Immigration in America

How should men of God be thinking about the current immigration debate? I don't have THE answer, but I do think it's important that we not get caught up in shrill debate. There are laws that are not being enforced, and since they are not ungodly laws, that will likely lead to problems and complications. There are national security issues. There is the fact that the economy is strong, and crime rates are actually falling -- and our immigration problems have a different character than European immigration problems altogether.

Check out John Podhoretz' column, good thoughts here:

"All these arguments are sound, and they raise issues that must be addressed. What is distressing about them, however, is how weirdly defeatist they are. Immigration foes are convinced that the American national fabric is frayed, tattered and in danger of disintegration - that America cannot survive in its present form if current immigration trends continue.
They fear the kind of social disorder now on display in Europe, where disgruntled Muslim immigrants are increasingly testing the limits of democratic civil society.
That's not the America I see, or the America I live in. I see a vibrant, dynamic, extraordinarily strong and extraordinarily stable country that has dealt successfully with far more pressing domestic problems without losing a beat."

On the macro level, I don't have the wisdom to know how best to proceed. I would remind our elected leaders that there are multiple system factors operating. Cause and effect are usually not closely positioned in time or space!

On the individual and community level, I think we need to follow the way of Christ and love people. What does that look like? Let's pray for direction.