Almost everyone who lives in the USA today are the descendants of immigrants. Even the native Americans must presumably have traveled over the sea at some point. It seems somewhat hypocritical that so many are so completely anti newcomers today. The angry hostile rhetoric towards migrants on both sides of the Atlantic has no place among Christians.
Jesus himself fled persecution as a baby and went to Egypt, where he was kept safe. The entire Israeli nation had done the same thing hundreds of years before him for economic reasons (to get food during a famine). God commanded his people:
‘When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God. (Leviticus 19:33-34, NIV)
And Jesus commanded and warned us similarly, making clear that the blessings of inheritance for the believer depends on how we treat the most vulnerable:
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’
“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 3When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ (Matthew 25:34-40, NIV)
Our churches should not be known for denouncing migrants but for lovingly welcoming them into our communities. We who were commanded by Jesus to go into the whole World and preach the gospel to every nation, should see it as a privilege that God is bringing the nations to our doorsteps!
Free English Language schools should be run by churches in every town and city where there is a need, as well as other forms of friendly outreach to anyone who feels vulnerable or isolated for any reason. Jesus is gentle and kind, and expects us to be the same, not angry and rejecting. Many who come to our countries have come from lives of terrible suffering, and we should be offering the rest and peace of Christ to everyone, not more oppression and shaming. Every human being is made in the image of God, and he loves them all and expects us to do the same.
There are many modern US migrants who work hard, doing jobs the average American refuses to do. They pay taxes, and give birth to citizens who clearly have the right to stay in the country. The cry of the famous poem displayed at the statue of Liberty appears to have been silenced:
“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
Today’s undocumented immigrants form a underclass of cheap labour, who will do any job often for low wages, who work hard and massively contribute to society. But they live in fear of deportation, they live without feeling fully part of society, often unable to access healthcare and other services, knowing that they are not valued by their peers, and that the US election was won partly by demonizing them and accusing them en mass of being murderers, rapists, and pet-eaters. Evidence demonstrates undocumented immigrants actually commit crime at a lower rate than natural born citizens.
With the aging population of the United States and most developed countries, ironically we all need MORE immigration not less if we want our aging parents to be cared for, rather than put under pressure to end their own lives once “assisted suicide” is passed which it surely will be in most countries in the next decade. Pro-life means being pro-life the whole of life and we MUST have systems that provide proper health care. I do not see how we can do that without a fit and proper migration policy.
I do understand that there are genuine concerns about the numbers of people coming to the US, and over in the UK many have similar concerns. But the idea of the largest deportation in the history of the world is likely to prove to be a massive act of economic and social self harm of a similar impact to Brexit, and for similar reasons. There is good evidence that the plans as outlined in the election would cost hundreds of billions and lead to an economic slowdown, presumably similar to our experience in the UK when we lost access to EU migrants.
Our British economy has suffered the absence of cheap labour. There are sectors like agriculture, service, care, the health service, which due to the hostile environment of the UK to people moving here are all struggling to find enough workers. We should train “local people” some say, but most do not want to do those jobs.
Now I do understand that leaving people in perpetual limbo land where they is no route to citizenship, but also no realistic possibility of a decision to be removed is unhelpful to both immigrants and the wider population. We need people to feel part of society not an underclass that has little improvement on the rights of slaves.
What needs to happen is a proper route to citizenship for the appropriate immigrants (and our British Asylum seekers) alongside proper assessments and yes SOME deporations of those who are not deemed to have an appropriate claim to stay, or who do commit crimes.
To conclude, the angry hostile rhetoric seen on both sides of the Atlantic towards immigrants and assylm seekers has no place among Christians.
More from Adrian Warnock
Trump’s Angry Rhetoric vs. Christian Values: It’s not Normal
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