Christians at the Border: Immigration, the Church, and the Bible

Introduction

            Our country is currently embroiled in a debate on immigration to deal with the millions of illegal immigrants that have come here from Mexico over many years. Answers to America’s immigration problem with Mexico are far from easy. However, in all the talk about socio-economic and political ramifications associated with immigration in our country, one of the things that seems to get lost is that we are talking about people; immigrants leaving the hopeless and often dangerous conditions of their home trying to improve their lives and the lives of their families, and American citizens adversely affected by immigrants who flood the job markets, are sometimes used as drug couriers, burden public services without paying their proportionate share of the tax liability incurred for those public services and then to complicate matters further, often send the money they do make in the United States back to Mexico where it does nothing to benefit the American economy. In all these cases, there is one common denominator—people. And whenever people are involved, things can get messy. Like all things in this life, the Church should have a voice in matters of immigration. However, that voice must be grounded on firm biblical principles.

Dr. M. Daniel Carroll R. is a Distinguished Professor of Old Testament at Denver Seminary. Dr. Carroll’s heritage is from both Guatemala and the United States. He is affiliated with the Evangelical Theological Society, Institute of Biblical Research, Society of Biblical Literature, Society for Old Testament Study (Great Britain), Fraternidad Theologica Latinoamericana, and Evangelicals for Social Action. Dr. Carroll is a member of the board of National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference and serves as its national spokesperson on immigration.

Review

Professor Carroll makes a compelling case for Christians who engage in the immigration debate to carefully consider the historical, and in particular, the Biblical account of human migration. I have been involved in countless dinner-table-conversations about immigration that eventually reach the conclusion that the government should just round up all those who are here illegally and “ship them home.” In some cases this is an answer derived from a state of frustration over the complexity of the problem and in other cases it is an answer derived simply from ignorance. Carroll does a masterful job of placing the current United States immigration issues within a Biblical/historical context. It is clear from Carroll’s numerous examples that human migration is a historical fact with countless causes and equally countless effects.

I do not deny Carroll’s assertion that migration, whether voluntary relocation or forced relocation, is a historical fact. However, I disagree with his use of the term for immigrants. Specifically, Carroll writes, “I prefer the word undocumented rather than illegal for several reasons. Illegal can carry a pejorative connotation, suggesting by definition that the person is guilty of some act, has few scruples, and is prone to civil disobedience.” (p. 22) “Undocumented” on the other hand simply implies, according to Carroll, that an immigrant has not yet acquired the appropriate documentation as a result of an unfavorable or inefficient documentation process. No doubt “illegal” can have a pejorative connotation but “illegal,” in its basic form, is a contravention of a specific law or rule; in this case entering a sovereign nation without first obtaining the means to do so legally. I’m not disputing Carroll’s contention that these terms have ramifications. However, until we acknowledge the truth, even if it is painful, we are impotent to find a solution to the problem. Replacing “illegal” with “undocumented” is analogous to replacing “abortion” or “murder” with “family planning.” As long as these issues remain innocuous, they hover below the radar and gradually become irritations that annoy everyone but are nevertheless tolerated. Another example may serve to clarify my point. Consider the current conditions in the Mexican towns bordering Texas where drug cartels have created such civil unrest that government officials fear Mexico is on the verge of a civil war. If Mexicans were to flee to the United States out of fear for their own safety or the safety of their families, they would technically be considered “illegal immigrants.” By reclassifying these immigrants as “undocumented” instead of “illegal,” Carroll inadvertently removes the absurdity of designating someone legitimately seeking sanctuary or refuge as being “illegal.” It is only when we acknowledge the truth that these immigrants are here illegally that we can begin to question whether or not our established legislation and our/or our procedures for granting access to the United States is appropriate or properly efficient. The term “illegal immigrant” may be polemic, but polemic issues, for better or worse, generate the most attention. And, in this case, can lead the way to a better understanding of human migration worldwide and the value and dignity of all humanity.

In most white-collar crimes and sometimes other more heinous crimes, the common refrain among those investigating such crimes is to “follow the money.” By following the money, Carroll uncovers what is probably the origin of the United States’ current illegal immigration issues. Beginning in the middle of the 19^th century and continuing until now, there has been a continued demand for cheap labor. What began with the importation of Chinese laborers now continues with the use of Mexican laborers. The prohibition against Chinese labor in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s left a vacuum that was replaced by Mexican labor. “Supply and demand”— the backbone of Capitalism crossed the boundary of legality when greed exploited those looking for a better life. Now, there is a kind of schizophrenic mentality when it comes to this issue. Those wanting all illegal immigrants to be removed want to continue to enjoy the benefits that such cheap labor affords them in lower prices for perishable and non-perishable products. Simply insisting that illegal immigrants should be removed from the United States does not take into consideration the dramatic socio/economic impact of removing millions from our living and working communities. Instead, it may be best to accept the fact that human migration is a natural part of history and as a result, time to re-evaluate our immigration legislation to see if it corresponds to the reality of what has become a global community. Carroll writes, “[I]f Christians want to address the problems posed by the immigration of Hispanic peoples and contribute to possible solutions, then they should do so consciously as Christians and more specifically as biblically informed Christians.” (p. 62) In this vain, Carroll presents a compelling case from Old Testament accounts of human migration both voluntary and involuntary.

Certainly the most well known Old Testament migration is one that includes both an involuntary and a voluntary migration. For four hundred years, the Israelites were captive foreigners in Egypt where they were generally subject to forced labor and the cruelty of Pharaoh. The Book of Exodus records God’s salvation of Israel under the leadership of Moses and their migration out of Egypt and eventual settlement in Canaan—the “Promised Land.” Along the way, Israel received God’s commandments for how they should live and worship. Included in those commandments were clear instructions with respect to the hospitality and care that should be afforded to strangers/foreigners/sojourners. Carroll writes,

“The most serious incentive to care for sojourners was to be found in the person of God. In reminding Israel of its history and the obligations that stemmed from it, the LORD explains that the redemption from their horrific experience as immigrants also revealed something very important about his own person: he loves the helpless, among whom he lists sojourners. Israel, too, is to love sojourners, because God does.” (pp. 104-105)

The Old Testament records another migration centuries before Israel’s Egyptian captivity and exodus to Canaan. Although much smaller in scale than Israel’s exodus from Egypt, Abraham’s migration is perhaps more important when one considers that it is because of his obedience to move that the nation of Israel was born.

Genesis 12 tells the story of God’s calling on Abraham’s life. Specifically, that calling included leaving his home country and travelling to a far off and unfamiliar country. The rest of Genesis records how God works through Abraham’s faith and obedience to birth the nation of Israel. What’s often lost in the story is that God was not only calling Abraham to another place, he was calling him away from the country where he grew up. The text indicates that Abraham (Abram) lived with his family in Haran. Haran was on a major trade route in northern Mesopotamia. It was an affluent and vital business community. Abraham and his family came in contact with people from the farthest reaches of the region. As a consequence, they were exposed to a variety of religious influences. The book of Joshua recounts Israel’s earliest history that Abraham was called to leave Haran where his family “worshiped other gods.” (Joshua 24:2) Sometimes, before God can use us to our fullest potential and call us to something great, he must first call us away from something less great. This text is an important lesson in the immigration debate in general as we must take God’s sovereignty into consideration. In this respect Carroll writes,

“The Old Testament is full of accounts of people on the move or who have settled in other places. Many reasons are given for this movement, and these migrations—whether of individuals or of large groups—span centuries. They are part of the fabric of biblical history—and ours. This realization offers a lesson to the majority culture. Migrations are a recurring phenomenon. Accordingly, Hispanic immigration to the United States is but another chapter in the very long book of the annals of humankind. That being the case, one can step back and try to appreciate why people, then and now, are compelled to go to another place.” (p. 86)

The migration of Hispanics to the Unites States, specifically (although not exclusively) in the case of Christian Hispanics, must be considered within the envelope of God’s overall sovereignty. It is not unreasonable to suggest that God may not just be calling them to something great but He may be calling them away from something less great.

Although the New Testament does not give specific instruction to the Christian with respect to the topic of immigration, Carroll rightly points to Jesus’ parables involving Samaritans and his interaction with Samaritans as a model for cross-cultural interaction with grace and hospitality (See lesson titled: Jesus and the Woman at the Well: A lesson in cross-cultural ministry at: http://seredinski.blogspot.com/2012/05/jesus-and-woman-at-well-lesson-in-cross.html (Part 1), http://seredinski.blogspot.com/2012/05/jesus-and-woman-at-well-lesson-in-cross_30.html (Part 2), and http://seredinski.blogspot.com/2012/06/jesus-and-woman-at-well-lesson-in-cross.html (Conclusion)). In my many discussions on immigration, another complaint is that by welcoming so many immigrants, America is slowly losing its identity. Frankly, I’ve never understood this objection to immigration and specifically to illegal immigration. No matter how many immigrants, whether legal or illegal, are in this country, I will always be an American. To say that America’s identity has changed as a result of immigration would be ignoring history and the many intricate elements that have served to shape and mold America’s identity throughout its history. Immigration is an element of America’s identity not the determiner of its identity. Immigration together with politics, economics, and religion are but a few threads that are woven together to create a complex tapestry of any nation’s identity. Nevertheless, Americans are no less Americans if they are hospitable to immigrants. Carroll concurs when he writes, “Jesus transcends the longstanding enmity between the Jews and the Samaritans. He accepts the ‘other,’ and they accept him. In all of this, Jesus never ceases to be a Jew. Yet, he is able integrate his cultural core with other transcendent commitments and gracious attitudes that move him beyond the closed society of his peers.” (p. 120)

Application

Ultimately, with respect to immigration for the United States, Carroll makes a very important observation, “Every family can point back to parents or grandparents or great grandparents who came from somewhere else.” (p. 110) This observation is particularly true for me. I am the first American born citizen in my family. My parents, along with my two sisters, immigrated to the United States from Germany in the mid 1950’s. My parents were both forced to migrate from their home country of Romania during World War II when Russia began its move south. My mom and her family were placed in one of Hitler’s work camps (not the death camps) until the end of the war. My mom and dad remained in Germany after the war instead of returning to Romania because of its communist occupation. A number of my mom’s immediate and extended family left Germany for the United States in the hope for a better life. Eventually, my parents also immigrated to the United States and ultimately to Colorado. The fact is, I am an American, not in spite of, but because my parents are immigrants.

Dr. Carroll, in his book, Christians at the Border: Immigration, the Church and the Bible, is not insisting that the solutions to America’s immigration problems are quick and easy. Nevertheless, there must be a balance in any solution between a nation’s right to defend the integrity of its sovereign borders and an effective mechanism that provides legal access to our country for those who are, in some cases, trying to escape the awful, even dangerous, living conditions of their own country. For the last 15 years, my daughters and I have travelled to Mexico for short-term missions work. We have found that the people of Mexico are truly amazing and the living conditions truly awful. It is always easy to sit in America safe and comfortable and proclaim that Mexicans should either stay in Mexico or go back to Mexico. However, I know some of their names and faces. I’ve prayed with them; laughed with them; cried with them. In any debate on immigration, let’s always keep in mind that we are not dealing in political or socio-economic theory, we are dealing with people; people God loves; people God loves so much that he sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die for them. As such, we must be prepared to demonstrate that our attitudes, laws and practices reflect that same degree of love for humanity.