Evangelical Churches, National Association of Evangelicals and God’s compassion for the immigrant

I sent the following to the President of the Baptist denomination that my evangelical church is a part of this week in response to the reaction of restrictionist groups to the statement in support of comprehensive immigration reform by the National Association of Evangelicals and the kerfuffle that followed. I have edited the what follows to be more generic and encourage you to edit and use it in your context.

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The impetus for my writing at this time are the events surrounding the recent testimony of prominent evangelical leaders before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Refugees, the release of a statement by the National Association regarding Comprehensive Immigration Reform and the subsequent reaction of certain restrictionist lobbying organizations which use pejorative language, misinformation and caricature in reference to immigrants and immigration. Some of these groups have ties to white supremacy. Some of us believe that the strident rhetoric of these groups has led to violence against immigrants and other people of color.

One of these organizations, NumbersUSA, has cited Converge Worldwide on their website as a group that, at least argued from silence, disagrees with the comments by Lynn Hybels, Leith Anderson and others at the Senate hearing and the statement made by the National Association of Evangelicals. NumbersUSA and other groups have called on their constituencies to make telephone calls, write letters and send emails to NAE members to pressure their leadership to distance themselves from the statement on immigration. Converge Worldwide may have experienced some of these calls, emails or letters from those who would only seek to restrict immigration and limit the rights of immigrants and workers.

Some denominations have responded in support of the NEA statement, others have made statements to distance themselves, and others remain silent. These anti-immigrant groups are attempting to demonstrate that there is lack of support for the NAE statement, and for comprehensive, humane treatment of immigrants in our country. You and I know that the diversity of thought and perspective in this great amorphous thing called American evangelicalism is a good thing. We are people of the Book and I hope and pray that a lack of compassion for the least of those among us will not lead to further violence.

From my perspective, as someone who has ministered with and among immigrant communities for more than 20 years, the statement of the Nation Association of Evangelicals gets certain things right.

• That immigration enforcement be conducted in ways that recognize the importance of due process of law, the sanctity of the human person, and the incomparable value of family.
• There must be a sound, equitable process for currently undocumented immigrants who wish to assume the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship to earn legal status. There is no call for blanket amnesty as the detractors assert.
• National borders must be better organized and safeguarded with efficiency and respect for human dignity.

For further reading on immigration from a biblical perspective by people who understand the history, current law and politics, the immigrant and refugee communities, and theology, I recommend these:

• World Relief’s Welcoming the Stranger, Justice, Compassion & Truth in the Immigration Debate, by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Hwang, Intervarsity Press, 2009. I have had the opportunity to chat with Matt (an immigration attorney in Chicago area) and
• An excellent book with biblical theology as the focus is Christians at the Border: Immigration the Bible and the Church, Daniel Carroll-R., (Distinguished Old Testament Professor, Denver Seminary), Baker Academic, 2008. Danny takes a markedly theological approach as Professor of Old Testament at Denver Seminary.
• A newer book with a very up-close and personal approach is Trails of Hope and Terror: Testimonies on Immigration by Miguel A. De La Torre (Professor of Ethics, Iliff Seminary) Orbis Books, 2009. De La Torre took seminary students to the Sonoran Desert on both sides of the border to talk to migrants about the situations and circumstances that led them to risk their health and their lives to cross at great peril.

I would be happy to have further conversation with you about immigration, the situation of immigrants in this country and comprehensive immigration reform. Please feel free to contact me. . . [using the comment feature below].

love casts out fear, not immigrants

Professor Rah's blog features Jose Morales, Jr. “Immigration, Fear, Cultural Idolatry and the Liberating Power of Faith" Mr. Morales makes good points about the nature of fear and the treatment of immigrants.

"The sad tale to this saga for me, as a faithful Christian, is that this cultural hegemony has been, and still is, sanctioned and sustained by religion. God-talk is employed to ignore cultural fear and to maintain cultural hegemony, which consequently leads to cultural idolatry. Below are three ways in which religion is distortedly used to these ends.

1. The dominant culture makes an appeal to “obedience of the law” as a moral absolute without first determining whether the contents and intents of said law, in and of themselves, are morally right and just.
2. The nation that concocts these laws is given divine origins and divine purpose. In short, to go against the state is to go against God.
3. The “white” majority, who have written the history of the nation (so as to soften up things like Native extermination, slavery of African peoples, and subjugation of women), are given divine preference and set the “standard” by which all residents of the republic are judged.

Go read the whole post here.

My response to a conversation on Facebook

I recently did a Facebook updated in order to send people to my post below on Lynn Hybels testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Immigration. A flood of comments followed. I have now responded. And, my comments are:

"All of the conversation here surprised me, as my original intention was to drive traffic to my blog on this topic. I am not going to address everything that people have injected here, but I do want to say a couple of things. For those who may want to develop a Christian faith-based viewpoint on the migration of people and specifically people immigrating to the United States, I recommend 3 books that I have read in the past 18 months. Welcoming the Stranger by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Hwang (I reviewed this book for Sojourners, go to sojo.net and search for my name), Christians at the Border by Daniel Carroll R. and Trails of Hope and Terror by Miguel de la Torre. I would read them in that order. I have more comments about these books at my blog: http://leviticustwentyfour22.blogspot.com/

If anyone read my comment that certain things said by some who are quoting the Bible to demean immigrants that contains misinformation, caricature, and pejorative language embarrass me, it does and I am. I didn’t bring up that point of view. Those views are being widely distributed publicly and routinely by individuals and organizations that are funded by people who support and push white supremacist ideologies. If you think you were mischaractized and associated with these views, just be aware that there are certain buzzwords that will seem to align you with those people and their views. My comments are painstakingly designed to be polite. For a technical refutation of some of the biblical misinformation search for this: “Daniel Carroll Rodas on A Biblical Perspective on Immigration Policy.pdf” It is a response to a specific writer who has used biblical references to push restrictionism or intolerance.

This is not just a conversation about two points of view for me. It is personal. Intelligent, law-abiding people who contribute to their church and neighborhood and community and this country and are people that I love are forced by laws that are unjust and morally reprehensible to live underground and considers them expendable. I have sat at the border of Mexico and the United State to wait for my friend to be delivered by what was then called the INS on a bus through a gap in a fence. I have talked to people near the border who are waiting for the opportunity to sneak across the border to find work to support their children and other family members. And, they were willing to do so in the face of likely arrest, injury and even death. Thinking that the alternative is even worse. De la Torre’s book has many stories like this.

I am not sure that I will further dialogue on this venue. I might. A friend of mine will facilitate a forum on the topic of immigration at our church in the coming months. I will likely make note of the date and time of that event in this space. Watch for it.

The comments left by others were interesting, vigorous, and . . . well go take a look for yourself.

By the way. I do welcome comments here. Some months back, I did delete several unsavory comments, mostly because they contained links to offensive material that had nothing to do with the topic of the post or this blog. When I did that, I may have deleted some comments (John) that I would have otherwise left if the other commenter had not put my in such a bad mood. Sorry about that. I will turn off the comment moderation feature for now.

Dawn in the Darkness: building an inclusive biblical paradigm

I thought you’d be interested in this event at Biola University on October 29, 2009 at 12 noon until 2 pm in the Café Banquet Room.
Biola University’s Multi Ethnic Department will be a screening of a short documentary “Dawn in the Darkness: building an inclusive biblical paradigm” by Glen Kinoshita.

From the promotional flyer about the film:

“What is the role of the church in caring for the poor? Should diversity be important to a body of believers? Aimed at addressing the issue of diversity and social justice in the Christian Scriptures, “Dawn in the Darkness” challenges viewers to begin constructing a Biblical paradigm where racial reconciliation and social justice are central to Christian faith and practice. This film reveals how a majority of Evangelical Christian institutions have neglected the teaching and practice regarding racial reconciliation, ministry to the poor and social justice. Featuring interviews with pastors and clips from sermon messages, this timely film ultimately urges viewers to pursue understanding the Gospel holistically and to build the Kingdom of God “on earth as it is in heaven.”

Glen, the filmmaker, told me that is a good film for church staffs and others who want to initiate a conversation around the issues of race and diversity. It is available for purchase for $125.

Scripture and History Remind Us that We are All Immigrants

Today, Christian faith leaders were present at and testified at the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Refugees for the Thursday, October 8, 2009, hearing on Faith-Based Community Perspectives on Comprehensive Immigration Reform. I was delighted and thankful to see that Lynn Hybels testified with Bill Hybels from Willow Creek Church near Chicago. Her testimony is scriptural, personal and passionate. You can read a summary and link to the complete testimony at Christians for Comprehensive Immigration Reform blog. Hybels and the Willow Creek megachurch are well respected among conservatives and a wide spectrum of evangelical Christians.

Ms. Hybels said:

"Our history teaches us that immigrants who were once feared and thought to be unable to assimilate are now embraced as Americans with deep roots in this country. Thus, we must not be driven by a spirit of fear that produces a hardness of heart, but rather we must extend grace and a welcoming spirit to the immigrants who live in our communities."

Thank you to Lynn Hybels and the other followers of Jesus who testified before the Senate Committee today on behalf of those people who live in our country without documents--not by any choice of their own, but because they have no choice. When any of us speak up for the stranger we do so as to Jesus. I pray for a day when a broken immigration system does not create or even allow for a class of people seen as less than human or with fewer rights that all of us. May God bless the coming push for comprehensive immigration reform and all those who speak for it. There are some days that I feel less embarassed to associate with other of Christ's followers.

From San Francisco this morning . . .

This is from my friend who works in the Mission District in a church based faith organization. They have been very deliberate about thinking and praying about the issues surrounding people who have recently migrated to their community:

Greetings, brothers and sisters:

A group of us representing a local immigration coalition will be
speaking this morning at a Board of Supervisors' Public Safety
committee hearing to advocate for the restoration of "sanctuary"
protections for arrested undocumented youth, i.e. to ensure that they
receive a fair hearing instead of being immediately handed over to
federal immigration authorities (i.e. ICE). Under the current policy
(just enacted recently by our mayor under political pressure) makes
the possible the separation of youth from their parents (via
deportation) due to petty or even non-existent crimes. The proposed
policy would prevent this from happening, with the exception of those
guilty of felonies.

Below is a small article from Sunday's Chronicle.

Pray that we might faithfully represent the heart of God in this
public space, and in the midst of a highly contentious issue.

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"Immigration plan should draw crowd

- Marisa Lagos

Sunday, October 4, 2009

The never-ending immigration debate will rear its head again in San
Francisco Monday when a Board of Supervisors committee takes up a
controversial proposal that would make it tougher for local police to
hand over undocumented juveniles accused of crimes to federal
authorities. The meeting is expected to draw a large crowd supporting
the proposed law (we're not sure whether the opposition has organized
to come out as well - all public speakers will be allowed two minutes
to tell the committee how they feel).

Supervisor David Campos' proposal - which is supported by a veto-proof
majority of his colleagues - would require that youths be convicted of
a felony before they are turned over to immigration officials (unless
the child or teenager is charged as an adult). The law would roll back
a policy implemented last year by Mayor Gavin Newsom, which allows
federal officials to be contacted at the time of an arrest.

Newsom's policy change has generated heat from immigrants and their
advocates; Campos' proposal has earned the ire of Newsom, Police Chief
George Gascón and District Attorney Kamala Harris.

"I think there will be a lot of interest, and a large turnout. People
who have experienced firsthand the mayor's policy change will be there
to testify," Campos said.

Additionally, a number of legal experts - who released a legal memo
Wednesday that concluded that Campos' policy is both "legally tenable
and defensible" - will testify, Campos' office said.