There are many voices touting what they view as the correct, right, compassionate, or “christian” way to treat those people who are not legally residing in our country (I live in the USA). I don’t claim to have the only, true, definitive answer to the problem, but I do strive to come to a an answer to the question “how do we treat illegal residents?” using Biblical precedent, examples, and instructions. I’ll share my thoughts here.
First of all, I want to distinguish between legal and illegal residents: legal residents are either citizens, or foreign nationals that have legally established residence by obtaining either permanent residency (“green cards”) or a temporary visa AND abide by federal and state laws as well as any additional restrictions of their visa. Anyone entering or staying within the borders of the USA without meeting these requirements, or staying after their visa expires without renewal are illegal, and according to Federal law, criminals.
Second, I am not going to cite chapter and verse to support my premises; I’m presenting an overview of the Biblical commands and examples of how to treat illegal residents. In other words I refuse to proof text scripture in this matter. If you are interested in a in-depth study, I encourage you to use the many online or other Bible study programs such as the Bible Gateway, Logos, or Accordance to do a word search on “stranger” or “foreigner” and read through the Bible with the theme of noncitizen residents in mind.
It far more complicated an issue than “the Bible says we’re to treat foreigners with compassion”, or “the stranger is to be treated the same as citizens”. A close reading of such passages and their context reveals that there is no blanket statement of such; the instruction is for how to treat the foreigner who wants to be a member of the society but not convert to Judaism. This would be analogous to a permanent resident in the USA – a law-abiding resident of the country, but not a citizen.
In addition, we must keep in mind that ancient Israel was a theocracy; anyone who did not choose to follow the rituals and precepts of Judaism was considered a foreigner. Also, there were certain people who were permanently barred from citizenship based on their country (or people group) of origin.
For the majority of Biblical times, there were four types of foreigners within the borders of Israel: enemies and spies, slaves, merchants, and those who wanted to reside in Israel but not become a Jew. The Biblical theme on how to treat the three former is very clear: they were to be treated with compassion (especially slaves) and equal to citizens with restrictions. Most of these involved participation in religious practices and monetary and land laws.
Across the ancient near east, foreigners who were not in the country who were not either members of a diplomatic party or otherwise invited by the ruling authority (merchants, for example) and did not profess allegiance to that authority were treated as spies. The usual punishment was either execution or enslavement. Most times, they were also publicly humiliated.
Israel was an exception in that while execution and enslavement of illegals was practiced, there were prohibitions against oppressive treatment. The Torah commanded that the foreign slave must be treated equally as well as domestic slaves.
So how does that translate to how Christians should treat illegal residents today?
First of all, Christians are called to obey the law except in those cases where the law requires actions in opposition to the clear commands of God as given in scripture. Present federal law prohibits assisting illegal aliens (foreign nationals) to enter or remain in the USA, or to obstruct Immigration and Customs from tracking, apprehending, or deporting persons in the country illegally. Taken alone, some devout Christians, as well as those who proof-text verses out of context see it as their duty to actively seek out and report every suspected illegal resident they can find.
But, many sincere Christians take the command to be compassionate and to treat foreigners in the land as equal to citizens as superseding that to follow the civil law. Coupled with the many leaders both secular and religious who proof-text verses out of context to support a political agenda, and we find ourselves with devout Christians who see their duty to God as directly violating the immigration laws of the country in His name, even to actively hiding illegal residents from law enforcement.
There is a balance, and I believe it to be a Biblically accurate view. Unfortunately, I’ve not seen it advocated publicly anywhere. We need to obey our immigrations laws, and yet show compassion and mercy to those we encounter are here illegally. Before I get into specifics, I need to answer the question “How does scripture show the way God (and therefore we) treats those who violate His laws?”.
Put simply, throughout the Bible, God’s response to those who violate His laws is to make the consequences of violation clear, and then give the offender the option to repent. Violation has consequences, but the punishment is commuted.
So, I believe that we should advocate for a path to permanent residency for those illegal residents who have not violated any other laws. Notice “residency” not “citizenship”. The consequence of illegally entering the USA should be a permanent ban on citizenship and the rights thereof.
However, we are still to obey existing laws. If someone we encounter or are ministering to is found to be in country illegally, I believe we have few options as Christians if we are to follow both law and Gospel.
First, if the person is in need of food, shelter, or medical attention then we must do what we can to meet those needs, just as we would anyone else.
Second, we need to advise them that we cannot aid them in avoiding immigration enforcement officers, and that they need to either turn themselves in or leave the country. If they choose not to turn themselves in, we should prayerfully consider whether to help them out of the country or not.
Third, if they are otherwise abiding by the law, we should advocate and offer any assistance we can to obtain asylum or refugee status if possible.
If the person has committed crimes other than illegal entry, they should be turned over to law enforcement.
In all of this, we should treat them with respect and compassion, but make it clear that violations of the law (both secular and God’s) have consequences, and to continue with those violations will only increase the inevitable punishment.
Bert