This is only a bit of a departure for my blog. It is still about leadership. It is still in the theme of issues a nomadic leader faces. It is applicable to all leaders in any capacity but is most specifically focused on the church leader. You may be reading this and not share the theological base from which I am writing, but I suspect you will find it hard to argue against the 'rationale' and the fact that the principles apply across the board to how we accept and integrate immigrants into neighbourhoods, workplaces and churches. I attribute that 'agreement' to the fact that God's foundational values and purposes are not only good for all humanity, but actually shared by humanity due to our common creation 'in the image of God'. These are the echoes of God's voice all across the human race.
Most churches and individual
Christians would I hope, aspire to be welcoming to all people, and especially the immigrant. However to move from aspiration to inclusion
requires some honesty around our thinking and actions. Before we get to true ‘welcome’, some
foundational issues need our attention.
God’s
View of the Immigrant: Begin
with clarity on God’s viewpoint of the immigrant who has landed in your city & neighbourhood. The starting point is creation itself. Since God created ALL humans in His image, an inherent value lies within every person no matter
their race, religion, world view or moral standing. This is where it all starts! His
image is reflected IN every human; one way His grace & mercy is poured out
on all people. God therefore makes no distinctions of value.
Now think specifically about the foreigner, the
immigrant. Even Israel, the ‘set apart’
people of God, was supposed to take in the foreigner and treat them with equality (Numbers
15:15; Deuteronomy 10:19). Add to this a deep historical concern of God for
the fringe, forgotten and foreigner – the very groups that, when not treated
with dignity and fairness and love, made God the most angry throughout
scripture.
Who do you see when faced with an immigrant? This is someone who is created
with the same value as you and therefore deserves equal respect irrespective of whether they have reconciled with God through Jesus Christ or not.
Face
Prejudice & Fear: The history
and current reality of the world, plus our own personal experience proves there
are persistent barriers we have to admit and overcome as followers of the Way of Jesus if we are to be inclusive:
a. Prejudice
and the tendency to want to be with our own crowd (James 2:1 etc) is just the
way we are ‘naturally’. YET we have a
supernatural power to overcome this.
Paul told believers that for those in Christ there is ‘no distinction’
between not only race, but even gender!
In other words, we are not to use the worlds’ classifications of
dividing people anymore (2 Cor 5:16)
Besides these obvious
theological reasons for inclusion and acceptance, there is a social component that builds a better society. Canada’s Federal, Provincial and Civic
governments are concerned over ‘stratification’ – the layering of society by
economic status & ethnic identity. Calgary’s Mayor Naheed Nenshi
himself at a meeting I hosted for church leaders in Oct 2011 said this was his
primary concern for the city. I believe we have a duty as believers to do
all we can to ensure immigrants are well integrated into society.
The irony is that many fled their countries to come here over this very issue –
ethnic rivalries or intense poverty/economic barriers.
b. Fear. We fear what we do not know, so a piece of
the answer is: “how do we get to know a new immigrant?”
As an example, I’d like to
break down our global view/fear of Islam and pare that down to the individual
hopes and dreams of a Muslim person. As a Westerner, what is your default
thinking when you hear “Islam”, or are face to face with a veiled Muslim
woman? My hunch is your immediate
thoughts might include:
“radical;
paternalistic; terror; intolerance; violence; women’s rights” ...etc
What if rather than
starting with a global perception/assumption, you began at the individual,
personal level? What if you approached
them based on your common humanity? Do
you not share similar concerns for health, justice, love, relationships, well-being, prosperity, meaning,
children, the future...?
When we view others as persons,
not through our perceptions, biases and prejudices about their ethnicity or
religion, we have common ground from which to start a relationship. This
is part of recognizing that all are created in God’s image. Therefore ALL are of inherent worth and value
to Him and therefore us. Everyone is due respect AND attention no matter
their ethnic, religious or moral state.
Accurate
information about Immigrants. Are they all here to steal jobs? Do they freeload off our generosity and
become a drain on our resources? Are
they intent on remaining isolated in their cultural bubble? Do they come with a lack of skills to
work? I have heard these and many more
concerns expressed in political rhetoric and coffee-shop discussions. Here are some overall stats to help frame our
approach more positively regarding New Canadians coming to the Calgary region. I think you will find similar attributes in any other city or country where people have chosen to immigrate.
•
70% know English
•
Educated! 70% with High School, 36%
Univ. Graduates & most of the professionals have huge barriers getting
re-certified to practice in Canada
•
Determined! Most come on their own, only
10% are refugees
•
Young! 50% age 25-44 – 34% under 24 yrs.
•
Dedicated to being Canadian – compared to
other countries, immigrants here become Canadian citizens at a much higher rate
and as soon as they possibly can.
•
Contributing – they are required to pay
the same taxes on income as all Canadian citizens. Even refugees get only 1 year of extra assistance
before sharing in the same tax burdens as the rest of Canadians
•
ALL face significant adjustment issues
that affect family relationships for at least a generation. Children of immigrants adjust much faster to
their new culture than parents, often creating a culture and generational divide
within the same home. This is the price
of choosing to seek a new future in Canada.
Applaud & respect the sacrifice of those parents.
This presents the Church in
Canada with numerous opportunities to help with parenting/generational conflict
issues, assisting the first generation be able to worship in their own language
while working to integrate into Canadian life, and providing worship/social/fellowship
contexts for the second generation to integrate with more established Canadian
youth.
DON’T
start a “ministry” to immigrants – just be a good neighbour. Starting yet another ministry can at times
put us relationally at arm’s length from people. You can too easily "deliver a service" to people
without being engaged on a relational level.
This does not mean we should not
organize around our ideas and desires to create ministries, but I do think it’s helpful to frame all
of this not so much as a ‘ministry program’ to immigrants but rather as a part
of our calling to be a good neighbour. Look around your neighbourhood and
see that God calls you to be a good neighbour to each of them. Take away
the notion of creating an ‘immigrant ministry’ and start living/acting simply
as a good, responsible neighbour who is empowered and motivated by Jesus
Christ. The simple acts of neighbourliness, informed and empowered by the
Gospel message will turn us into salt/light/yeast/seed. Unless we scatter
ourselves into the lives of the neighbourhood where these immigrants live,
those transforming elements are of no use.
What can I/we do to connect?
- Be a good neighbour and walk across the yard, the street, the office floor.
- Be curious. Most people are honoured to have you ask about their lives. Ask about their homeland, families, their experience coming to Canada, what they miss etc. If you have ever moved, they feel the same things as you, but more acutely because of the distance they have moved geographically, culturally and linguistically. God said to Israel that one reason they were to treat the foreigner with care and respect was because they themselves knew what it was like to be immigrants in a foreign land!
- Volunteer to be a host family for a refugee through a local agency that has the structure for this.
- Volunteer with immigrant agencies. Most have programs where a person or family can volunteer, from helping with English to professional mentoring of skilled immigrants.
- Volunteer to be a conversation partner in local/agency/church ESL programs.
- Get training as an ESL teacher. This is one of the most critical needs for New Canadians to integrate into Canadian society.
- Plan/Host an event to welcome immigrants in your community. Go to your community association and suggest it.
- As a church, start your own small centre for immigrant services.
- Sponsor a refugee family – link with someone with a Sponsorship Agreement with the Government of Canada or find a similar vehicle your country uses.
- Research to find out what immigrant groups are living in your community.
- Go to your community association and find out what, if anything, they are doing. Get involved – make suggestions.
- If you own a business, consider hiring immigrants.
- As a church, partner with a church comprised of majority immigrants and offer practical, developmental (not paternal) assistance.
- From the pulpit, demonstrate your awareness of global issues. Pray for their countries, especially when conflict is occurring. Let them know you know and care. Also, get to know their issues and concerns and show it through the issues you choose to address from the pulpit and in other discipleship contexts.
Because in reality, we are all wanderers, looking for a more permanent place...
Harv Matchullis
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