrote a letter to the state's top officials, urging them to consider immigration laws that preserve human dignity.

"We must uphold the law, but when laws are used to raid churches and church events and separate children from families, then it indicates that something is wrong with these laws," said Gary Kinnaman, pastor-at-large of the 6,000-member Word of Grace church in Mesa.

The letter is noteworthy because many of the pastors who signed it come from largely White, conservative, evangelical Christian churches. It follows a letter from other mainstream Protestant and Jewish faiths condemning recent raids by Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

In the recent past, most of the outcry against immigration crackdowns has come from Hispanic religious leaders or from pastors on the left side of the religious spectrum, experts say.

The pastors said in the letter that they were concerned by the mean-spirited response that many local and state officials have taken toward illegal immigrants after Congress failed to pass reforms last year. They said the decision to speak out is based on Bible Scriptures and the teachings of Christ to "welcome the stranger."

The letter was sent to Gov. Janet Napolitano, Senate President Tim Bee and House Speaker James Weiers and the Arizona State Legislature.

It gave no specifics, and the pastors declined to give any, but the letter was clearly aimed at Arpaio's ongoing crackdowns as well as at a steady stream of laws passed or introduced in the Legislature to drive illegal immigrants from Arizona.

Last week, sheriff's deputies raided three Valley fun spots and arrested nine people as part of an investigation into illegal hiring under the state's employer-sanctions law. The raid came just weeks after a series of crime sweeps by the Sheriff's Office, mostly in largely Hispanic neighborhoods. They resulted in the arrests of scores of illegal immigrants.

"Unfortunately, a number of local and state officials have responded by engaging in a public conversation that is dividing our community, confusing enforcement procedures and creating an unwelcoming spirit for many seeking to make Arizona their home," the pastors wrote.

Arpaio has vowed to continue the crackdowns.

State Rep. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, the author of many of the anti-illegal-immigration bills, denied that the laws have been mean-spirited.

"I have always said we must enforce our immigration laws with compassion but also with integrity and without apology," Pearce said.

He chastised the pastors for focusing on illegal immigrants and ignoring the crimes committed by such immigrants.

"Where is the compassion for the victims of people crossing the borders every day?" Pearce said.

Patty Kupfer is with America's Voice, a pro-immigrant group in Washington, D.C., that is pushing for comprehensive reform. She said White evangelical leaders in growing numbers are speaking against the harsh tone of the current immigration debate. The trend is significant because White evangelicals hold political clout among Republicans, who have spearheaded many of the recent get-tough proposals.

"I'm not saying they are the key to passing comprehensive immigration reform, but they are one of the keys," she said.

Still, many White evangelical pastors have remained silent about the issue for fear of alienating many of their conservative members, she said. The silence of some church leaders belies at times extensive efforts to reach out to Hispanics, including undocumented immigrants. The Catholic Church, for example, is reaching out heavily to Hispanic immigrants, but Phoenix Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted has been criticized by some Hispanic leaders for not taking a more public stance against the crackdowns.

Church leaders declined to comment. Instead, they pointed to a pastoral letter Olmsted wrote calling for compassionate immigration reform and a statement he made in April on the diocese Web site denouncing Arpaio's sweeps.

Sandy Mason, pastor of Desert View Bible Church, a mostly White evangelical church in north Phoenix, is one of the pastors who signed the letter calling for more compassionate treatment of illegal immigrants. He said he has experienced a backlash from some members. Still, "to be silent is to be irresponsible," Mason said, "and to embarrass God."