Posted on 05/19/2007 7:57:44 PM PDT by oblomov
Lifelong Roman Catholic Raymond Ross and his church agree on one thing: The U.S. needs to change its immigration policies. From that point, their views sharply diverge.
Strapped with a pistol and binoculars, Ross, 69, and a posse of fellow Minutemen spent four days last month patrolling an Arizona valley that they say is heavily trafficked by illegal border-crossers from Mexico. When they spied a group of suspected undocumented immigrants, they called the U.S. Border Patrol, Ross said.
“We’re just people who got tired of our government not doing anything,” Ross said of the Minutemen Civil Defense Corps.
Arizona’s Catholic leaders - as well as Catholics nationwide - are also pushing hard for changes to U.S. immigration laws. But whereas Ross and other Minutemen want to see a bulked-up border, the Catholic Church advocates a more welcoming approach to undocumented workers, including an earned path to citizenship.
With Congress preparing to take up immigration policy in the coming weeks, a number of prominent religious leaders - from all shades of the theological spectrum - have called for a “comprehensive and compassionate” reform of existing laws. It’s part of a biblical mandate to care for the stranger.
But it’s unclear if their flocks in the pews agree.
(Excerpt) Read more at journalnow.com ...
I'm even having trouble with the headline. It doesn't seem as if the church authorities are leading, and it doesn't seem as if the congregation is following.
These "leaders" appear to suffer from the same affliction as several GOP Senators...
Nothing stops them from going to Mexico to preach as many Christians do.
But not some of these guys just want to complain from the comfort of their pews all the time.
FWIW, Rome agrees with them. They see a world without borders, all going to their church.
“It’s part of a biblical mandate to care for the stranger.
But it’s unclear if their flocks in the pews agree.”
I’m very angry with the American Catholic leadership’s opinion on this. Giving sanctuary and ignoring law is wrong. Give them food and drink and then call the authorities.
8th Commandment: Don’t steal.
Mexicans are stealing the country we built, from us and our progeny.
Notice the media is praising Catholic leaders for standing up for illegal rights. However, should these Catholic leaders stand up for the unborn, its “Separation of Church & State” cries from the media.
Church I go to isn’t split on immigration - we all agree - immigrants need to follow the law, otherwise they are illegal and should be sent home.
And to clarify a bit further:
http://www.religionlink.org/tip_050808.php
“Pope Benedict XVI (as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger) became one of liberation theology’s staunchest critics in the 1980s as head of the Catholic Church’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He silenced theologians associated with such scriptural interpretations and appointed traditional bishops. Some scholars believe it’s because he objected to Marxist-inspired political analysis that some theologians embraced.”
Isn’t the Church supposed to win souls, not steal them from Mexico?
That’s what they/we should be doing...winning souls anywhere in the world not just in their asylum churches.
Answer: Romans 13:1-7 makes it abundantly clear that God expects us to obey the laws of the government. The ONLY exception to this is when a law of the government forces you to disobey a command of God (Acts 5:29). Illegal immigration is the breaking of a governmental law. There is nothing in Scripture that would contradict with obeying immigration laws. Therefore, it is a sin, rebellion against God, to illegally immigrate into another country. Romans 13:1-7 also gives the government the authority to punish lawbreakers, whether it be by deportation or imprisonment (in the cases of illegal immigration), or more severe penalties for greater crimes.
Link: http://www.gotquestions.org/illegal-immigration.html - This author makes some good points in this article, like illegal aliens and churches that aid and abet them are not just breaking U.S. Laws, but also sinning against God. However, the author then goes on to advocate for amnesty in the last paragraph of his article (thankfully not basing it on the Bible, but more on his personal beliefs).
Below is a search result from Google that lists several sites that amplify the point that nowhere in the Bible does it say we must, as Christians, give amnesty to illegal aliens.
Keywords: “Bible” + “illegal immigration”
You can use this to counter any arguments you hear from "Christian" leaders that claims it is the Christian thing to do to give illegal aliens amnesty.
The Catholic Church. per se, certainly does not advocate illegal immigration. There is a difference between the teaching of the Church and the personal opinions of various individual clergy.
Curious....is it a Catholic church?
No.
WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! TILL YOU RUN OUT OF INK IN YOUR PEN!
Bombard the Democrats as well, especially the ones that ran on an anti immigration plank and the ones in marginal districts who could be vulnerable. keep pounding on them.
But of course they claim that much of the southwest region was stolen from Mexico, the right of conquest notwithstanding, and activist orgs. such as La Raza, teach this doctrine of the Right of Reconquest.
IATW, the Council of La Raza. a racist, anti-American organization, was invited to partricipate in deliberations leading to the current Amnesty Bill.
To borrow from Michael Savage, we are defined by borders, language, and culture.
"Borders" was their only claim, and they lost that war about 150 years ago [wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican-American_War#Treaty_of_Guadalupe_Hidalgo].
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