Engagement

Moravian Cohort Completes Course on Immigration

Reflection by the Rev. Judy Ganz

The immigration dilemma is one of the most complex issues facing American society today.  It is not limited to the US; millions of individuals are compelled to leave their homes for a variety of reasons.  Migration to the US has impacted many aspects of our lives, but it has also negatively impacted the opinions of many people that can blind us to some of the realities of the problem.  

Under the leadership of the Board of World Mission staff, the Rev. Angelica Regalado-Cieza, a cohort of seven persons, representing Northern and Southern Provinces, has been formed to learn more about this issue.  The goal is for the cohort recently completed six modules of education on elements of migration through Fuller Seminary over a six-month period and is now working together to define what role, if any, our churches might have in addressing the issues of migration within our own contexts. 

I have become interested in issues of immigration because of my time living in Nicaragua in the 1970’s, and later working with our global partners through the Board of World Mission.  I have known Moravians from Central America who had to leave their country because of pressure and threats from drug cartels, who benefit in part from meeting the drug demand in the US.  I have also seen how economic realities have made it hard for those in Central America to sustain a living for their families.  North American corporations have profited from low-wage employees and produce imported from Central America, while those working for them remained in poverty.  Certainly, the market demand in North America has contributed to the struggles faced by our partners in Central America, even as we have tried to find ways to help them have the abundant life that God desires for all of us.

It is important to our discussion of immigration to recognize that migration has been a central part of human identity since the beginning of time.  We have biblical figures who migrated, such as Abraham.  Migration has been connected to hopes and struggles, dreams and opportunities that all of us have had.  The Fuller program is helpful in describing some foundational biblical theological concepts around immigration, particularly from an Hispanic lens.

  • First, all people are created in the image of God; no matter what one’s status in society; all are representatives of God-on-earth. 
  • ALL are to be fruitful and multiply, and to subdue the earth, care for it.
  • Humans are to fill the earth; geographical movement is part of being human, part of the divine economy and purposeful in one’s relation to God.
  • Immigrants should embrace and live into their God-given capacities. 

Israelite law also reflects elements of migration:

  • people are to be channels of blessing to the rest of humanity, both materially and spiritually;
  • moral demands were lived out in tangible ways: they recognized the vulnerability of the stranger with no family support system or land ownership and thus allowed the sojourner to rest on the Sabbath, paid a fair and timely wage, was not to be exploited for their work nor taken advantage of.
  • Legal proceedings were to be unbiased and special compensation given at harvest time.
  • Sojourners were also allowed to participate in religious ceremonies.
  • Yet there were also mutual expectations.  The sojourner should learn the language and work to integrate into communities, possibly even claiming faith in Yahweh.

There were two elements that motivated the Israelites in being open to strangers in their midst.  The first was their own memory of their oppression in Egypt as foreign laborers—oppression that God did not tolerate.  Second, their commitment to this God who loved the foreigner, and thus they should also.

A biblical theology of immigration can help us to view our own immigration legislation from a broader perspective, incorporating the values of our faith in how we evaluate our actions toward immigrants.  In addition, as Christians we come with an appreciation of the vulnerabilities and limitations of the immigrant and can develop laws that are characterized by compassion, with a sense of how to best incorporate a new population into the community.  Organizing and protecting the border are elements of the discussion, but we need to decide what kinds of issues must be prioritized in the national debate, and what ideals and values should inform our legislation.  We tend to forget the mistreatment that has occurred with successive waves of foreigners to this country.  We also tend to avoid the discussion in our congregations.  Yet Old Testament law can help to provide a moral compass in the discussion.  And the biblical stories of migration can encourage and guide immigrants in their journeys to adapt to their new land.  We encourage readers to share the questions below in your congregations.

Questions for discussion:

  1. What can a biblical theology of immigration teach both the host culture and the immigrant?
  2. What might be the underlying values, goals of current immigration law?
  3. Does your family have any immigrant memories in its food, celebrations, or stories?
  4. How might your immigrant past inform how you engage the immigration discussion?