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 19th
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.
