At an interfaith press conference today at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Rev. Monte Marshall spoke about about the border crisis. Please read our pastors important message. INTERFAITH PRESS CONFERENCE ON THE BORDER CRISIS Sacred Heart Catholic Church Wednesday, July 30, 2014 My name is Monte Marshall and I’m the senior pastor of Travis Park United Methodist Church here in San Antonio. The scenes from our southern border are gut-wrenching: Thousands of human beings—many unaccompanied children and youth—putting their lives at risk on a long and desperate trek over dangerous trails, to seek refuge in the United States of America from the life-demeaning and life-destroying circumstances of their Central American homelands. Their circumstances remind me of a story from Matthew’s gospel of the holy family, including a young child named Jesus, fleeing Herod’s violence in their homeland and seeking refuge in Egypt. Given the plight of our brothers and sisters from the south, and this memory of another refugee family that has informed the Christian tradition, I have to ask: Isn’t this a time for compassion? Isn’t this a time for hospitality? Isn’t this a time for justice? When it comes to issues of migration like the ones we face today on our southern border, The United Methodist Church has taken a clear and unequivocal stand: • The United Methodist Church embraces the biblical mandate to welcome sojourners and strangers with gracious acts of kindness, hospitality and justice. • The United Methodist Church affirms that all “immigrants are children of God made in God’s image.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to providing “real help for refugees, asylees, and migrants.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to the “protection of uprooted women and children from all forms of violence and abuse.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to seek the “unification of families divided by borders and legal status.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to the “denunciation of xenophobic and racist reactions against newcomers.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to the “Preservation of due process and access to courts, and to adequate legal representation for all migrants regardless of legal status.” • The United Methodist Church is committed to “tending to [the] spiritual, material and legal needs” of migrants. In response to the current crisis, the five United Methodist bishops in Texas have issued a Pastoral Letter calling the people of The United Methodist Church to pray and to act with compassion and justice for the migrant children and their families who have come across our border at great risk, to seek refuge. For these reasons, I have joined my colleagues in saying YES to compassion, YES to hospitality, and YES to justice, by signing the letter Pastor Allen just outlined. In addition to the national leaders already mentioned, the letter was sent to Senators Cornyn and Cruz, and Representatives Doggett, Castro, Cuellar, Gallego and Smith to express our position on the issues currently before the United States Congress concerning the border crisis. The Congress is debating the issue: Should additional federal resources be provided to aid in this crisis? We urge our elected representatives to say YES to increased funding that will advance the cause of family reunification and provide sufficient legal representation, judges, and housing to meet the overwhelming need. The Congress is also debating the issue: Should the 2008 anti-trafficking law be rolled back to expedite deportations? We urge our representatives to say NO to this proposal. We urge them to keep the protections of the 2008 law in place. We invite all of these elected officials to meet with us to discuss creative solutions that protect the dignity and safety of refugees, ensure the safety of our border communities, and that fix our nation’s broken immigration system. Thank you.
Posted on: Wed, 30 Jul 2014 19:38:30 +0000
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