Friday, September 30, 2016

Justice Devotional - Citizenship

From 
Devotion to Justice
A series of devotions from the Justice table on the topics of
  • Women and children
  • Hunger and poverty
  • Creation care
  • Immigration
Citizenship
Matthew 20:9-12

Since we were little kids, most of us had a well-developed sense of what was fair. When our brother or sister got away with something, we were quick to say, “That’s not fair!” Maybe our parents told us the old adage, “Life isn’t fair.” But deep down, we still cling to the belief that it should be. That’s one reason we’re so incensed when someone doesn’t follow the rules.

For many, the thought of people entering the United States by crossing the border illegally evokes the same outrage: “Who do you think you are? You think you’re so special that the rules don’t apply to you? That’s not fair!”

But that’s just it: it’s not fair.

It’s not fair that I was born on U.S. soil, thereby becoming a U.S. citizen. Because of that fact, I have lived my life free from genocide, political dictatorship, civil war, religious persecution and famine. And then there’s my other citizenship: While I was still a sinner, Christ died for me, making me a citizen in the kingdom of heaven. If ever I should exclaim, “That’s not fair!” it’s because I have received so much more than I deserved.

Immigration is not a simple issue with simple answers. In fact, the more I learn, the more I appreciate the complexity of it all. But I have also found that starting the discussion with recognition that I do not deserve my citizenship — either of them — is a lot more productive than starting it by crying foul.

Can we set our indignation aside, or at least hold it lightly, while we learn about immigration? Because if we do, I believe we’ll find new understanding. And most importantly, I believe we’ll open ourselves to the ways God is working in the Church.

Gracious God, thank you for giving me so much more than I deserve. Help me to live into my citizenship in your kingdom.

Tana Liu-Beers: Immigration Legal Counsel, Disciples Home Missions Durham,
North Carolina Immigration and Refugees
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Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Justice Devotional - The Problem with Names

From 
Devotion to Justice
A series of devotions from the Justice table on the topics of
  • Women and children
  • Hunger and poverty
  • Creation care
  • Immigration
The Problem with Names
Revelation 21:22-27

Life as a refugee is a hard life. There is the indignity of losing one's home. And then add to that the displacing of an entire family, a resettling in a land with different language and different customs and different expectations. Whatever you were in the prior land — a doctor, a teacher, a farmer — very likely bears no relationship on what you are allowed to do in the new place. On top of all this, there is the problem with names.

Many refugees lose their given names when they leave their home and settle in a new place. A few families in our congregation lost their last names when they traveled to Cambodia to a refugee camp. Men were given the initial Y as a last name and women were given a letter H. The US Government had drawn up paperwork to correspond to the legal names Cambodia had given people when they resettled. In a great irony, the process of becoming an American Citizen allows refugees to reclaim those lost names, that lost heritage. By becoming American, they are allowed (finally!) to be called by their names.

Our Lord knows us beyond the names and the labels we wear. Our Lord prepares a place for the faithful even if no other place in the world provides them a welcome. Our Lord finds a way. And with the Lamb, with Jesus the Christ, we are known deeply and completely. With the Lamb, we are home.

Personal experience and panic prompted some of our teenagers to ask a Bible Study teacher about the scripture where the Lamb's book has everyone's name. "How will we know if we're welcome in the new Jerusalem? How will we know if Jesus calls us? Which name will the Lamb use?" The answer the teacher gave was the only answer that mattered. "You'll just know."

Rev. Jolin Wilks McElroy: Pastor First Christian Church, Charlotte, NC Immigration and Refugees.
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