Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion & Truth in the Immigration Debate

by Matthew Soerens, Jenny Yang, Leith Anderson

Immigration is one of the most complicated issues of our time. Voices on all sides argue strongly for action and change. Christians find themselves torn between the desire to uphold laws and the call to minister to the vulnerable. In this book World Relief immigration experts Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang move beyond the rhetoric to offer a Christian response to immigration. They put a human face on the issue and tell stories of immigrants' experiences in and out of the system. With careful historical understanding and thoughtful policy analysis, they debunk myths and misconceptions about immigration and show the limitations of the current immigration system. Ultimately they point toward immigration reform that is compassionate, sensible, and just as they offer concrete ways for you and your church to welcome and minister to your immigrant neighbors. This revised edition includes new material on refugees and updates in light of changes in political realities.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christian, Social Justice, Faith, Politics, Theology, Justice

284 pages, Paperback

First published January 29, 2009

About the author

Matthew Soerens is the US director of church mobilization for World Relief and the national coordinator of the Evangelical Immigration Table.

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I verbatim copied this review from my review on a similar book. WARNING: What follows is a highly subjective review. This is the standard apply-Old-Testament-texts-dealing-with-foreigners approach to immigration. It begins with the assumption of American sovereignty. After reading several books on immigration, I've come to the conclusion that any view that doesn't address American beliefs in Manifest Destiny (and imperialism) and American Exceptionalism is short-sighted in this discussion. Also, any discussion of immigration that leaves out native Americans is missing the boat.

[Frances Chan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book, this should be required reading for every American Christian (although the biblical principles apply to any country that has immigrants and refugees). This was a wonderfully clear, biblical, balanced overview of the current immigration system in America, which is totally inadequate for today’s immigration situation. This book gives Christians a gospel lens through which to view immigrants, most of whom are also Christians and all of whom are made in God’s image. A refreshing change from both sides of the news cycle.

[Andy Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

So relevant is this book that it ought to be required reading for not just evangelical Christians, but for anyone that wants to have an educated opinion regarding immigration. That said, I think this is really directed at Christians who decline to extend their stewardship and love to foreign-born immigrants.

Much of this book warrants attention, but the phrase that follows made me stop what I was doing to write it down. If you’re Christian and against immigration, I invite you to reflect on this:

“If Jesus left all of us power and privilege to enter our brokenness we have a responsibility to enter into the brokenness of others.”

[Rachel Wilhelm · Rating 4 out of 5]

solid, brief introduction to historical, political, and theological understandings of immigration. A little outdated maybe; 2009 edition obviously does not include any of the significant shifts (political and cultural) during and after 2016

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the updated 2018 version and I’d love another update in a couple more years. It’s well researched and structured. I read the chapters out of order for a five week class discussion and it was really impactful. It’s also a bit triggering to be reminded of things Trump did and said.

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It's balanced and nuanced, and I learned so much about the current immigration system and that of the past. I think this should be required reading.

[Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion, & Truth in the Immigration Debate was originally published in 2009; a copy graces our bookshelves, but admittedly, I had not yet read it. However, when I saw they were re-releasing it with revised chapters, I happily moved the 2018 title to the top of my reading list.

Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang are well poised to inform others on the immigration debate. They live in diverse neighborhoods and work at World Relief, a faith-based resettlement agency.

Soerens and Yang structured the book by first laying out the US immigration system. Then they examine immigration in the Bible through the lens of learning about God's heart on this issue and how Christians should respond. They thoroughly address common concerns as well as statistics to show the value of immigration. They offer possible solutions and challenges the church should consider as we live in a country where immigration divides people politically and socially.

The appendices offer practical support in the form of discussion questions, lists of ministries and organizations that serve refugees and immigrants, resources to get involved politically, and suggestions for further reading.

I found myself underlining swaths of this book. It is a timely resource, with the updated sections particularly relevant, and there is no shortage of concrete facts and footnoted materials. While this book is written from an evangelical standpoint, I believe others of different (or no) faith could see the value of this revised and updated text.

(I received a digital ARC from NetGalley and InterVarsity Press in exchange for my honest review.)

[Adam Jarvis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting and informative book over a politically charged topic. The authors encourage the reader to approach this situation primarily from a biblical, Christian, perspective, without discarding political values. For example, did you know that the most often quoted command in the Old Testament (after loving the Lord God with all your heart) is to welcome the stranger?)

The book is very data-heavy, with lots of statistics, which may be boring to some readers, but if you like numbers, those numbers prove a point-often very different from what is seen in the media. There are also real-life stories of immigrants that the authors personally know, although these could be seen as cherry-picked.

There are many interesting facts about the different eras of immigration, that give a very different picture than what some people think of as “the way America has always been.”

My one complaint is that I didn’t feel the book sufficiently addressed the status of those who entered the country illegally. The book seems to approach this particular issue with a “the only thing they did wrong is desire a better life for themselves” stance, which, in my opinion isn’t a strong enough answer. I think there is an acceptable answer, but I felt the book kind of dropped the ball in this one particular area.

Overall, very interesting, informative, and challenging to Christians of all political perspectives on the topic of immigration.

[Annessa Ihde · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a well-researched and approachable overview of US immigration law. This book challenges the anti-immigrant narratives promoted by many evangelical conservatives. Welcoming immigrants and refugees should not be a peripheral issue in today's politics, and the church should embrace an active role in advocating, serving, and loving immigrants and refugees. For readers who share the authors’ convictions, this book is extremely affirming and offers strong biblical, anecdotal, statistical, and historical evidence to defend their positions. For readers who have limited knowledge of the immigration debate, this book might challenge their misconceptions and broaden their perspective. For readers who feel threatened by the growing immigrant and refugee populations in the United States, this book will hopefully debunk misinformation and give them new insights into the reality of immigrant and refugee experiences.

overall, I highly recommend!!!

[Silvia Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommend for anyone that wants to learn more about the immigration process. It also has discussion questions that go along with the book which I think would be great for people new / not very familiar to this topic.

With that, I was not the intended audience and was expecting for more depth rather than introductory-level discussions.

It does a great job of addressing concerns and misconceptions that Christians have around immigration, but it doesn’t go in depth on the theological side & a lot of the arguments are not super strong when they definitely could have been.

Would have liked more scripture references & for biblical context to be explained more.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like others have said, I feel like this should be required reading for all American Christians. Immigration shouldn't be a partisan issue, but it is very much a Biblical issue. Thank you for writing this book and including helpful statistics and ways that we as Christians can personally get involved in this complex topic. This is a book that I am glad I purchased so I can have it nearby as a resource, and I am sure I will read it again.

[Isaac Goodspeed Overton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this book for my birthday last year and have been excited to read it ever since. I was not disappointed. This book was thorough, thoughtful and yet easy to read and understand. In such a hot button issue such as immigration, Christians are in need of thoughtful and biblical guidance. This book offers just that.

I’d go as far as to recommend reading this book before speaking out about immigration one way or another.

[Rachel Bruemmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every disciple of Christ should read this book. Especially if you feel politically homeless. Chapter 5 on immigration in the Bible was so eye opening and convicting. The last few chapters on practical ways to love our immigrant neighbor were helpful in setting forth a blueprint of action. This topic should not be taboo in Christian churches and this book would be a great resource to start the conversation!

[Hannah Hoffman · Rating 3 out of 5]

hmmm… not everything i was hoping for but not bad? i think there was something missing/uncomfortable about this but im still trying to put my finger on it? i guess a good book to give the… enthusiastic trump voter in your life but like i feel like not really earth shattering for most christians i would hope. the version i listened to was published in like 2017 so i know some things have changed but it was a helpful overview of US immigration policies/stats that are semi helpful

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent and comprehensive breakdown of immigration issues and how we ought to respond with compassion and love to the vulnerable. I would love to read the updated versions of this book. There were so many parts that I want to revisit - I highly recommend this book!

[Kaytee Cobb · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit too heavily evangelical for me, but really good info.

[Stephanie Hendrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starting off this review with four stars and we will see whether my rating changes as I delve into it. Again, for anyone reading this, I am writing involved reviews most importantly for myself so that I will be able to refresh my memory on all that I will be reading this year.

In Chapter One--The Immigration Dilemma authors Matthew Soerens & Jenny Yang introduce us to this work as a necessary platform on which to place the immigration debate due to strict partisan rhetoric and the partisan divide. The book is meant to challenge Evangelicals in particular to look at immigration through a biblical lens rather than a media-driven political one. They want us to know that immigration is ..."a complicated, nuanced issue...", and they introduce us to their respective personal stories. Both authors work for World Relief and both authors live among immigrants, who are their neighbors.

In Chapter Two--Who Are Undocumented Immigrants? the authors begin by attempting to correct misinformation too often believed by the public. Though undocumented immigrants are disproportionately represented in the federal prisoner population (due to unlawful entry), they are 44 percent less likely to be incarcerated than U.S. born citizens. And researchers consistently find that undocumented immigrants commit crimes at lower levels than U.S. citizens. Also, three out of four foreign-born individuals are in the U.S. lawfully. And approximately eleven million immigrants residing in the U.S. are here unlawfully. The authors want readers to realize that undocumented immigrants do not quality for means-tested federal public benefits. (However, they can receive emergency and prenatal healthcare, immunizations, treatment for communicable diseases, nutritional programs for children and education for children.) "While the perception persists that people migrate to milk America's social safety net, the reality is that almost all immigrants come to the United States to work." Readers learn that approximately 15% of undocumented immigrants come from South America. People (often children) are leaving Guatemala, El Salvador & Honduras due to the gang activity and violence in those countries. These are the unaccompanied children who are seeking to save their own lives. Most of these children are held in the U.S. waiting for court dates to determine whether they will be granted asylum here or returned to their countries of origin. In chapter two, the authors also touch on the difference between refugees and nonrefugee immigrants.

Chapter Three--Nation of Immigrants: A Historical Perspective on Immigration to the United States contains a brief history of everything that has happened immigration-wise just as the title suggests. I think that every American should be deeply familiar with this history. I will need to work at learning all of it. One thing that stands out in Chapter Three is that we all need empathy! Almost all U.S. citizens are here because their family immigrated here at some point. The authors teach us that pro-immigration and anti-immigration sentiment have always existed here: that these sentiments ebb and flow, "and (that) public policy has generally responded to whichever voice commanded the majority of public opinion at the time." The authors teach us that we need to remember our personal familial immigration history and know the general U.S. immigration history so that we can empathize with and care for present day immigrants.

Chapter Four--Immigrating the Legal Way: Our Immigration System Today teaches readers the reality that it is nearly impossible for poor people who are driven to immigrate to the United States to better their lives can do so legally. Why do so many enter illegally or overstay visas? Because that is their only option! Chapter Four breaks it down for us. Everyone in the U.S. falls neatly into one of four categories: 1.) legal nonimmigrant with a temporary visa 2.) lawful permanent resident with a green card 3.) U.S. citizen, or 4.) undocumented immigrant. The authors teach us that there are only four ways to obtain a green card and they provide us with a real life example "Elena" in order to storify the impossibility of this for so many. The four means are an employment visa, family reunification, the diversity lottery and fear of persecution in one's home country. Elena and most others in her situation won't fall within the employment visa category because they are low-skilled. Annually, five-thousand visas are issued for the lower-skilled, while a minimum of 140,000 employment visas are issued for individuals with exceptional ability. Secondly, folks in Elena's position won't qualify for family visas because they don't have a legal family member here or because they would be required to return to their home country first to obtain a visa, which they would not be able to obtain! (*It was incredible to learn about the wait times of the family unification process, which might be a short six months or as long as twenty-three years!) Thirdly, the odds that undocumented immigrants can win the diversity lottery are between one in 250 to one in 400 but many countries (Mexico being one) are not eligible to be part of the lottery. Fourthly, these undocumented immigrants living in the U.S. were not refugees or asylum seekers.

Chapter Five--Thinking Biblically About Immigration begins with a fairly intensive look at immigration throughout the Bible reviewing several biblical stories with this theme and also the many commandments to care for the "stranger". Then the authors delve into a dilemma. "We seem to be faced with a dilemma, then: Scripture tells us to welcome and care for immigrants, without reference to legal status, but it also commands us to obey and respect the laws of the governing authorities." They ask us, "...is the (immigration) law just?" Most undocumented immigrants come to the U.S. to work so that they can better take care of their families. Often there are more opportunities to work here. "Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever." (1 Tim. 5:8) Another biblical injunction! The authors say that it is important to follow the rule of law but they also say that current immigration legal system makes a mockery of the law. They are of the mind that the law needs to change and that compassion for our undocumented brothers and sisters must prevail.

Chapter Six--Concerns About Immigration examines the major arguments of those who want to limit immigration to the U.S. Isn't it more important to take care of the poor among the U.S. citizenry? "We should...be concerned about all those in need of work, whether born in the United States or born elsewhere. Our responsibility does not stop at the border." "Indeed, while the secular government may have a particular responsibility to its own citizens, Christ-follower are called to love indiscriminately." Aren't most undocumented immigrants/refugees terrorists? "Since the Refugee Act of 1980 established the current refugee resettlement framework, there has not been a single lethal terrorist attack in the United States perpertrated by an individual who entered the United States through the US refugee resettlement program." "In reality, there has never been a documented case of a terror attack perpertrated by an individual who entered the United States by illegally crossing the
US-Mexico border." Don't illegal immigrants deliberately have "anchor babies" so they can "...secure US rights and benefits for the whole family"? "In reality, the birthrite citizenship guaranteed by the fourteenth amendment does not provide any direct benefit to the US-born citizen's parents." "Having a US child does not entitle the parent to any extra benefits, allow them to gain legal status in the United States immediately, or prevent deportation." We don't want "chain migration" do we? "In reality, only immigrants who have already gained legal permanent residency or US citizenship can sponsor relatives, and they often face years or decades of waiting..." If we let the 11 million illegals become citizens won't they all vote democatic?! "For those for whom this is a primary concern...it's worth noting that, on many of the social issues that most motivate evangelical voters, immigrants (particularly Latino immigrants who represent nearly 80 percent of those who are undocumented) would actually be political allies if they were eventually allowed to vote." Aren't most immigrants criminals? ..."unlawful presence is the United States is not a crime--it is a violation of civil, not criminal law. While unlawful entry to the United States can be a violation of a criminal statute, since nearly half of undocumented immigrants entered the country legally and overstayed their visas, it is simply not accurate to state that "all illegals are criminals."" "Many studies have looked carefully at this question, and they consistently find no correlation between immigrants and crime; in fact, immigrations (with or without legal status) consistently have lower crime rates that native-born US citizens." Won't immigrants pollute our culture? "Integration does not mean that immigrants must forfeit their foods, language, religion, or culture, but that those elements become part of an American whole (just as past generations of immigrants have enriched and expanded what it means to be an American) while embracing the core values outlined in the US Constitution."

In Chapter Seven--The Value of Immigrants to the United States the authors argue that in the main the presence of immigrants benefits us more than it costs us. Here are some of the benefits: inexpensive agricultural labor provides greater profit to farmers and cheaper pricing for produce at our grocery stores, immigrants will provide the needed labor in a nation where birthrates are declining and the population is aging into retirement, "Two-thirds of the occupations projected to add the most new jobs typically require a high school diploma or less", "Because immigrants are highly entrepreneurial, immigrants in their self-employment often generate local employment opportunities for native workers," immigrants help our economy by consuming, "a US Department of Health and Human Services study published in the New York Times found that, between 2005 and 2014, refugees had paid in $63 billion more in taxes than the cost of benefits they received," immigrants disproportionately work in STEM jobs because not enough native-born Americans qualify for those particular jobs, immigrants send money "remittances" back to their home countries thereby creating a natural or familial foreign aid, immigrants often emphasize community and family life, "Immigrants teach younger generations about the reward of hard work and delayed gratification. Refugees also teach us about the fragility of life and the ability of the human spirit to overcome tremendous obstacles in order to survive", and "cultural diversity also enhances art and beauty in our midst". Soerens and Yang believe that Christ-followers properly approach life with a view toward abundance rather than scarcity.

In Chapter Eight--Immigration Policies and Politics the authors go over the fun of President Trump's handling of US immigration. This quote is truly troubling to me. ..."the president would sign a bill addressing DACA only if, in addition of funding the border wall, it made dramatic cuts to legal immigration programs by ending the diversity lottery and restricting family reunification petitions to spouses and minor children." Trump's focus on deporting "bad hombres" was the same as Obama's. Trump increased ICE and broadened the population that ICE could seize beyond known criminals. ICE now had authority to seize anyone who had entered the country illegally..."the fastest growing category of arrests since Trump's inauguration was for those facing no criminal charges." This meant that people living here for 25 or more years now faced the possibility of being picked up by ICE while dropping off a child at school as example. Places that had felt safe before (schools, hospitals, churches) were no longer safe. Another unsavory change to immigration policy actually began under the Obama administration. Because Congress allocated more money to immigration control--immigrant detensions increased. "Many of these immigrant detention facilities were initially built as federal prisons, which means the structures often impose more restrictions than necessary for immigrant detainees to treatment as common criminals, even when their only crime was a civil violation of immigration law." "The exponential increase in border security spending and immigrant detention over the past three decades runs counter to the narrative that we are not doing enough on border security or enforcement to stem illegal immigration." I learned the difference between "returning" or "removing" someone who has crossed the border illegally. When an immigrant is apprended at the border and sent back immediately, they are "returned" and there are no legal consequences to this. When an immigrant is detained inside of the US to go before a court for adjudification, they might then be "removed" from the US. This is a legal distinction which means that person will never again be able to enter legally.

Chapter Eight ends by looking forward. As Christ-followers we must welcome the foreigner among us and we need to do this by looking toward comprehensive reform of our immigration system. Soerens and Yang advocate for enforcement policies that are stricter and humanitarian. They advocate for policies that will make it harder to immigrate illegally while at the same time making legal immigration easier by adjusting our supply of visas to match the demand for labor and family reunification. A path to legal status also needs to be made for the 11 million undocumented people who live in the US. The authors don't see amnesty on the table. Instead people would need to earn legal admittance through a variety of penalties and fees. Their description of this sounds overly penalizing and depressing to me.

Getting immigration policy changes is going to be hard. We will need to build a coalition. The Evangelical Coalition Table was formed in 2012 with coalition building in mind. The positive engagement of Evangelicals in this process is viewed as encouraging. (Maybe legislation could in fact be passed!) The authors believe in this opportunity because Republicans want a steady, robust labor force and Democrats continute to fight as a matter of justice...."the core of commonality is greater than the edges of difference."

Chapter Nine--Immigration and The Church Today is basically a treatise on demographics within the American church. Millenials are dropping out of church at a significant rate and that decline is not expected to stop. At the same time, immigrants are coming to Christ, joining churches and are keeping American Christianity vibrant. The authors talk about the importance of the church changing to reflect the cultures of the new immigrant populations that will make it up. For this to happen there needs to be diverse leadership. Immigrant churches are also changing the face of missions as immigrants are ready to send people out without the amount of funding that white American churches usually need. Some white churches are helping immigrants with legal advice, and this has been legitimized with a seal of approval by the US Department of Justice. White churches are also conducting English language classes, and providing tutoring for the children of immigrants. The State Department has also authorized nine Christian organizations to participate in the resettlement of refugees in the US. There has been a seachange of high level Evangelical advocacy toward immigrants. But this advocacy doesn't alway match the sentiment of the people in the pews. Many evangelicals still think of immigrants as a "threat" or a "burden" and they take their cues from the media rather than through Biblical teaching. Willow Creek Community Church, a mega church in Illinois began to boldly advocate for immigrants after their pastor became convicted about the immigration problem and the lack of understanding about it within his church.

Chapter Ten--A Christian Response to the Immigration Dilemma provides action steps Christ-followers can take. 1.) Pray. Prayer will be the fuel for action. 2.) Know your immigrant neighbors and learn from them. In this way a neighbor will move from a stereotype in your mind to a complex human being. 3.) Volunteer. 4.) Give. 5.) Educate within white churches. Teach people the biblical understanding of care for the foreigner. 6.) Advocate for political change. "Christians must recover a spirit of social action and participate in God's great agenda, since we are called to advocate on behalf of humanity, particularly the poor and oppressed, knowing that God in the end has victory through Jesus' death on the cross." Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion & Truth in the Immigration Debate ends with many practical easy steps people can take to engage on a political level: find out where your congressman stands, write them a letter, schedule a meeting with them, write an editorial, identify church leaders who support immigration and find forums for them to speak, have an "immigrant Sunday". Finally, the last bit the authors wrote about was the ways in which privileged people in industrial countries make choices in their everyday lives (or live in such a way) that cause devastation in developing countries. And then, people from those countries are forced to immigrate.

I think that becoming mindful of everything that we need to be doing to promote justice and the flourishing of every human being feels daunting but that doesn't mean we shouldn't move ourselves toward that good thing. If we are Christ-followers, we have to do this. We are commanded to. This book is a good introduction to the issue of immigration.

[Glen Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Friendship is the face that Welcoming the Stranger gives to the situation of both legal and illegal immigrants. The book looks at immigration and offers constructive suggestions for response by the Christian faith community. Matthew Soerens and Jenny Hwang craft a viewpoint based on rational consideration of immigration and a biblically informed direction for the church and Christ followers.

The authors review the history of immigration and the current situation of the legal system that that should be governing the immigration process. They survey key biblical texts related to people who migrate, review concerns by some about immigration, the economic value of immigrants, and propose some concrete responses.

The writers draw from their extensive personal and professional experiences working with immigrants and refugees. Soerens is an immigration attorney. Hwang is an advocacy worker in Washington, DC. Both work on staff for World Relief.

Soerens and Hwang assert that the only way to resolve the situation of many individual migrants will be to change the law. Because we live in a democracy ". . . the dilemma of wanting to welcome immigrants while also expecting people to follow the law is not insurmountable: we can overcome this dilemma by changing the law so that many of those who today come illegally would be able to enter legally." (P. 111) This will be the path to showing compassion for immigrants and not encouraging them to break any laws. For the last 10-years the economy has absorbed immigrant workers at a higher rate than the legal system is designed to process.

Calling on the church to live up to her commitment to justice, compassion and truth, this book provides practical, positive steps to disciple the church as she responds to immigration and immigrants: prayer, knowing, learning from our immigrant neighbors, giving, educating our churches and communities, and advocacy for better laws.

Discussion questions in the appendix provide the opportunity for groups to reflect on and respond to the ideas in the book. Other helpful resources include a list of books, websites, organizations and ministries that work with immigrants, justice and root causes of immigration.

As a result of reading the book we can be ready to welcome the opportunities brought by immigrants and immigration. Many immigrants and their families would welcome friendships from majority culture Christians. Out of these relationships, a better more Christian community can emerge.

[Heidi · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book is close to ten years old, and therefore a bit dated, a lot of the content is still depressingly relevant to the situation faced by immigrants and refugees in America today, especially in the current political climate. While this book isn't going to convince anyone's racist uncle, it might be a good choice for churches grappling with how to respond to the issue of immigration. As it is definitely targeted toward those who follow Christianity, I doubt that it has much appeal outside of its target audience. However, it's a valuable resource that makes some good arguments regarding how we can approach the immigration debate with wisdom and compassion.

[Andrew Vanover · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives a better starting point to the immigration question than what most of us have rolling around in our heads...which largely comes from stories other people are telling, often cable news.

This book brings together and takes into account the various facets of the "immigration debate." The text is nicely organized by chapter with headings therein:
>classification of immigrants
>history of U.S. immigration
>current state of immigration system
>biblical thought about immigration

I appreciated the conclusions through the first 4 chapters and missed them for the remaining 6!

The second half of the book brings together the facets in the first half and is organized by:
>immigration concerns
>immigrant value to the U.S.
>immigration policies and politics
>immigration and the Church
>a Christian response to the immigration dilemma

[Dick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that we - as leaders in our church (www.bridgetogracecovenantchurch.org) have been reading in order to take our own steps to attempt to help with some fair and humane resolution to the streaming immigrants coming into our country.

We do plan on communicating with our elective representatives both local as well as at the national level about how we view this issue and our thoughts as Christians now we might approach some fair, humane and equitable resolution.

This is not an easy issue to get your arms around. It is multi-faceted and most of the issues we see are only the tip of a very large iceberg.

It is easy to say we need immigration reform. Yes, we do, but it will take courage to undertake that. It will take the determination of the public at large to literally make our political folks in D.C., actually take this up. It is not a vote getter for most, though t he liberals in our country do see – and there is no denying it – a huge bloc of future votes if they can just get them processed and in a legal place to vote.

Often lost in all of this is the simple fact that these are PEOPLE trying to find and build a new life. As Christians they are more than people, they are God’s people and every single one of them have soul.

Immigrants – those who are illegal – do not help their case when they KNOWINGLY come across the border and immediately go into hiding, hoping for eventual amnesty. It is not good to break the law of a country and expect that you will be forgiven.

The book is filled with personal stories many of which tug at our hearts. There are many examples of individuals who were in “hiding” only to be discovered and deported. Those are painful stories. It does not help when information is shared that is either false or intentionally misleading. Example was when Trump was still in office that families were separated and some put in some sort of cages. That was a policy that was simply an extension of the previous administrations (Obama) policy. This only contributes to further polarization of t he differing sides. The media is very complicit in the divisions on this issue.

Blanket amnesty contributes to further division. It is a thumb in the eye of those who come legally, do the legal things they must do to remain and if interested in becoming citizens.

A legislative resolution to our immigration problems will take years and will probably have to come in increments, due to its complexity and history.

I was absolutely amazed to read that our system now openly discriminates against peopled from Mexico and the Philippines. While not explicitly covered I suspect that has come about due to abuse by people coming from those areas. Still discrimination is an ugly thing. Did you know that is someone overstays their visa, then leave this country and then reapply for reentry . . . that they have to wait ten (10) years before reapplying?

We read that many immigrants just come here, apply and get a wide variety of benefits without having ever contributed to that same system. That is a situation misreported very often. Many are paying state and local taxes, also pay property taxes and the SSI tells us that “nearly half [of undocumented workers] are paid ‘on the books’ with payroll taxes deducted from each paycheck”. This means they are paying social security which they will never be able to benefit from given their undocumented status. Even legal immigrants are often excluded from public benefits for 5 or more years.

Christians should be concerned even about these individuals.

Yes, it is complicated but we claim to be a Christian nation, but our attitude does not reflect that. I could go on, but you get my drift.

I believe that we need to make it possible for those who are “in the shadows” to come out without fear of retribution. That they need to be assured legally that they will not be punished. Yes, if they owe back taxes arrangements need to be made to pay them. If they wish to stay go by the rules. If they wish to become citizens, the let’s take a look at what that takes. Based on personal family experience, I believe that it too expensive as it is right now. And it takes way too long . . . as in up to ten years. Both of those issues need to be reformed. I strongly believe that the requirement that they must learn our history – within reason – and how our government works must be retained. You must understand what it is to be an American why we are truly unique.

I would think that the Democrats would readily agree to some of these steps without unduly exposing themselves to harsh criticism. The Republicans have more to do in this area. I must confess that I am not at all sure just what the Republicans stand for anymore and I hasten to add that I felt this way well before Trump. If they wish to rebuild their party, they surely should find a way to appeal to both the Hispanic and Asian population for those two groups share a work ethic, family oriented and in the case of Hispanics a strong Christian faith at their core.

Respectfully submitted.

[Keith Madsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the book, WELCOMING THE STRANGER: JUSTICE, COMPASSION & TRUTH IN THE IMMIGRATION DEBATE by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang because I was part of a group at my church that was studying it. I felt that in light of the large number of Hispanic immigrants in the town where I live, and because of the intense current debate on immigration in our country, it was vital to look at the topic from a faith perspective.

This book is especially relevant because it is written from an evangelical Christian perspective, and evangelicals are a central part of President Trump’s base in supporting his immigration policies. Exit polls indicated that 80% of white self-identified “born-again or evangelical voters” supported Donald Trump in the 2016 election. Most of those also still support his policy on immigration. Of course, not all evangelical Christians are white, nor do all Christians designate themselves as evangelical Protestants. Still, because of strong white evangelical support for Trump’s harsher immigration policy. It is important that the authors of this book are evangelicals, and that the publishing house (Intervarsity Press) is an evangelical publishing house.

The book WELCOMING THE STRANGER first of all affirms the need for Christians to listen to each other, and learn where both sides are coming from. They contend, “there is plenty of space within the church for charitable disagreement on issues such as this.” The authors explore immigration from an historical, biblical and practical economic perspective. They both share personal stories of immigrants and explore the issues of concern people speak about when they advocate for stronger action against undocumented immigrants. These include wanting to support the poor already in this country, and feeling we can’t support any more; the feeling that illegal immigration increases crime and makes our borders less secure; the belief that we need to protect our traditional culture; and the idea that we must insist on adherence to the rule of law. After considering these issues, along with guidance from the Bible, the authors conclude…

“Above all, we believe that Scripture makes clear that immigrants are to be specifically included in the call to love our neighbors as ourselves. This love must be personal, and that means getting to know our immigrant neighbor. When we begin to love our immigrant neighbors on a personal level, we will want to advocate for just, merciful, and loving immigration policies as well.”

I strongly agreed with the premise of this book, and felt it did a good job of examining both sides, and then supporting its argument. I would highly encourage other church groups, especially those who revere the Bible as a guide, to study this book and come to their own conclusions.

[Jennifer Graves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welcoming the Stranger is a very helpful book for Christians who want to understand the immigration debate beyond the usual partisan talking points and instead to think of it in terms of Biblical categories and commands.   

I can imagine that many people I know will look at this book and make assumptions about what political category or "tribe" this book falls into.  But I found that this book changed quite a few of my assumptions, not least of which was whether it was even important to discern which tribe this information reflects.  That is because I think the authors did a great job of speaking about  people and the systemic issues that help or harm those people rather than trying to convince me to vote for a particular policy or person.  

The very first thing that I learned was to view immigrants, whether legal, undocumented or refugees as real people with real histories and real problems.  This book focuses the lens on several individual case studies and personal stories.  It also widens the lens to take in the bigger picture of immigration on a large scale and dispels many myths about these populations as a whole.  The book reminded me that we are a nation of immigrants and spends a good bit of time discussing the history of immigration and immigration policy in the United States.  This was fascinating for me as I think we all tend to have such a limited understanding of how things now are similar or different to the past.  It spent significant time explaining the current immigration system and laws so that I now better understand the process to become a legal immigrant and the obstacles that have prevented so many from taking the "legal" option.  There was also a large section that addressed the most common concerns that people have about immigration of any kind and dispelled quite a few of the myths that I have passively believed.   

I truly believe that all Christians should become better aquainted with the issues this book addresses because I think we are very uninformed and many of us have believed false narratives about who these people are and whether immigration is a net positive or a net negative.  There is certainly discussions to be had about the best way to deal with our current immigration system, but we must come at those discussions from a place of believing true things about the people who are affected by it on both sides.  I can say that this book has definitely changed how I view both the importance of this issue and what I believe are biblical and unbiblical approaches.  

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in 2018 by IVP.

A few years ago I was determined to learn a lot about immigration in the United States. I bought Welcoming the Stranger during that time, but I put it aside because the other books I had read were, to put it simply, not good.

So, this book went into the dreaded to-be-read pile, and it might have stayed there forever except for the reelection of President Trump. His actions to fight immigration of just about any sort prompted me to pick up this book and learn a little more about the immigration system.

Even though this book was written in 2018, just 7 years ago, some parts of it felt hopelessly out of date thanks to Trump's relentless push against so many norms, rules, and laws in 2025 when it comes to immigration.

The basics are there, however, so the book does have value as a primer on immigration. But, the book is more than that - it is a Christian look at this issue because the authors work for World Relief, a Christian organization that works with refugees around the world and helps immigrants seeking asylum in the United States. Their budget was decimated when the DOGE cuts came after USAID funding in January of 2025.

Even though this book was written long before that, its look at what the Bible teaches about how to deal with foreign people living among God's people. The book is actually designed to be used as a small group Bible study - there are discussion questions included in the back.

I rate this book 4 stars out of 5. It can be found on Amazon.com here: Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion, and Truth in the Immigration Debate.

[Lindsay · Rating 3 out of 5]

So glad I finally read this after having it on my “want to read” list for 5.5 years! I learned a lot. I had the outdated 2009 copy but was glad to find the updated 2018 version on audiobook from the library since immigration policy is always changing. I do wonder how much things have changed even since 2018.

I’m not the intended audience for this book (conservative evangelical Christians), so there were parts that were not for me (a focus on evangelism), but I thought it was a great book for its intended audience. It had lots of good information, responding to common misconceptions about immigrants with factual information, research, statistics, and scripture-based arguments in support of welcoming immigrants. I also appreciated the overview of immigration policy and how it has changed over time in the U.S., as well as how it compares to that of other countries. I’m hoping they’ll release another updated version again at some point.

A final thing I’m having trouble fully articulating… I wish the book had addressed more historical context (such as how US interference in foreign affairs is often at least partially responsible for creating the conditions that lead to refugees needing to immigrate). I would recommend reading it in conjunction with other books that explain more historical context around why folks are immigrating. (One such book that was great is The Making of Asian America by Erika Lee.) And, as I saw in another review, it seems remiss to discuss U.S. immigration without mentioning Manifest Destiny and Native Americans.

[Gena · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second edition was published in 2018. If you're a Christian, you should read this book. Very clear presentation of immigration from a Biblical perspective. I also recommend it to everyone, regardless of faith background, as it has a robust discussion of the history of immigration in the US, current policy, and the moral, economic, political, and security effects of said policy. The discussion is accompanied by a myriad of facts, some you will have never heard and some of which have been twisted in the media so you heard incorrectly. You will be amazed both at what you didn't know before reading this book as well as how your understanding changes after becoming truthfully informed through this book. I would be more than happy to engage in discussion about topics covered in the book with anyone willing to read it. Reach out.

[Kristen Hong · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Christians we are called to love, but what does that look like when we also care about justice on all fronts? We are also instructed to follow the law, so welcoming undocumented immigrants seems to be a gray issue. Do we support open borders or keep them from coming in?

That’s where this book comes in.

This book is easily in my top three favorite books I’ve ever read. I have recently become passionate about immigration reform and understanding more about what it looks like to love our neighbors, whether they are here legally or not. Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang navigate the difficult waters of law and love. How to care for immigrants while also caring about our nation from a practical and biblical standpoint.

I encourage everyone to read this.

[Dan Bynion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Welcoming The Stranger helped bring some clarity on the issue of immigration. The book included a good mix of personal immigrant stories and a thorough examination of current immigration laws. I found the biblical perspectives to be both in depth and balanced. The authors do not advocate for the extreme views of either side but rather for a Christ-like balance of law and mercy. It is hard to read this book and not come away compelled to better understand the plight of those looking for a better life, or a safer life. The church should be on the leading edge of this issue. If you want to investigate the issue of immigration beyond emotional talking points and one-sided headlines than I highly recommend this book!

[Todd Patenaude · Rating 5 out of 5]

Given today’s misinformation, this is a MUST read to be properly informed!

Please please please read this book! In order to have an intelligent conversation regarding immigration, or to make an intelligent choice at the voting polls, you need to know what the debate is all about. This book gives you background, real stories, and common sense ways of interpreting what is happening regarding immigration. The future of our Nation depends on people supporting the policies and politicians that will work for a more just society. Not that it covers everything, but, if you don’t know the information in this book, you are making those decisions in a state of ignorance.

[Oscar Velasco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, great book filled with information, data, research, scripture, scholars, and evangelical leaders speaking on the issues of immigration. This book opens the conversation on how to engage on the topic of immigration with having a right view of scripture. The books educates readers on current immigration laws and how Christians can grow deeper in loving their neighbor, especially those who are foreign born, immigrants, and refugees. The book does not tell readers on how to vote right or left but urges the readers to have a public engagement, advocacy, and self education on immigration reform.