Tuesday, January 23, 2018

The Sojourner and our Immigration Issues

I’ve been reading through a lot of the Old Testament law lately in my bible reading and I have to admit I’ve been struck by how often the “sojourner” is referred to.  It’s almost always in reference to laws calling on the Israelites to care for and look out for the sojourner’s needs, and often included with the fatherless and the widow.  Since these verses about the sojourner are often referred to in our current immigration debate I thought I would share my two cents on the issue.  Here they are in no particular order.

1.     The sojourner references in the books of the law do not necessarily relate directly to our immigration issues.  Our immigration issues are more about the laws of our land and how people lawfully or unlawfully come to our country, and what we do with them once they are here.  So as Christians we can care for them and help them while at the same time believe that our laws should limit how many can come to our country and which ones should come to our country.  All developed countries have laws for the same purposes.  It’s not uncompassionate at all.  It’s just part of being a country. 
2.     Regardless of what the current law is we will always have sojourners to care for.  Similar to when Jesus said “the poor will always be among us”, so is the case with immigrants.  Hopefully it will be more legal ones and fewer illegal ones, but either way they will always be among us and we will always be able to exercise our Christian obligation to show them care.  No one anywhere is saying we should have no more immigration.  Not in the House, not in the Senate, and not in the White House.  The issue is about how many and from where as it pertains to what is in the best interest of our nation.    
3.     Disparaging other Countries is not helpful to the ongoing conversation.  And that’s all I’ll say about our president on that.
4.     Calling people whose opinions are different than yours racist is not helpful to the ongoing conversation either.  It’s weak, tired, and intellectually lazy.  If you are such a person who has done so, I encourage you to sit down with someone who disagrees with you.  Get to know them.  Get to know their passions and their heart, and why they believe the way they do.  I guarantee if you do you will come away with a much better opinion of that person and you’ll be the better for it. 
5.     I think DACA makes sense.  Our country is all these dreamers know.  They were born here and live here just like the rest of us.  I personally don’t want to hold their parents wrong doings against them.  Give them a path to citizenship even if it costs us more as a country to do so.  It seems to me the Christian thing to do.  It’s an act of grace and our God is a God of grace.


As someone who travels in a lot of Christian circles I have spoken with well-meaning folks on both sides of this issue.  If you find yourself on one extreme or the other, just remember that the Christians who see it differently than you do are your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ.  They are not the enemy.  Remember Colossians 3:13-14 - Bear with each other and forgive any complaint you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity.  May we all maintain that bond of love; even in our differences…… no especially in our differences.