Off Script 28: Seeking a Christian View on Refugees and Immigrants

Christians protecting Muslims while they prayed in Tahrir Square, Egypt in 2011

On January 27, 2017, President Trump issued Executive Order 13769, called “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” in which he banned immigration from seven countries, including Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.  This unpopular order caused much controversy throughout the US and led to significant litigation, delaying it’s implementation.  Much of the president’s motivation for this order (and subsequent revisions) is to protect Americans from terrorists posing as refugees.  In this episode we look at few significant biblical passages on sojourners (immigrants) and attempt to stake out a Christian position on this subject.  Whether you are for or against immigration, this episode should help you think through your position from a distinctly Christian perspective.

Links:

• 99% Invisible podcast on the Sanctuary Movement of the 1980s: podcast 1, podcast 2
• Washington Post article: ‘Now they live in the light’: A Syrian refugee family finds only love and compassion in America
• “World Poverty, Immigration, & Gumballs” by Roy Beck visually demonstrates how immigration cannot solve world poverty
• Jeff Palmer, executive director of Baptist Global Response: “Caring for Refugees from the Middle East” (interview with Darrell Bock on The Table Podcast)
• Info about Stan and Pam Chee’s ministry to Chinese students at the University of Toronto
• Intro music: “Protofunk” by Kevin MacLeod.  Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License.