Resident Aliens

          In 1984, I marched through the streets of Louisville, Kentucky, walking beside three political refugees from El Salvador who had found sanctuary in the homes of a few concerned Christians.  They were “illegal aliens”, ineligible for asylum because our government supported theirs.

          Later, in 1987, I spent some time in a farm community in South Georgia, known as “Jubilee”.  Part of their mission was assisting refugees who were unable to stay in the US find their way to Canada where they could settle safely with their families.

          Now I find myself a neighbor to a growing population of “undocumented workers”.  The issue is beginning to hit closer to home.  I was intrigued when I saw this article in the May 9, 2007 New York Times.  It begins -   

          “Recalling a movement that challenged United States policy in Central America in the 1980s, several religious congregations in New York and other cities will announce a campaign Wednesday to provide sanctuary to illegal immigrants who face deportation,”  reports James Barron in “Congregations to Give Haven to Immigrants“

          Providing safe haven for strangers and resident aliens is clearly a Biblical mandate.  The ethical quandry comes when we consider how far we should go to oppose the legal system of the government where we reside.  One pastor who is part of an organizing effort called “The New Sanctuary Movement” expresses her conviction this way –

          “We’re launching now because we’re fed up with detentions, deportations and raids,” said the Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper, the senior minister of Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village. “We felt it was not morally possible to remain silent.”

          How is it possible to be a good citizen and a good neighbor, particularly toward those who are falling through the cracks?  It seems we have reached a point where these two compelling Christian duties conflict so sharply that something (or someone) has to give.

          The single most important question Christians need to answer in this and any other political situation is - “Is obeying the law of the land causing me to disobey God’s law?”  If you are led to answer yes, then you may need to break the law and accept the consequences. 

 

 

 

{first published May 10, 2007 in Necessary Therapy}