O'Reilly vs. The Minister [Updated]

"Christ and the Tribute" fresco by Masaccio.

Some churches have started a "New Sanctuary Movement" to aid illegal immigrants facing deportation orders. They advocate, among other things, sheltering illegals in Churches or physically blocking authorities from carrying out deportation orders. One of the leaders of this movement, the Rev. Donna Schaper, who is from the Judson Memorial Church (United Church of Christ) in Greenwich Village, NYC, debated this issue with Bill O'Reilly on the Factor the day before yesterday. No transcript, but video here.

Rev. Schaper's main point is that Christ asked us to look out for our neighbors, and so Christians are obligated to help anyone who asks in any way possible. O'Reilly, who strongly opposes the church sanctuary movement, countered with "render unto Caesar" (Matthew 22:21), which does suggest we should follow the law, but since it is primarily about paying taxes, it is a rather weak retort (Romans 13 is a much better reference).

In fact, at first it seems impossible to argue with the Rev's point of view, especially when she quotes Christ's words "When I was hungry you fed me, when I was naked you clothed me, when I was a stranger, and you welcomed me" (Matthew 25:35). But the truth is, there is still a lot more to this story. This "New Sanctuary Movement" is very misguided, and I'll tell you why:

1) By helping a few, the sanctuary movement is hurting many others. And I'm not talking about Americans who lose their jobs to illegals. I'm talking about the dozens of people who die every year making perilous journeys across deserts, in crates, or through dangerous waters, like the dozens of Haitians lost at sea last week. All this talk of amnesty, and now "Church Sanctuaries" encourage more people to risk their lives to sneak into the USA, often stoked with false hope by despicable human smugglers looking to increase their profits and feeding on the unrealistic expectations of undereducated people.

2) One web site, here, makes a good point. Basically, by tolerating illegal immigration we are sending a message to our children that its okay to covet your neighbor's goods, and steal government services (not to mention bearing false witness when using fraudulent documents or SSNs). The site also points out that Romans 13 tells us to submit to civil authorities, and defines those as authorities that are not a "terror to people of good conduct but to people of bad behavior".

3) Jesus did tell us to love our neighbors. But is enabling them showing them love? If I decide tomorrow that I would prefer to live in Paris or Monte Carlo, are the Churches there obligated to help me do it? Are Christians obligated to set up another "underground railroad" for anyone who wants to live somewhere else? What is their definition of luxury vs. necessity?

4) Finally, this is what skewers the mission of the "New Sanctuary" movement the most: Exactly what are you saving illegal immigrants from? Deportation is NOT persecution. Deportation (when done under the law) does not involve torture, forced starvation, beatings, or other kinds of human rights violations. If it did, then I would be one of the first to join this "sanctuary movement" and oppose deportations of all kinds. All it involves is sending the person back to their home. That's it. Now, its certainly not a pleasant process, but when the problem has been ignored for so long that law enforcement has to get involved, nothing is ever pleasant. And frankly, illegals only have themselves to blame because they certainly could have left the country themselves long before the government had to do it for them, or just not violate the law in the first place.
I happen to be in the military. I have been ordered to move several times, and not always to places I wanted to go, sometimes to very unpleasant places (like Iraq). Is that persecution? Would these sanctuary churches help me out if the Army decided to move me from Germany to Fort Bliss, TX, and I didn't want to go?

Now some may retort that since the living conditions in Mexico and some other third world nations are so bad, that sending someone back there is a form of persecution. If that is correct, then I would ask them are they willing then to invade Mexico or otherwise overthrow the government there? Because if Mexico is such a hell-hole that the very act of living there is a human rights violation, then there are 100 million people there that need our help right away.
But of course, Mexico is not that bad. It's not as wealthy as the US, but then again, no country is. Mexico's per capita income is $10,600 a year, and that's higher than about 60% of the world's countries and 80% of the population of the world, according to the CIA World Factbook. In other words, Mexico is a wealthy country. Now, I realize that its income distribution is not as equitable as the US's is, but still, its not that bad. I've been there. In fact, some locations are very beautiful.

So what to do then? Believe it or not, it is entirely possible to help everyone who asks for it and do so entirely within the law. Church groups can provide legal aid and advice. They can contact their congressmen and write letters of appeal. If a person is to be deported, they can provide loans, more comfortable transportation, and contact other Churches overseas to assist the individual in finding a home and a job back in their native country. In the long run, that would probably be more productive than hiding people in a house of worship or acting as human shields against the authorities.

Finally, this is off the subject but I can't help pointing this irony out. If Rev Schaper follows the New Testament, I would like to hear her answer for 1 Cor 14:33-36, which prohibits women from working as ministers in the first place.

Update 05/13/2007 01:14:00 PM: Added another paragraph. Also making a clarification when I say "no country is as wealthy as the US". The USA is actually the sixth most wealthy in the world with regard to per capita income, but in total terms, it is the most wealthy single nation. Look here. Another way to compare Mexico's average $10,600 salary is like this: According to the UN, there are over 1 billion people in the world that live on less than $1 a day, or $365 dollars a year. That is true poverty.

Update 05/14/2007 12:29:00 PM: I got a response from Rev Schaper. I had sent her a copy of this article by email. She responded: "You write a very thoughtful memo to me. I have considered all these matters and will do so again. My best to you." In other words, a very, very polite "thanks but no thanks". Also: some very good responses to this issue here.