MIAMI 鈥� Christian voters and faith leaders have long been in the to migrants 鈥� but when it comes to support for immigration policies, from border security to legalization options for migrants already in the U.S., priorities diverge broadly.
Both President Joe Biden and GOP challenger Donald Trump last Thursday to present their vision of how to fix what most agree is a broken system 鈥� for Americans in this presidential election year.
At the border with Mexico in El Paso, Texas, believes that a nation has the right to a secure and orderly border, and to vet those who want to cross it, but he emphasizes the Church鈥檚 social teaching of caring for the poorest and most vulnerable.
鈥淗ere in El Paso ... we don鈥檛 say, 鈥楽how me your papers.鈥� As Christians we say, 鈥楬ow can I help you in your suffering?鈥欌�� Seitz said, who leads the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops鈥� migration committee. 鈥淭his is not a political issue in the first instance, it鈥檚 about putting into practice what Jesus Christ taught through the Church.鈥�
Still in Texas, a flashpoint not only in crossings but in over border management, a prominent megachurch pastor and Trump supporter said his church welcomes everyone 鈥� but the faithful also have an obligation to obey the law.
鈥淎t First Baptist Church in Dallas we do not check for green cards 鈥� that鈥檚 government鈥檚 responsibility,鈥� the Rev. Robert Jeffress said in an email. 鈥淭he Bible teaches that God created the institution of government to protect its citizens. 鈥� Christians have a duty to obey the laws government establishes which would include immigration laws.鈥�
Whether a humanitarian or a security emphasis resonates the most varies among and within Christian denominations 鈥� like the white evangelicals who overwhelmingly supported Trump in the 2020 election or the Catholics who were .
According to a survey released this week by the Pew Research Center, majorities of white Catholics and Protestants, both evangelical and nonevangelical, consider that the big influx at the U.S.-Mexican border is a crisis for the United States 鈥� a definition that many migrant advocates and Democrats have long disputed.
Only about 3 in 10 Black Protestants and say the large number of migrants seeking to enter the U.S. is a 鈥渃risis,鈥� although in each group, about 4 in 10 say it鈥檚 a 鈥渕ajor problem.鈥� Those saying it is not a problem are minorities in the single digits across denominations.
More revealing to policy options is the reason for the influx that Christians cited in the survey.
When asked why they think large numbers of migrants are trying to cross the border, about 7 in 10 white Catholics and evangelicals said that the belief that U.S. immigration policies will make it easy to stay in the country once they arrive is a 鈥渕ajor reason,鈥� compared to 44% of the 鈥渘ones鈥� and 52% of Black Protestants. Both groups were more likely to cite violence in their home countries as a major reason why migrants are seeking to enter the U.S. At least 65% of all religious groups cited good economic opportunities in the U.S. as a 鈥渕ajor reason.鈥�
Among evangelicals, there is nuance in views about specific issues under the broader umbrella of migration, said Matthew Soerens, national coordinator for the Evangelical Immigration Table, an immigrant advocacy organization.
Most want more border security and respect for the rule of law, and there鈥檚 growing concern that immigration is an economic burden to the U.S., Soerens said. Yet he noted that even many evangelicals who voted for Trump in 2020 favor permanent legal status for Afghans and support refugee resettlement and a path for citizenship for those in the U.S. illegally.
鈥淚 think many Americans (and probably some Members of Congress) read evangelicals鈥� broad support for former President Trump in the primaries thus far as an unqualified affirmation of his immigration policy positions,鈥� Soerens said via email.
But he said his organization鈥檚 research and his experience with local churches suggests that evangelicals 鈥渁ctually have more nuanced views 鈥� absolutely wanting something done about the border 鈥� but also very open to more comprehensive immigration solutions including for the undocumented.鈥�
Similarly, the president of the Southern Baptist Convention鈥檚 public policy wing 鈥� the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission 鈥� said that increased enforcement and border security should be paired with more accessible legal pathways.
鈥淏ut far too often, our toxic politics pit security and reform against one another, ensuring no action is taken while citizens, migrants, officers, border facilities, ministries, and local communities are all overwhelmed,鈥� said ERLC leader Brent Leatherwood. 鈥淭oo many leaders have made the calculation that this cost is acceptable so that partisan trench warfare can be waged. That鈥檚 not just a failure of leadership; it鈥檚 a failure to be humane.鈥�
From tiny evangelical churches , or , to major faith-based aid organizations like Global Refuge, which was known until this year as Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, Christian groups across the country often take the lead in helping migrants with shelter, food, and legal as well as schooling assistance.
In Miami, a major destination city for migrants across the Caribbean and Latin America, many travel first to La Ermita, a shrine to the Virgin Mary built five decades ago by Cuban exiles 鈥� a growing community where . Its rector has chosen migration as the meditation theme for this Lent, and two large crosses now flank the entrance, with reproductions of passports and clothes worn by migrants hanging on their arms.
Behind them, in English and Spanish, is an exhortation to pray for migrants and the Biblical verse 鈥淵ou shall love the stranger, for you were strangers.鈥�
