Sanctuary Churches
Religion and Illegal Immigration
By Daniel Muniz

The churches that offer sanctuary to illegal aliens and the church groups that help them in their efforts to remain illegally in this country claim that God’s law trumps our federal laws. But just how valid is such an assertion when religion clashes with the federal government on a subject as touchy as illegal immigration?

Now there is absolutely nothing wrong with using religion as the basis of political activism. Unless someone is a humanist or a government bureaucrat, religion is often the motivation for doing social work. Long before the rise of big government, churches established hospitals, orphanages, soup kitchens, etc. Feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and many other good works is simply the fruits of such spirituality.
 

Story Continues Below ê

Today's Top Stories

● Big Spenders - The Lost Vision of the GOP ● Construction Frenzy - The Bogus Overcrowded School Crisis ● Case Settled? - Global Warming Myths: Part 1 ● Slavery and the Founders - Our Founders were not Ignorant ● Polygraph Exams - Can It Really Detect Lies? ● Leaving the Big City - Millions Flee Metropolitan Areas

Yesterday's Top Stories

● Ending Poverty - Is There a Government Solution? ● Dropout Factories - Schools that Specialize in Dropouts ● MySpace Problems - But What About The Parents? ● Hidden In Plain Sight - Do Sex Offenders Live Nearby? ● Doctors Gone Wild - Hospitals Reinforce Dress Codes ● Poor Minorities - A Collective Moral Responsibility?

However, there is a moral dilemma in using the name of God to break the law as is the case of churches offering their facilities as sanctuary and religious groups helping illegal aliens stay in this country.

One obvious problem that I have with this rationale is that most illegal aliens have absolutely no intention in playing by the rules or following the law. The United States government is not an oppressive regime. If that was the indeed case, then there wouldn’t be millions of people scratching and clawing their way to get here. As a result, there is a reason why people want to come here and a lot of it has to do with money.

And that is where the moral argument falls apart.

There are processes and procedures to follow and a lot of paperwork to fill out in order to obtain the legal right to reside in the United States. Sadly, most illegal aliens don’t want to bother with that. Nearly all of them simply want citizenship given to them, especially in the form of amnesty as was done during the Reagan administration. At that time, illegal aliens just needed to be breathing to be automatically granted citizenship which is something that the next batch of 12 million illegal immigrants now desire from our government.

The next problem I have with this rationale is that the churches and church groups are invoking the name of God to not only cover up bad behavior, but to excuse it. From lying and falsifying legal documents to identity theft for social security numbers, these activists gladly overlook behavior that would absolutely not be tolerated in the countries that illegal immigrants come from. Somehow, it is fine to break the law in the United States.

In fact, it is the whole context of this activism that doesn’t pass the smell test when someone uses religion to justify it. And that is perhaps the ugliest factor of this moral logic.

For example, not just for the United States but the immigration laws for just about every country in the world are set up for a very specific reason. Such legislation allows immigration to be done at sustainable levels without disrupting the social or economic fabric of a nation. So in other words, immigration can be carefully controlled so that it doesn’t adversely impact the host country in negative ways.

Unfortunately, the activists don’t see it that way. They think that the United States ought to be Santa Claus for the rest of the world and since the USA is already an evil country, screwing it is perfectly justifiable.

As a result, it is just fine that our hospitals are bursting at the seams for millions of illegal aliens who have absolutely no ability to pay for services rendered or that some of our schools are woefully overcrowded. In addition, there are many crimes, like drug offenses, in which local district attorneys don’t even want to prosecute because the criminals are illegal aliens. As a result, they walk away free from crimes that citizens would end up in jail for.

America is a nation of immigrants but it is also a nation of laws. Yes, the process to become a legal resident or a citizen is cumbersome and complicated and it really needs to be dramatically revamped. However, if someone doesn’t like the laws or the rules, then change them. That is why we have elections for lawmakers. We are a free society with the ability to make these kinds of sweeping changes to our statutes.

But that alone is the biggest reason why I find sanctuary churches and such church groups so disturbing.

Instead of using the law as a means to petition their grievances with it, these activists simply circumvent it. Religion doesn’t give anybody that right, especially when these avenues exist.

There are a lot of laws that I personally don’t like, especially the ones involving taxes. Consequently, I tend to vote for the people who promise to help lower the amount of money I pay in taxes. Sometimes these politicians deliver but most of the time they don’t. I may not like the outcome but that is what democracy is all about. And since my taxes keep going up, I accept it as being the price to pay for living in a free country.

And that is where these activists are so terribly wrong.

They need to write their congressman, talk to as many elected officials as possible, and use the means available to change the system instead of trying to find ways to beat it. It is no excuse to claim that God supersedes the right of every sovereign nation on the planet to control and adjust immigration levels.

Religion ought to be a source of inspiration to do what is just instead of being a license to taking the law into your own hands. And besides, if God is on your side, then there is no stopping God’s work. But if activists choose to flout the law, then they are nothing more than common criminals.

We want your opinion! Tell us what you thought about this article. Click the Your Feedback menu item to send us your comments.