Thread: Evangelicals push Congress for immigration reform

Jun 12, 2012

Evangelicals push Congress for immigration reform

By Alan Gomez, USA TODAY

Leaders from a wide-ranging group of evangelical organizations - from Focus on the Family to the Southern Baptist Convention to the National Latino Evangelical Association - came together in Washington, D.C., to push for a revamped immigration system that provides a path to citizenship for some of the country's 11 million illegal immigrants.

The group is calling itself the "Evangelical Immigration Table" and said the political gridlock in Congress is making it impossible to pass any substantial immigration legislation that treats illegal immigrants responsibly and fairly.

Tom Minnery of Focus on the Family said Congress should allow illegal immigrants a way to become legalized, as long as they pay adequate "restitution" in an "atmosphere of human dignity."

Jim Wallis, president of Sojourners, a Christian social justice organization, said passing immigration reform was a "moral and biblical imperative" that requires a critical mass of Americans supporting it to sway a gridlocked Washington.

"Big things don't change in Washington first. Big things change in Washington last," Wallis said.

The creation of the group comes amid continued inaction by Congress on immigration reform. The DREAM Act, which would grant legal status to some illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children and have completed either some college or served in the military, passed the House of Representatives in 2010, but failed in the Senate. Other attempts at immigration changes have gone nowhere.

The issue has been key for Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney as both try to cater to the ever-growing Hispanic electorate. Obama pushed for the DREAM Act and has called on Congress to tackle a comprehensive immigration reform package. Romney said he would veto the current version of the DREAM Act, but would support a version strictly for illegal immigrants who serve in the military.

The evangelical leaders acknowledged that there is little they can do to convince Congress to take up immigration legislation so close to the November elections. Instead, they said they would focus on electing candidates to Congress who share their views.

"This is a ground game," said Noel Castellanos, CEO of the Christian Community Development Association.

The groups are starting out by focusing person-to-person outreach and media buys in Colorado and Florida - two states they believe are critical to the November election, and have large numbers of evangelicals.

Evangelicals push Congress for immigration reform

Evangelical Elites Reject Immigration Laws
to Side with U.S. Chamber of Commerce Elites

Deportation a "false choice."

Evangelical
Statement of Principles for
Immigration Reform

Our national immigration laws have created a moral, economic and political crisis in America. Initiatives to remedy this crisis have led to polarization and name calling in which opponents have misrepresented each other’s positions as open borders and amnesty versus deportations of millions. This false choice has led to an unacceptable political stalemate at the federal level at a tragic human cost.

As evangelical Christian leaders, we call for a bipartisan solution on immigration that:

• Respects the God-given dignity of every person
  
  
• Protects the unity of the immediate family
  
  
• Respects the rule of law
  
  
• Guarantees secure national borders
  
  
• Ensures fairness to taxpayers
  
  
• Establishes a path toward legal status and/or citizenship for those who qualify and who wish to become permanent residents
  

We urge our nation’s leaders to work together with the American people to pass immigration reform that embodies these key principles and that will make our nation proud.

http://www.evangelicalimmigrationtable.com

Nothing about these "Evangelical Leaders" makes me proud . . . just totally ashamed. They are supposed to be following Jesus rather than advocating for law-breakers in the country illegally — not ag workers that are allowed to freely enter to do migrant farm work in the U.S., but criminals who are here doing jobs that U.S. citizens would be doing or were doing, or doing jobs like human trafficking and smuggling cocaine and meth, jobs that no one should be doing.

It's not "Our national immigration laws [that] have created a moral, economic and political crisis in America," along with a crisis of crime— it's the law-breakers, both the illegal aliens and the suits.

U.S. citizens and legal immigrants, who respect and support the U.S. immigration laws and want them upheld, are murdered, shot at, violated, robbed, raped, assaulted, run over, and replaced at work by scofflaws and outlaws who violated numerous laws when they unlawfully invaded the U.S., who demand that a nation not their own change her laws for their benefit, "and until you change 'em, we're gonna break 'em!" Yet these "Evangelical Leaders" urge and call for these disparate parties to negotiate "A bipartisan solution on immigration that Respects the rule of law"— you tell me how that works.

These "Evangelical Leaders" do not even suggest "pay a fine and go to the end of the line in the nation of origin," but rather, "pay restitution, say $1000, and keep 'your' job," that is, "my job" that he stole to work here illegally.

Arraigned before the Diet of Worms (pronounced Vurms), Germany, in April of 1521, Martin Luther defended the Scriptures and his writings about justification, reconciliation, and God's grace toward sinners:

"Unless I am convinced by proofs from Scriptures or by plain and clear reasons and arguments, I can and will not retract, for it is neither safe nor wise to do anything against conscience. Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen."

Are these "Evangelical Leaders," like Luther, standing upon principle, or falling down at the altar of mammon before pressure from wealthy and powerful men?

Are these "Evangelical Leaders" promoting the rule of immigration and naturalization laws or the rule of mobs? (Those laws are truly excellent; read them and see.)

Are these "Evangelical Leaders" promoting the rule of Scripture, which states,

"Therefore you must be subject [to the governing authorities], not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor." - Romans 13:5-7

"Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king." - 1 Peter 2:13-17

Are these "Evangelical Leaders" promoting obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ, Who said,

"Show Me the tax money.”

So they brought Him a denarius.

And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?”

They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”

And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” - Matthew 22:19-21

And the passage was repeated again in Mark and Luke . . . three times in all. I've been told that when God repeats something, it must be pretty important, and He expects us to pay attention; so when He repeats something three times ...