Articles for tag: Immigration

September 1, 2021

Rick Chromey

The 4-1-1 on 9/11: How a Terrorist Attack On America Changed Everything

American generational history is defined by marker events. Terrible assassinations. Catastrophic disasters. Tragic failures. Bloody wars. Economic depressions. From Bunker Hill to Gettysburg to Vietnam, America has been shaped by Thomas Paine’s “the times that try men’s souls.” For those born in the last half of the 20th century, no event proved more horrific than the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. That moment was our generation’s “Pearl Harbor.” In its wake came transformational change in how America socialized, worked, learned, played, and churched. In telephone vocabulary, 9-1-1 is an emergency assistance call. So it’s strangely fitting that September 11,

February 3, 2021

Christian Standard

‘Best Christian Workplaces’ Selected (Plus News Briefs)

The Best Christian Workplace Institute has honored 157 faith-based organizations as “2020’s Certified Best Christian Workplaces.” Among those churches, mission organizations, and parachurch ministries honored: • 2|42 Community Church, Brighton, Mich. • Canyon Ridge Christian Church, Las Vegas, Nev. • Christ’s Church of the Valley, Peoria, Ariz. • Compass Christian Church, Chandler, Ariz. • Kingsway Christian Church, Avon, Ind. • Northridge Christian Church, Milledgeville, Ga. • Southeast Christian Church, Parker, Colo. • StoneBridge Christian Church, Omaha, Neb. • Summit Christian Church, Sparks, Nev. • Traders Point Christian Church, Indianapolis • CDF Capital, Irvine, Calif. • Christian Children’s Home of Ohio, Wooster,

May 9, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Our Future: with Unity?

By Mark A. Taylor If you led a workshop on the future of the Restoration Movement, you”d likely mention many positive signs about our tribe. Here are some I included when I was asked to speak on that topic: “¢ Our churches are doing dynamic ministry, trying new approaches, and succeeding with new strategies. We”re a creative bunch. “¢ Closely related to the above, our lack of hierarchy leaves our leaders free to try new ideas without needing permission from anyone. And new ideas abound among us. We”re an entrepreneurial bunch. “¢ Leaders from our group are publishing widely, with

March 21, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Immigration: My Final Word

By Mark A. Taylor It”s true for every web post, published article, or magazine cover theme: Some agree. Some object. And many ignore what has been written. That”s been the pattern for the immigration posts appearing at christianstandard.com this month (all of them lifted from the March issue of the print magazine), and your editor is tempted to reply to each response. I”ll resist, but I am motivated to give 500 or so more words to the subject. First: the positive comments, Facebook reposts, and retweets of links to the articles are gratifying. But I”ll admit that some of this

March 19, 2017

Christian Standard

Uphold the Cause

By T.R. Robertson When I identify myself with the outcasts of society that too many condemn or ignore, I am prepared to serve them in a way that pleases God. This past fall, during the heat of the presidential campaign, yet another political link appeared on my Facebook feed. The gist of the headline was that Muslims were threatening to leave the United States in protest. Typical clickbait””it didn”t tempt me to keep reading for the details. But I did notice the comments from people on Facebook, most of whom probably didn”t read beyond the headline either: “Good-bye!” “Thank the

March 17, 2017

Christian Standard

Welcoming the Stranger in Our Midst

By Gayla Congdon My first experience with refugees was in the early 1980s while working at First Christian Church in San Francisco. The community the church served had an influx of about 200 families seeking asylum in the United States. These families had fled El Salvador due to a bloody civil war taking place there. FCC pastor Bill Miles called me to ask for my help with a little translation problem the church was having. He said about 50 kids from El Salvador showed up for FCC”s “Summer Fun in the Son” program. A 10-year-old was the only one in

March 6, 2017

Christian Standard

The New Diaspora

By Doug Priest As the world becomes globalized, opportunities for evangelism multiply. Now is the time to develop new strategies for reaching dispersed people living in our own cities, towns, and neighborhoods. Back in the 1970s, when I drove on the freeways in Los Angeles where I lived, I saw signs for “Little Saigon,” “Chinatown,” and “Little Korea.” I could go into the center of the city and find myself in neighborhoods of Mexican-Americans, Guatemalans, and Salvadorians. Today the situation has changed. Go to any school district in Southern California and you will find 30 to 40 or more languages

March 6, 2017

Christian Standard

Close to God”s Heart

By Bethany Anderson When Solidarity started almost 15 years ago in a troubled neighborhood of Fullerton, California,1 we were simply an idealistic group of college students eager to change the world in the name of Jesus. That desire, although rooted in privilege and a slight savior complex, led us to a deeper understanding of Jesus, his heart for us, and specifically his heart for immigrants. It also led us to move from an organization that just runs after-school programs in immigrant neighborhoods to one that acts as a bridge between the local churches and immigrant neighborhoods throughout our city. As

March 5, 2017

Christian Standard

A Christian Perspective on Immigration

A conversation with immigration attorney Land Wayland By Justin Horey President Trump”s election in November left many Americans wondering: Will he really “build that wall,” as his supporters chanted at campaign rallies? Will our new president follow through on his campaign promise to deport millions of undocumented (illegal) immigrants? Will he institute a ban on Muslims entering the United States? The 2016 presidential campaign brought the issue of immigration back into the news and back into the minds of many American voters. It also left millions of people in fear of imprisonment, deportation, or worse because of their immigration status.

March 4, 2017

Christian Standard

Immigration: What You Can Do

By Kevin Lines American communities today contain more migrants than ever before. The ends of the earth have come to us! You and your church can reach out to the immigrants living close to you. Within our fellowship of churches, multiple organizations have joined together to form the RISE (Refugee and International Student Engagement) Project. If you are interested in starting a ministry to refugees or international students through your church, the RISE Project website (www.theriseproject.com) has great resources and training materials. Your church can even apply for a grant to help start a new ministry! Volunteer If you”re not

March 3, 2017

Christian Standard

Learn More About Immigration

By Kevin Lines The Evangelical Immigration Table (www.evangelicalimmigrationtable.org) is an organization of Evangelical Christians seeking bipartisan immigration reform and who seek to love the stranger in their communities. Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion, & Truth in the Immigration Debate, by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Hwang (Downers Grove: IVP Books, 2009) This is a great primer for learning about the current immigration situation and how Evangelicals should get involved in a proactive and biblical way. This easy-to-read book is designed for beginners, but is thoroughly researched and documented. It provides a solid framework for understanding immigration. Christians at the Border: Immigration,

March 3, 2017

Christian Standard

Defining Immigration Terms

By Kevin Lines Some assume that all people who come to the United States from another country are either here illegally or have only a temporary visa. The following list explains the various categories and statuses of immigrants in the world. Migrant (immigrant, emigrant): This general term is applied to any person who lives temporarily or permanently in a country where he or she was not born. An immigrant is someone moving into a country; an emigrant is someone moving out of a country. There are an estimated 244 million international migrants worldwide; 42 million live in the United States.

March 3, 2017

Christian Standard

Immigration: What Does the Bible Say?

By Kevin Lines There are more international migrants today than at any other time in history””more than 240 million. While two out of three international migrants live in Asia and Europe, the United States hosts 19 percent of international migrants, the most in the world. It should come as no surprise that our nation, founded by immigrants and often relying on waves of new immigrants as the labor force for our economic growth, would continue to host migrants. The United States is still seen by many in the world as a land of opportunity; a place where, no matter your

January 31, 2017

Mark A. Taylor

Welcome the Immigrant

By Mark A. Taylor Some Christians are ready to retreat from the barrage of controversy surrounding the first days of Donald Trump”s presidency. Some are so upset by his policies and pronouncements, they”ve just decided to turn off the news and stay away from Facebook. Others are congratulating him for keeping campaign promises, regardless of the style in which he does so. And many have taken to the streets to protest his policies. The news has reported waves of turmoil because of his executive order refusing entry to refugees from seven Muslim-majority countries. CHRISTIAN STANDARD is not a political magazine,

November 7, 2016

Christian Standard

Pursuing Justice in an Unjust World

By Mark W. Hamilton What does a just community look like? Is the American church such a community?  Do we live out the call of the prophet Micah to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly before God?”* These questions confront anyone who studies the history of American Christianity. From that history we learn that Christians used the Bible to defend slavery and oppose it, to silence women and empower them, to cheer on Bull Connor”s corrupt police in Birmingham, Alabama, and to walk through hostile crowds in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Selma, Alabama, during the civil rights movement. Today,

August 23, 2016

Mark A. Taylor

All We Need Is . . . Love?

By Mark A. Taylor Wisconsin state Sen. Lena Taylor offered a thoughtful evaluation of why riots erupted in Milwaukee August 13, after a policeman shot an armed black man running from a traffic stop. There”s much to consider in her perspective, but today I”m posting about a problem even bigger than America”s racial divide. At the end of Taylor”s interview, the host asked her this: “So as a leader in this community, what is your message now to the people living in Milwaukee who are experiencing this unrest, this anger, this expression of frustration that is in many cases taking

August 22, 2013

Christian Standard

The Extended Family in America

By Gregory K. Moffatt The phrase extended family largely meant the same thing for generations. These were families living under a single roof, a household that commonly included grandparents, adult children, and other relatives or close family friends. But our evolving culture has changed the meaning of extended family. This change has come about due to economic difficulties, the advent of our digital and mobile culture, and today”s ever-changing multicultural environment. The once distinct lines defining our past concept of family blend into today”s complex cultural melting pot. These changes present critical implications to the Christian church as we attempt

July 27, 2013

Christian Standard

¡Evangélicos Explosion!

By Brian Mavis “I really liked today”s Mass, Father.” If you are a preaching minister, you”ve probably been greeted like that after church. It”s not news that in the United States many former Catholics are attending and converting to Protestant churches. What is news, though, is that many of those Catholics aren”t from Irish or Italian decent””rather, they are Latinos.1 Latin America has been experiencing Latino conversions from Catholicism to Protestantism much longer than the U.S.: “¢ From 1900 to 2000 the number of Latin American Protestants swelled from 50,000 to 64 million! “¢ In 1930, Protestants amounted to 1

July 6, 2012

Christian Standard

The President & Immigration

By Darrel Rowland As citizens of the U.S. prepare either to re-elect Barack Obama or elect Mitt Romney as president of the United States, one issue some will consider is the candidates” positions on immigration.   President Barack Obama (Democrat) “¢ Says the U.S. Border Patrol is better staffed than at any time in its almost 90-year history, with more than double the agents from 2004 (much of the hiring happened under President George W. Bush); unmanned aerial surveillance covers the border from California to Texas; some 650 miles of the southwestern border has been fenced, including about 300 miles

July 5, 2012

Christian Standard

You May Not Know You Know Me

By Mandy Smith Meet Marco Saavedra-Mendez, a young man as “American” as any you”ll meet. An undocumented immigrant with an uncertain future. I”m an immigrant to this country. I first came on a student visa, then had a temporary work visa, then a permanent work visa (or “green card”), before becoming a citizen. I read the fine print, filled in all the right forms, provided all the required information, consulted legal professionals, paid the visa application fees. And waited. Many times. So when the immigration issue comes up, my initial thought is often something like, I had to go through

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