Rev. Captain Herb Bailey | Canon for Missions and Evangelism
Immigrants. A word that conjures a mix of feelings from nostalgia, remembering our ancestors, to being wary of people who have different cultures than our own. We are at a potential tipping point in this country and how we respond will reflect our understanding of where Jesus stands on certain issues. The history of God’s people includes this warning from God, written into their law in Leviticus 19:34, "You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God."
It is difficult to get around the expectation from God’s people to those who are not like us, culturally. The beauty of the bearers of God’s image, imago Dei, weaves a tapestry that is multi-colored, multi-textured and divinely intertwined. We cannot escape, nor should we desire to, the directive to Love our Neighbor. When Jesus was pressed to explain who the neighbor was, our Lord recalls the now famous Good Samaritan. Those who should have, did not, but it was the stranger, the other, who extended grace and mercy.
When we look at the landscape of the opportunities available through the church to serve, I would encourage you to ask the Lord, “how can our family serve you, and by extension, serve our neighbor?” It is an amazing truth that when we raise up children in a certain way, they will continue into their own adult lives the path that we have laid for them. For you who are past the child-rearing age, the time that you have been granted is the Lord’s, how can you use the very breath that you been graced to proclaim His peace over those who need to know the love of the Father?
The first time I went to the border was 2018. I hung out with my friend Sami, and he introduced me to the people on the ground, making Jesus famous. I heard stories of hardship from those who were waiting to reconnect with family members. Saw how around the clock volunteers from churches all over El Paso came together to care for the least of these, making phone calls, preparing flight instructions, gathering necessities for their journey. That was 2018. Four years later, I went back and this time, I brought friends.
My wife, Angel and I, along with Archbishop Foley Beach and others went on the Border Encounter led by Sami DiPasquale. We had plenty of questions before we arrived, We got to hear from Border Agents, from those who serve migrants on the Mexico side of the border, and those who serve migrants on the USA side of the border. We saw them as humans, heard their stories, watched as young ladies who had not been able to graduate because of fleeing, learned and graduated from a training program. I welcome you attend the evening session at 6, in the parish hall for more information and dates for our opportunity to learn.