Many in the faith community strongly support President Trump’s immigration and border efforts to stem the deadly flow of addictive and poisonous drugs into the nation, and to curtail the infiltration of dangerous gang members and violent criminals who are among the migrant caravans of people seeking relief from economic deprivation and civil or government violence in their countries of origin.
Others, while supporting the above aims, also want to ensure government is responding humanely to the border crisis. But stemming the flow of undocumented immigrants is the first step because it takes away the incentive to travel thousands of miles through dangerous territory.
This is according to a new letter to the president from Southern Evangelical Seminary (SES, www.ses.edu) President and Evangelical leader Dr. Richard Land, who serves on Trump’s evangelical advisory board.
“We believe your efforts are necessary to protect American citizens as well as those enticed by our open border to undertake an extremely dangerous journey during which appalling numbers of women and children are victimized by sexual and physical violence,” Land writes in the letter. “While we believe our government should act compassionately toward those seeking to enter our country, we fully support your effort to give our border patrol officials the means to control, not close, our southern border so that we as a nation have the final say as to who comes to live and work among us.”
The remainder of the letter continues:
“Many people of faith understand, as you do, that open borders and uncontrolled access to our nation is ultimately national suicide. Any country that does not control its borders will sooner, rather than later, become a different country. The irony, in fact, is that uncontrolled immigration will result in America becoming, sooner rather than later, more like the countries the immigrants are fleeing and less like the country they aspire to join. This has nothing to do with race or ethnicity. We are a country of immigrants made up of many ethnicities and nationalities, but our heritage and culture of freedom and individual liberty, protected and respected by our government, is endangered when large numbers of people who have no such experience come to our country uninvited.
“There is a limit to the number of people that can immigrate to our country in a short period of time without changing that culture. Perhaps the best illustration that this has nothing to do with ethnicity is the fact that we are very soon going to celebrate the birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., an AfricanAmerican whose ancestors were brought here involuntarily as slaves, but who had drunk deeply from the well of our Judeo-Christian heritage and became one of the most eloquent spokesmen for the freedoms and belief in the innate, God-given dignity of all human beings expressed in our founding documents.
“Mr. President, please know that we are praying for you as you seek to secure our southern border in pursuit of fulfilling your oath of office to protect and defend the American people.
“We also appreciate the resources you are attempting to allocate to address the humanitarian needs of the children and adults caught in the tragic web of our failed and broken immigration system. As Christians, we stand ready to assist with resources and manpower to help meet these humanitarian needs.
“Please know that there are millions of Americans of deep religious faith who are praying for you and your family every day. May God give you wisdom, courage, and compassion as you deal with the enormous duties of your office.”
View the entire letter online here.
For 25 years, SES has existed to equip students and ministry leaders to share the Gospel from an intelligent, informed and rational biblical worldview. Courses, conferences, seminars, guest speakers and more seek to accomplish this longstanding mission. Central to this purpose is the provision of a biblical basis and an academic understanding of believers’ commitment to Christ. Therefore, SES seeks to provide an educational opportunity where the Christian world view is both a framework for thinking and a dynamic for living.
For more information on SES, visit its website at www.ses.edu or its Facebook page, follow the SES Twitter feed, @sesapologetics, or call (800) 77-TRUTH.