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Messages
| Immigration
This message was approved by the Board of the Division for Church in Society and was adopted by the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America on November 16, 1998. With this message, the Church Council of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, upon recommendation of the Division for Church in Society, offers to congregations "a resource for deliberation on attitudes regarding immigrants and a resource to interpret and apply ELCA policy related to immigration," as called for by the 1997 Churchwide Assembly (CA97.6.39). We recognize and rejoice that our church along with our country continues to change with the steady arrival of newcomers in the United States. Persons who have recently come from Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and other areas of the world are enriching congregations throughout the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). We celebrate the liturgy in 33 languages; we worship and sing in Spanish with our new Libro de Liturgia y Cántico. Newcomers are increasingly assuming leadership roles in our congregations, synods, affiliated educational and social ministry agencies, and churchwide ministries. We are beginning new congregations in immigrant communities. We thank God for these developments, and we remember Paul's admonition: "Welcome one another, just as Christ has welcomed you, to the glory of God" (Romans 15:7). We also recognize the obstacles and difficulties our church and society face in welcoming newcomers. Too often we are slow in, tire of, or even resist fostering a hospitable environment for newcomers. Too often we perpetuate the racism, the fear of, and the animosity toward newcomers that show themselves in our society. Our country's history exhibits an ugly strain of exclusionary attitudes and policies toward newcomers who differ from the majority. In times of economic downturns especially--as happened in the early 1990s--this strain becomes more pervasive and leads to laws that unduly restrict immigration and threaten the well-being of newcomers. The presence of newcomers in our church and society heightens our awareness of these realities and of the experience of new immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in the United States. This awareness makes us more appreciative of the gifts our new neighbors bring and of the barriers as well as the opportunities they encounter. It deepens our belief that "all people are God's creatures, sinners for whom Christ died" and our responsibility to respect the human dignity of all. [1] This is a fitting time for us to examine anew our attitudes toward newcomers, to strengthen our church's ministry among, with, and for the most vulnerable of newcomers, and to continue to advocate for immigration, refugee, and asylum laws that are fair and generous. Drawing on Our Experience
We would have been if that woman were our own mother or
grandmother shortly after her arrival.When a beautiful array of
people from around the world become citizens, do we rejoice? We
would have when our own family became citizens. When leaders in our
society promote negative stereotypes of newcomers or make them a
"scapegoat" for social or economic ills in times of
anxiety, are we appalled? We would have been to hear our own ethnic
groups degraded when they first arrived. When we learn how our
society is being strengthened and renewed by the contributions of
newcomers, are we grateful? Earlier generations were grateful for
the contributions of those who entered this country through Angel
and Ellis Islands or Miami. Recalling that our families were once
the "stranger"--and remembering our Lord's call to love
our neighbor as ourselves--can expand our moral imagination, enable
us to see the new "stranger" as our neighbor, and open us
to welcome today's newcomers. Our church also has a history of hospitality for refugees.
Following World War II, when one out of every six Lutherans in the
world was a refugee or displaced person,
Lutherans, with the participation of 6,000 congregations, resettled
some 57,000 refugees in the United States. [2] In the decade after the fall of Saigon in 1975, Lutheran
congregations sponsored over 50,000 refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia,
and Laos. During the 1980s various congregations provided sanctuary
for persons whose lives were endangered by wars in Central America. [3]
In exercising hospitality to the stranger, many testified that they
received more than they gave--as if they had welcomed angels without
knowing it (Hebrews 13:2). Their experience invites us to be
gracious hosts as well as humble guests, that is, learners from the
newcomers among us. The leaders and congregations that have given us
this legacy remind us that hospitality for the uprooted is a way to
live out the biblical call to love the neighbor in response to God's
love in Jesus Christ. They recall for us God's command to Israel:
"The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the
citizen among you; you shall love the stranger as yourself, for you
were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God"
(Leviticus 19:34). [4]
They direct us to where Jesus said he is present: "I was a
stranger and you welcomed me" (Matthew 25: 35). They call on
Martin Luther to ask us: "How do we know that the love of God
dwells in us? If we take upon ourselves the need of the
neighbor." [5]
Our desire is to carry on their faith and practice, their exemplary
way of faith being active in love. "We pledge to continue our
church's historic leadership in caring for refugees and
immigrants." [6] Strengthening Our Ministry with the Most Vulnerable We in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America minister with
the most vulnerable of the newcomers through congregations and the
Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS). Where possible, we
work ecumenically. Our ministry resettles refugees, advocates on
behalf of detained asylum seekers, assists unaccompanied children,
offers pastoral and legal counsel to persons without legal status,
aides persons with the citizenship process, and helps newcomers
learn to live in a new country. This ministry requires compassion
and competence, is time-consuming, sometimes heart-breaking, and
frequently unrecognized. Opportunities abound for members,
congregations, pastors, bishops, and all the expressions of our
church to support, strengthen, and expand this ministry. Refugees are persons who have been forced to leave their country
"because of persecution or a well-founded fear of
persecution." Through Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
in partnership with the federal government, Lutherans help to
resettle more than 10,000 refugees yearly (75,000 are allowed to
enter the United States, 1998). Because congregations working with
the LIRS network enrich refugees' resettlement experiences, we
encourage efforts that call upon and train members to assist
refugees. Persons fleeing dangerous situations in their countries arrive
daily in the United States. These asylum seekers lack legal status
for entering the country. To receive an opportunity to seek a grant
of asylum (a legal protective status), they must prove a
"credible fear of persecution." Because of the difficulty in proving this fear, many asylum
seekers are detained while their case is being processed. Thousands
of persons, including children and women, are in detention, most of
whom are indigent; they are often isolated from pastoral and legal
services and subject to abuse and neglect. Lutheran Immigration and
Refugee Service joins with other organizations to advocate on behalf
of detained persons. In areas where there are detention centers,
congregations are encouraged to work with these organizations to
provide services for the detained and to seek alternatives to
detention (for example, group homes). Unaccompanied minors also enter the United States, either as
refugees or without legal status. These children may be orphans,
separated from their parents by war or disaster, abandoned, or even
smuggled into the country. Whatever their status, they should be
seen first and foremost as children and youth in need of protection
and care. The LIRS network provides foster care and related child
welfare services, facilitates family reunification, and advocates on
national and international policy issues affecting unaccompanied
children. Newcomers without legal documents also are among the most
vulnerable. Congregations are called to welcome all people,
regardless of their legal status. [7]
Persons who once were or now are without documents are members of
our congregations, and we want them to feel and know that in the
Church they are part of a safe and caring community. We encourage
bishops and synods to show their support for congregations composed
of or working with immigrants who may or may not have documents. Some congregations provide congregationally-based immigration
services. They offer legal and para-legal advice and assistance to
newcomers; even when the legal options are limited, their counsel
keeps vulnerable people from becoming the victims of unscrupulous
exploiters. These congregations offer English language courses and
instruction on how to become a citizen. They help immigrants with
housing, jobs, and health care. They accompany families with
pastoral care and invite them into a worshiping community. They may
look to other congregations for pro bono lawyers, teachers of
English as a second language, nurses and doctors, and to secure
other needed services. Lutheran child care centers and schools
increasingly are serving newcomers. Newcomers in our church, pastors and congregations ministering
with immigrants, and the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service
also are educators in our church and advocates for those who cannot
speak for themselves. Out of their daily experience, they can teach
the rest of us about the gifts newcomers bring to our church and
country, the often harsh consequences of recent (1996) immigration
and welfare laws on family life, or the way immigrants who lack
legal status are taken advantage of in working situations. They keep
before us--so that we do not forget--the grim realities many
immigrants face and the strength of character and resourcefulness
newcomers demonstrate. They inform us of conditions in other
countries and what the role of the United States has been. They
provide our church with experience and knowledge to take part in
public deliberation on immigration, refugee, and asylum policies. Advocating for Fair and Generous Laws Immigration, refugee, and asylum policies express who we are as a
nation, influence the nation's future character, and affect the
lives of millions of people. We encourage our members, in light of
our history and our ministry with newcomers, to join with other
citizens in our democratic society to support just laws that serve
the common good. Our advocacy needs to take into account the
complexity of issues, the diversity of interests, and the partial or
relative justice of laws at the same time that it counters appeals
rooted in hostility, racism, prejudice, indifference, and simplistic
solutions. We draw on the best of our nation's traditions as a
refuge and haven for the persecuted and destitute when we affirm
that "we support a generous policy of welcome for refugees and
immigrants," and that we "will advocate for just
immigration policies, including fairness in visa regulations and in
admitting and protecting refugees. We will work for policies that
cause neither undue repercussions within immigrant communities nor
bias against them." [9] The following objectives, set forth in a 1969 statement of the
Lutheran Council in the United States of America, have been
important for Lutheran church bodies and organizations for nearly
forty years and have given content to our understanding of fair and
generous immigration laws: 1. To admit to our
permanent population a steady proportion of newcomers: a. by facilitating the
reunification of families; b. by facilitating the entry of
persons possessing special skills or other capacities needed by
the American economy and culture; c. by assuming the United States'
proper share of international responsibility for the resettlement
of refugees and other persons urgently in need of the
compassionate haven of a new homeland; d. by admitting persons who
choose the United States as their new homeland and who impart to
their American neighbors an understanding of the culture,
attitude, and interests of other races and peoples of the world. 2. To admit annually a reasonable number of
the persons described above on an objective basis of selection
which, while discriminating, will not be discriminatory with respect
to race, national origin, color, or religion, testifying thereby to
the United States' recognition of the interlocking and mutual
interests of all nations with regard to the migration of peoples,
the interaction of cultures, and respect of universal human rights. Facilitating citizenship We welcome the desire of immigrants to become citizens. We
advocate for Congress to provide the necessary resources and
direction for the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to
ensure a reasonable, effective, and short process for citizenship.
We call on the Immigration and Naturalization Service to address the
backlog of applications and the lengthy wait and unnecessary
administrative hassles many immigrants endure. We support the
Immigration and Naturalization Service in its efforts to develop a
climate of service for its clientele. Benefits for lawful permanent residents
Although Congress has restored some benefits for
legal immigrants who arrived before 1996, more should be done. The
denial of benefits to permanent residents favors wealthier
immigrants and creates unwarranted barriers for poorer ones. Most
permanent residents are an integral part of our society who abide by
the law, pay Social Security and taxes, and contribute to the
economic and cultural life of their communities. In order to help
assure their well-being, especially of their children, we support
legislation that gives them access to the same benefits citizens
receive. Newcomers without legal status While most newcomers are legal permanent residents
or naturalized citizens, a significant number of people, including
many agricultural workers, lack legal documents. Many undocumented
persons have been here for years. They live under the fear of
deportation. Those who become eligible to adjust their status are
only allowed to do so by leaving the United States and then waiting
years to re-enter. They often fear returning to a troubled land, and
if they were to return, it would mean for many indefinite separation
from their families in the United States. The existence of a
permanent sub-group of people who live without recourse to effective
legal protection opens the door for their massive abuse and
exploitation and harms the common good. We urge leaders and citizens
to seek feasible responses to this situation that offer flexible and
humane ways for undocumented persons who have been in this country
for a specified amount of time to be able to adjust their legal
status. Refugee policy Although there are tens of millions of refugees throughout the
world, the number admitted into the United States has been
decreasing. We believe that our country has a responsibility to
increase the number of refugees it admits. We also are concerned
that race not be a prejudicial factor in decisions about
resettlement, and we urge our government to do more to provide
African refugees a fair opportunity to be resettled in our country.
We also support fair and compassionate legislative solutions to the
precarious plight of refugees whose present temporary legal status
is threatened. Asylum We advocate for a reliable, consistent, and sensitive
implementation of the law governing asylum seekers. At present INS
districts treat similar cases in vastly different ways. We oppose
practices that create unreasonable obstacles and unattainable
standards of proof for those seeking asylum. We support efforts to
ensure that due process is followed and that the conditions of
detention are humane. We call upon the Immigration and
Naturalization Service to recognize the particular vulnerabilities
of children by developing child-appropriate standards and
procedures. We encourage that agency vigorously to use the channels
of communication it has developed with refugee organizations to
improve processes and conditions for asylum seekers. We recognize the right of all countries to control their borders
and their duty to protect their citizens from the illegal entry of
drugs and criminals. But we have serious doubts about the rightness
and effectiveness of current policy to erect imposing barriers
between the United States and Mexico. We support the search for
alternatives to this policy that would more appropriately reflect
the relationship of two friendly nations whose peoples and economies
are increasingly interdependent. Whatever the policy, border
enforcement should always respect the human dignity of persons
attempting to cross the border. Definitions Asylum
seekers Persons who have fled their country
because of personal danger, who arrive in the United States without
legal protection, and who must prove a "credible fear of
persecution" to receive an opportunity to seek legal protective
status or asylum. |
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