First published: 06/05/2017
In a letter to the Honorable James Conkling declining an invitation to visit his home, the most revered United States President in history proclaimed,
“Suppose refugees from the South, and peace men of the North, get together in convention, and frame and proclaim a compromise embracing a restoration of the Union; in what way can that compromise be used to keep Lee's army out of Pennsylvania? Meade's army can keep Lee's army out of Pennsylvania; and I think, can ultimately drive it out of existence. But no paper compromise, to which the controllers of Lee's army are not agreed, can at all affect that army. In an effort at such compromise we should waste time, which the enemy would improve to our disadvantage; and that would be all.”[1]
Written in August of 1863, this letter proved President Abraham Lincoln’s foresight that the United States is better as one nation, assisting each other, working together, and approaching each other as human beings rather than through stale paper agreements. It would be nearly two years before the country would reconcile its differences on slavery. Once again, in today’s political climate, the country has taken a turn for separation and against the common good of each other. In a frantic act of protection, 31 U.S. governors banned Syrian refugees during the later part of 2015.[2] Taking a step back, it seems humans have felt the need to divide themselves based upon several categories of influence since the first biblical stories of Hebrews in Egypt. Humankind has had a bend toward sin since the Garden of Eden in Genesis. The more advances societies make on behalf of love, commonality, respect, and peace, the more they tear it down. It is for this reason, that U.S. citizens must continually refer back to history to learn, advance and never turn back into what they once fought to alleviate. On July 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan said,
“Our nation is a nation of immigrants. More than any other country, our strength comes from our won immigrant heritage and our capacity to welcome those from other lands. No free and prosperous nation can by itself accommodate all those who seek a better life or flee persecution. We must share this responsibility with others.”[3]
In an effort to influence the United States response to refugees, the church must first take a contemplative view of the conflict driving Middle Easterners to seek refuge, review Biblical scripture on God’s love and his call to aid those in need and finally determine specific steps forward.
The Problem
Civil unrest and differences in religious beliefs have caused strife throughout history. Particularly today, Syria is experiencing a civil war much like the United States during the aforementioned Lincoln quote. The difference between battles of old and those of today is simply technology. Roughly 620,000 people died as a part of the American civil conflict during the 1860’s[4]. So far, as many as 470,000[5] people have perished in the Syrian conflict alone, and 1,400[6] in targeted Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) attacks around the world. Since the beginning of the Iraqi war in 2003, nearly 1,244,315 lives have been taken as a part of either civil or terrorist conflict in the Middle East.[7] Today, technology has helped humankind to advance in areas both helpful and harmful. While cures for cancer, immunization drugs and drones to help find lost children are being invented, evil doers are using these advancements for the peril of their enemies. Mass casualty bombs are being created with tools that can now be found at home. What were once pocket cells of ISIS, have now multiplied in number thanks to the advancement of social media and the world wide web. Air transportation has lead to brainwashed kamikaze ISIS fighters dropping down in major cities across the globe to reek havoc on nations that choose to fight evil. News media traveling at lightening speed has lead to civil unrest and enormous coalition building in Syria, Iraq and Palestine. According to CNN, ISIS uses modern tools like social media to promote reactionary politics and religious fundamentalism. Fighters are destroying holy sites and valuable antiquities even as their leaders propagate a return to early days of Islam.”[8] Many of the ideas that caused technology to be used in this harmful way, are the result of sin, hate, disrespect and disinclination to heed history’s lessons. These conflicts are over governmental differences, religious freedoms and pilgrimages, and basic human rights.
Specifically, Syria has experienced six years of violence in reaction to peaceful government protests in which citizens are calling for a working democracy.[9] ISIS, a spin off of terrorist group al Qaeda, aims to create “an Islamic state called a caliphate across Iraq, Syria, and beyond”[10] through extreme violence and abomination of anyone not accepting teachings of the Quran.[11] Further, the Israeli Palestinian conflict continues from the days of Muhammad’s ascension to British rule of Israel which pushed Palestinians out of Jerusalem into the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Together, these conflicts have destroyed the living environments of millions and have created over 65 million refugees or asylum-seekers worldwide.[12] These refugees include Muslim Syrians, Iraqi Christians, Egyptian Christians and Iranian Muslim Minority Shia’s to name a few. More than ever before, the United States has the opportunity to make a lasting impact on the lives of so many in the Middle East who have lived for generations in severe unrest and conflict. While the American government cannot possibly stop every person with ill intent to step foot on its boarders, they have the great chance to provide a safe haven for some of the over 65 million terrorized and displaced persons globally. With state governments shutting their doors to refugees in 2015 and the addition of executive orders by newly elected President Trump, the United States has closed its doors to refugees, accepting only 50,000 which is down from the over 200,000 refugees accepted in 1980.[13] Refugee children who are currently displaced and awaiting placement are at risk of being ill, malnourished, abused or exploited. Millions have been forced to quit school and work, and have little or no access to what is left of their personal belongings and financial resources.[14] Interestingly, zero refugees from countries included in the President’s travel ban have killed anyone in terrorist attacks on American soil and Americans have a .00003 percent change of dying in an attack by a foreign-born terrorist.[15]
Biblical Call
So, what does all of this have to do with cities? People make up cities. Nearly, 60 percent of the world’s refugees and 80 perfect of the 34 million Internally Displaced Persons live in urban environments.[16] Further, great advancements of cities have been made throughout America’s history because of refugees. For example, Albert Einstein, perhaps the most famous scientist of all time, was a refugee to the United States.[17] Washington, DC: in the Middle EastNikola Tesla, an archetypical mad scientist and refugee to the United States, developed the alternating current induction motor, which enabled development of the power grid we all take for granted today.[18] In addition, Sergey Brin, the co-founder of Google, was a refugee to the United States from the Soviet Union.[19]
All of these benefits pale in comparison to the simple call from the Heavenly Father for Christians to reach out and aid those who are in need regardless of the kickback. Put simply, Exodus 22:21 says, “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were once foreigners in Egypt.” Specifically, Psalm 82:3-4 calls Christians to “Give justice to the poor and the orphan; uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute. Rescue the poor and helpless; deliver them from the grasp of the evil people.” The drastically decreased numbers of refugees accepted into the U.S. in 2017, represent the need to protect territory. This can be seen largely as the forgetfulness of humankind to recognize their own mortality and the fact that we all belong to each other and are made in the image of the same God. In her article, entitled “Whose city is it?” Saskia Sassen says,
“I would argue that another radical form (of shrinkage of distance and time) assumed today by the linkage of people to territory is the loosening of identities from what have been traditional sources of identity, such as the nation or village. This unmooring in the process of identity formation engenders new notions of community and membership of entitlement.”[20]
The great news about Sassen’s observation is that it makes accepting and integrating refugees much easier. Elijah Anderson developed the idea of the “cosmopolitan canopy” in which sections of urban environments can be seen in stark contrast to each other within a few miles radius. He says, “Many working-class and poor black people are ethnocentric because they have limited exposure to white people who are not agents of the dominant society in the ghetto.”[21] Interestingly, while the United States identifies as being over 70 percent Christian[22], this majority has failed to create the type of society that God had envisioned as their ideal. Revelation 7:9-10 states, “After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a great roar, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb.””
“Frederick Douglass had been a slave, so he preached against human bondage and turned abolition into a cause for people. William Wilberforce was likewise a champion for the abolition of slavery. Revivalist Charles Finney saw the class system developing during industrialization and connected Jesus’ good news for the poor with a movement for social change. … He asked people to come forward and give their lives to Jesus, but he also invited them to give themselves to a cause,”[23]
proclaimed John M. Perkins in his book, entitled Welcoming Justice. Over time, Christians have dusted off scripture and re-contemplated its meaning in light of their current circumstances and world issues. It seems now is the time to once again, crack open God’s word and relearn his heart for serving the oppressed, welcoming the refugee and creating diverse communities all while depending on His omnipotence to protect His servants. Perkins goes on to suggest that America finds itself in a time of rebuilding. He mentions that we “won’t have community until we develop people’s character. Conversions and discipleship go hand in hand. They are the tools God uses to shape our character so that we become living members of a body that is inhabited and controlled by the Holy Spirit.”[24]
Christians for centuries have heeded the great commission which says, “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20) A great opportunity to reach the lost exists in America’s own backyard, were they to accept refugees like Syrians and Iraqi’s who have traditionally been Muslim. Looking forward, how great a witness would one of these Iraqi born again Christians be to fellow Arabic speaking neighbors? Christians in the United States have been given a great gift to not only live out the biblical call on their lives found in Psalm 82:3-4, Exodus 22:21, and others but these believers also have the opportunity to see the Lord’s prayer come to life, if only they open their clenched fist to those in need.
“May your Kingdom come, May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10)
Specific Actions
The first step in releasing the church’s clenched fist is recognizing that their hand is in fact clenched. Cloaked in a blanket of self-protection, American Christians have lost the ability to see their own lenses. According to Dr. Mary Glenn, a lens is something that facilitates and influences a perception, comprehensive or evaluation.[25] American Christians tend to see themselves as the righteous, the “haves,” so much so that their place is worth protecting at the loss of helping others. Knowing Dr. Glenn’s definition of lenses could prove helpful to the American Christian. Not only were they far geographically from the first Christians in history, they would also benefit from recognizing the lens through which they see the world. Kris Rocke and Joel Van Dyke, in their book Geography of Grace, invite readers to notice that Christians worship the God who sees.[26] They tell the story of Hagar and Sarah. The story revolves around Sarah’s inability to conceive and her dependence on bearing a child in her own will. Sarah eventually asks her husband, Abraham to sleep with her servant Hagar. At which point Sarah will claim the child as Abraham’s heir. Unfortunately, Sarah viewed her circumstance in light of her own will and ability rather than that of God’s amazing power. Were she to have surrendered to God, she would have lived out the promise God gave to she and Abraham many years before. God told Abraham, “I am God All-Powerful. If you obey me and always do right, I will keep my solemn promise to you and give you more descendants than can be counted.” (Genesis 17: 1-2) In fact, the entire plight of ISIS rest in the decision of whom is rightfully the son of Abraham, Ishmael or Isaac. Isaac being the one whom God promised to Abraham through his wife Sarah and Ishmael, the son of Sarah’s servant Hagar, the first born. Many of the refugees today have been displaced due to this discrepancy. American Christians, similarly to Sarah, should remember the promises made to them by God and seek to live out his calling during their time on earth. Unfortunately, their current lens is largely preventing them from seeing themselves as a refugee. Further, their lenses are working to cloud their vision of Muslims, and those displaced by ISIS as terrorists, when most of these are actually Christians displaced because of their belief in Christ.
After the lens is recognized, true healing and outreach can occur. Next, education and emulsion in cultures and practices different than their own could be a stepping stone to actually forming a refugee outreach program in an urban environment. J. Timothy Kauffman takes on the question, Who is the neighbor, anyway, in the second chapter of So God Loved the City. He identifies Jesus as the neighbor and says, “A closer look at scripture shows that Jesus put himself at risk with religious establishment by extending the offer of the kingdom to those whom that very establishment considered unfit and alien. Yet an unconditional love only God could give saturated his offer to those outcasts.”[27] So American Christians must ask themselves the popular question of what Jesus himself would do in this circumstance. According to His word, He would live amongst the people, break bread with them, heal them, clothe and feed them. F”or I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.” (Matthew 25:35) To the extent that they are able, the church’s call is to get to know those of whom they are fearful – to know their hearts and their stories. Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” How are Christians to live out the clear will of God if they do not unclench their fist?
Once the lens is removed and education occurs, forming a refugee outreach program in an urban environment may be the next logical step for a church. However, the church may also wish to engage in the political discussion currently happening at the local, state, national and international levels. The International Rescue Committee (IRC), one of the most reputable refugee assistance non-profits in the world, is currently advocating on all levels on behalf of refugees. “The IRC is very pleased that the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals refused to reinstate the Trump Administration’s harmful order banning Muslims-including refugees – from seeking entry and protection in America, because it is blatantly unconstitutional.”[28] The IRC is a secular organization fighting for the rights of displaced persons world-wide. If this is their impact, that of the church banned together could be unstoppable. Practically, churches could choose to set up housing in urban environments that would seek to provide immediate housing to those that arrive on U.S. soil, provide airport shuttles for newly arrived refugees, host English language and American values classes, build community with women and children through cooking classes and childcare, and provide a safe place to experience community for refugees. Gateway of Grace, one non-profit assisting refugees with resettlement in the urban Dallas environment, has partnered with over 50[29] churches to provide the type of refugee care they believe Jesus envisioned. Still Dallas is home to 1,200[30] Christian churches, which leaves 1150 churches or 95.8 percent of churches in Dallas essentially inactive in one of the most clear scriptural commands. Christians in the United States can do better.
Today, an extraordinary opportunity exists for Christians in the urban setting, particularly in the United States. With national news media displaying political hate language, which holds the lives of over 65 million refugees, believers in the United States should be: educating themselves on the Middle Eastern conflict, reengaging themselves with God’s heart for the refugee, and creating specific action plans with which to address the ongoing refugee crisis being experienced globally. The later could include removing lenses by which they see the world, educating the church on others cultures and traditions and finally creating a refugee outreach program that would seek to live out Christ’s call for the church. From the time of his letter to Honorable Conkling, it took President Lincoln two years to convince his own government and party to see their fellow countrymen as brethren. It took several more for them to gain equal rights. At this time in history the United States is largely forsaking all refugees based on their religious background or nationality, where as the word of God says “All were created in His image.” (Genesis 1:26) When future generations ask what Americans of 2017 did to aid refugees, let churches of urban cities say “we answered the call.”
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Anderson, Elijah. Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life. W.W.Norton,
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Chen, Jessica, Barrett Brown, Emily Esleck, Caitlin Clark, and D. Partner Studio. "Is Dallas the Most Christian City in the NATION?" D Magazine. Accessed May 31, 2017. https://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-magazine/1985/december/is-dallas-the-most-christian-city-in-the-nation/.
"Civil War Facts." Civil War Trust. Accessed May 31, 2017. https://www.civilwar.org/learn/articles/civil-war-facts.
Domonoske, Camila. "Refugees, Displaced People Surpass 60 Million For First Time, UNHCR Says." NPR. June 20, 2016. Accessed May 31, 2017. http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2016/06/20/482762237/refugees-displaced-people-surpass-60-million-for-first-time-unhcr-says.
Fantz, Ashley, and Ben Brumfield. "Syrian refugees not welcome in 31 U.S. states." CNN. November 19, 2015. Accessed May 31, 2017. http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/16/world/paris-attacks-syrian-refugees-backlash/index.html.
Dr. Mary Glenn, Week 4 Lens’ Video, (Pasadena, CA: Fuller Theological Seminary, 2017)
"ISIS Fast Facts." CNN. April 17, 2017. Accessed May 31, 2017. http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/08/world/isis-fast-facts/.
Join Us. Gateway of Grace. Accessed May 31, 2017. www.GatewayofGrace.org
Krogstad, Jens Manuel, and Jynnah Radford. "Key facts about refugees to the U.S." Pew Research Center. January 30, 2017. Accessed May 31, 2017. http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/01/30/key-facts-about-refugees-to-the-u-s/.
Lin, Jan & Christopher Mele. The Urban Sociology Reader. 2nd edition. Routledge, 2012.
Lincoln, Abraham. “Letter to James Conkling” The White House. August 26, 1863.
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"The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life – Asian Americans: A Mosaic of Faiths". Pewforum.org. 2012-07-19. Retrieved 2012-12-29.
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Tiersma, Jude, and Charles Van Engen. God So Loves the City: Seeking a Theology for Urban Mission. Wipf and Stock, 2009.
"Twenty Immigrants & Refugee scientists who made America Greater (Part 1) - StarTalk Blog." StarTalk Radio Show by Neil deGrasse Tyson. March 09, 2017. Accessed May 31, 2017. https://www.startalkradio.net/20-immigrants-refugee-scientists-who-made-america-greater-part-1/.
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Willingham, AJ. "Chances of a refugee killing you - and other surprising immigration stats." CNN. March 06, 2017. Accessed May 31, 2017. http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/30/politics/immigration-stats-by-the-numbers-trnd/.
[1] Abraham Lincoln, “Letter to James Conkling” (Washington, DC: The White House. 1863).
[2] Ashley Fantz and Ben Brumfield, "Syrian refugees not welcome in 31 U.S. states," (Washington, DC: CNN, 2015) Washington, DC: in the Middle East.
[3] Ronald Reagan, Statement on the United States Immigration and Refugee Policy (Washington, DC: The White House, 1981). Washington, DC: in the Middle East
[4] "Civil War Facts," Civil War Trust. (2017).
[5] "List of modern conflicts in the Middle East," (Wikipedia, May 30, 2017)
[6] Karen Yourish, Derek Watkins, Tom Giratikanon and Jasmine C. Lee, "How Many People Have Been Killed in ISIS Attacks Around the World," (New York: NY, The New York Times, 2016).
[7] "List of modern conflicts in the Middle East." (Wikipedia. May 30, 2017).
[8] "ISIS Fast Facts." (Washington, DC: CNN, 2017).
[9] "Syria refugee crisis: Facts you need to know," (Baltimore, MD: World Vision, 2017).
[10] ISIS.
[11] ISIS.
[12] Camila Domonoske, "Refugees, Displaced People Surpass 60 Million For First Time, UNHCR Says," (NPR, June 20, 2016).
[13] Krogstad, Jens Manuel, and Jynnah Radford. "Key facts about refugees to the U.S." Pew Research Center. January 30, 2017.
[14] Syria
[15] Willingham, AJ. "Chances of a refugee killing you - and other surprising immigration stats." CNN. March 06, 2017. Accessed May 31, 2017.
[16] United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. "Urban Refugees." UNHCR.
[17] "Twenty Immigrants & Refugee scientists who made America Greater (Part 1) - StarTalk Blog," (StarTalk Radio Show by Neil deGrasse Tyson, 2017).
[18] Twenty.
[19] Twenty.
[20] Jan Lin, & Christopher Mele, The Urban Sociology Reader, 2nd edition, Routledge, 2012) 314.
[21] Elijah Anderson, (Cosmopolitan Canopy: Race and Civility in Everyday Life, (W.W. Norton, 2012) 214.
[22] "The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life – Asian Americans: A Mosaic of Faiths,” (Washington, DC: Pewforum.org, 2012)
[23] John Perkins & Charles Marsh, Welcoming Justice: God’s Movement Toward Beloved Community, (IVP, 2009, 73).
[24] Perkins, 119.
[25] Dr. Mary Glenn, Week 4 Lens’ video (Pasadena, CA: Fuller Theological Seminary, 2017)
[26] Kris Rock and Joel Van Dyke, Geography of Grace: Doing Theology from Below, (Street Psalms Press, 2012) 283.
[27] Jude Tiersma, and Charles Van Engen, God So Loves the City: Seeking a Theology for Urban Mission.
(Wipf and Stock, 2009) 35-37.
[28] Refugees Welcome. International Rescue Committee, (Washington, DC. May 31, 2017).
[29] Join Us. Gateway of Grace. www.GatewayofGrace.org, (2017)
[30] Jessica Chen, Jessica, Barrett Brown, Emily Esleck, Caitlin Clark, and D. Partner Studio, "Is Dallas the Most Christian City in the NATION?" (Dallas, TX, D Magazine. 2017).