Can Any Good Thing Come Out of Nazareth?

The depiction from the USA had no Jesus at all.

My column on refugees/immigration ran in DTS Magazine recently: 

Standing in Nazareth's Basilica of the Annunciation, I gazed up at mosaics from all over the world. These works depicted the Virgin Mary with Jesus, and in each case Jesus bore the ethnic identity of the predominate group in the gifting country. That is, the art from Ecuador showed Jesus as Ecuadorian; the work from China, as Chinese; and the one from Thailand, as Thai. The baby Jesus from Slovenia even had red hair.The mosaics’ creators made these localized images to remind viewers that Jesus is “one of us”—which he is. Yet so many artists have depicted Jesus as white for so long with such far-reaching influence that many think of Jesus as white, even if unconsciously.

Taking the Blinders Off

There’s nothing inherently wrong with localized depictions of our Savior. Yet they can blind us to the reality that Jesus was born of a Jewish mother in the Middle East. And in a world of Roman power, he was so deeply Galilean that in the same city where I saw the diverse mosaics, two millennia earlier, Jesus slipped away into the crowd without detection (Luke 4:30).The olive-skinned Jesus knew how it felt to live as an outsider, to be “other.” He spent his first years in Egypt as a refugee who fled infanticide. When he relocated to Nazareth, he doubtless felt the sting of being “one of the new kids in town.” Later, he experienced being homeless. And if that weren’t enough, consider how he probably spoke. At Jesus’s trial in Jerusalem, Peter, another Galilean, heard someone say, “Your accent gives you away” (see Mark 14:66–70).The one who is “one of us” in his humanity was also wholly “other.”

Build Strong Partnerships

Years ago, members of my church took a spring-break trip to a border town, Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. Every night after walking dusty roads with members of our sister church, our team crossed back into the United States, where we had a discount on lodging. But something about the experience made us feel unsettled, so we took Octavio Esqueda (MACE, 2000) with us the following year, and we asked him to help us build a better relationship.At the end of our week together, Octavio did have some suggestions, and our choice to follow them led to a stronger partnership that benefited us all for decades. First, incarnating Christ means “presence,” he said. “So stay on the Mexico side. Otherwise, it feels like you’re ‘fleeing to safety’ every night.” Second, instead of scheduling the trip for spring break—the most convenient time for us—he advised going over Christmas.True, that was a terrible time for Americans, but in Mexico, nobody would have to take time off work to cook beans or translate for us, and people would have extra relatives in town, meaning extra tamales, and extra nieces and nephews happy to attend Christmas programs. Next, quit calling the work a “mission” trip; call it a “ministry trip.” Finally, invite members of the Mexico church to help us in Dallas so we would recognize that we were equal beneficiaries of each other’s help.

Move Toward Unity

Jesus prayed that we all might be one (John 17:21). And a move toward unity across barriers—whether ethnic, geographical, social, physical, or spiritual—means we must acknowledge that we all have forms of blindness. So we must ask questions and listen; serve, instead of expecting others to accommodate us; and learn from each others’ perspectives.The kingdom of heaven is upside down. Our king was a Middle Eastern, persecuted, homeless, refugee outsider who tells us that to serve the naked and the poor is to serve him.We all have prejudice in our hearts; often we have biases we don’t even know about. But—good news—our Lord loves and changes bigots. Recall that when a man named Nathanael from Cana (John 21:2) insulted Jesus’s adopted hometown with, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” (1:46, NASB), Jesus invited him to join the Twelve. Our Lord in his grace even gave this man a glimpse of his own identity as the Christ: “You will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man” (v. 51, NASB).When we humble ourselves and celebrate unity in diversity, we ourselves benefit; and we can give others a glimpse of the reality that something truly fantastic came from Nazareth.

Racism: Blind to Privilege

Here is the post I wrote yesterday for bible.org's Engage blog:

I had never considered myself a racist. When I was kid, my parents helped me send the coins in my piggy bank to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s work. And I have family members who are African-Americans and Latinos. So I thought I was good.

I got a glimpse at my blindness when I took Greek from an African-American professor. He told us that racism was not a white problem; it was a sin problem. He gave international examples of darker and lighter groups hating each other. Afterward, I said I wanted to be color-blind, and he stopped me. “You need to see the color,” he said. “God made it. It’s just that the color does not matter in terms of equality.” I realized then that my elevating of “blindness” was itself a form of racism. The very thing God celebrated, I was ignoring outright—and congratulating myself.

Another glimpse came during a trip to the east coast. I had lived in Virginia for seven years as a teen, and at that time, Monticello—home of Thomas Jefferson—was my favorite of the historical sites within a day’s drive of DC. But returning decades later, I was shocked when I saw for the second time the evidence of Jefferson’s past as a slaveholder. What upset me most was that his record had not fazed me before. I could no longer downplay Jefferson’s evil by rationalizing that he was a product of his times. Jefferson knew the abolitionists’ arguments. I had excused him. How could I have been so blind?

I don’t know. But between the two above-mentioned instances, some events happened that probably led to some of the scales falling off.

First, I took Russian lessons, and only after six weeks’ practice could I correctly pronounce the formal word for “hello.” I went to Belarus as a journalist with a medical mission team, and these smart people struggled with a language that’s actually much easier than English. While there, I—a “word” person—had to operate from a vocabulary smaller than a kindergartner’s, and I suddenly reconsidered my assessment of the immigrants I had assumed were uneducated.

When I returned, I asked a Russian friend if she had difficulty operating from a limited number of words. She exclaimed, “Yes! That is the hardest part for me being here! In Russia, I am an engineer with an enormous vocabulary. Here, I can hardly express myself.” She was an engineer? I had no idea. After that, I started asking about the backgrounds of immigrants who cleaned my office after hours, and I discovered physicians, engineers, and pastors of enormous churches—all sacrificing the respect they received back home in order to have access to Christian education.

When I learned that a theology student was attending a church full of illegal immigrants, I asked how he could worship with people who were clearly breaking the law just by being here—and he balked. I respected this man, so I wondered aloud how he could view their actions so differently. He pointed to Paul’s approach with Onesimus, who was in Rome illegally. First, Paul shared the gospel and discipled him. Once Onesimus was useful for service, Paul sent Tychicus back with him to comply with the law. But first things first. In that conversation, I realized my own loyalties were more American than gospel-focused.

Recently, some of my guy students have acknowledged their blindness to male privilege, and their attitudes have brought others healing. Not long ago, when I was at worship, I noticed that the artwork advertising a sermon series depicted only men. Later the person leading worship said, “The men will now come forward to take the offering” when he meant “the ushers will come forward.” Sure, the ushers happened to be men. But nothing in scripture says a woman can’t usher. And the reference to gender suggested women might not be welcome to do so.  

The more I notice such gendered statements, the more I realize how much grace members of minority groups have constantly extended to those of us who live with racial privilege. We are blind in ways we don’t even know.

So here are some suggestions for moving toward unity in diversity. They are only a start!

1.     Know that God loves racial diversity. The music of the Ideal Day will include every tongue, nation, and tribe worshiping him (Rev. 7:9). It will look like the opposite of Babel as the nations converge to offer their maker praise. Racial diversity in our worship foreshadows the coming Day.

2.     Mourn, weep, and repent for the church’s past sins. I often hear, “Sure, Christians tolerated and even supported slavery. And at times, the KKK. But that was then. Today, I have nothing to do with that.” But what if Nehemiah had taken such an approach? Instead, he took responsibility for the sins of the group. Notice how he describes what he did when he heard about God’s judgment for his ancestors’ sins: "I sat down abruptly, crying and mourning for several days. I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Then I said, ‘Please, O Lord God of heaven, great and awesome God, who keeps his loving covenant with those who love him and obey his commandments… I am confessing the sins of the Israelites that we have committed against you—both I myself and my family have sinned. We have behaved corruptly against you, not obeying the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments that you commanded your servant Moses’” (Neh. 1:4–7). Believers should have the same response to those who bring up the Crusades. They were part of the church’s past. Instead of downplaying them (especially by saying, “But the Crusades were not as bad as ____,”) the church has opportunity to say, “Yes! Our ancestors did that. They were so wrong. Many before us have repented, and we repent too. May Christ have mercy. How can we show love to those who differ theologically?”

3.     Assume we all have privilege-blindness. One way to gain better sight: initiate conversation and listen well. When I meet one-on-one with fellow believers of other races and draw them out on the subject, I find that almost without exception they acknowledge experiencing racism in the church. But they don’t want to get pegged as “touchy,” so they usually say nothing. In the same way that I won’t bring up how we introduce the ushers, their love has been covering numerous statements made by oblivious people.

4.     Love variety, as God does. Model it on preaching teams, on committees, in posters. Quote people of other races in your messages and examples. Add variety to your music. Invite people of different races into your living room and meet them in their homes. Believe your team is deficient if you have a completely homogenous group. Actively pursue a combination of differences.

5.  Acknowledge both the accomplishments and the sin. How can we acknowledge people like Jefferson? The Old Testament gives us a model. Here is how the author of 1 Kings sums up David’s life: “David had done what [the Lord his God] approved and had not disregarded any of his commandments his entire lifetime, except for the incident involving Uriah the Hittite (15:5).

5.     Repent for the church’s current sins. And pray that the Lord will reveal where blindness exists. Ask God to help you—us—to become tools that build the kind of church Christ wants to show his love to a divided world. 

Sanctity of Life Sunday

Today is the day the Christian community sets aside to contemplate the sanctity of human life and what we can do to defend the powerless whose human dignity is being violated. The conversation includes beginning-of-life issues such as abortion (including gendercide), embryonic stem cell research, and in vitro fertilization. It includes nuclear bombs, use of arms, active euthanasia, war, the disposability of girls in China, and widows who are expected to commit suicide upon the deaths of their husbands. 

Moving beyond sanctity of life itself, we also consider that"human dignity" is grounded in Genesis 1. That has ramificationsfor...

Sex trafficking

Refusal of hydrating tubes

Human slavery

Rape culture

POW standards

Immigration policy

Homelessness

Hunger

Poverty

Proverbs 31:8–9 (NET)

Open your mouth on behalf of those unable to speak,

for the legal rights of all the dying.

Open your mouth, judge in righteousness,

and plead the cause of the poor and needy. 

A Biblical Response to Immigration Policy

In part one of a two-part series, Dr. Darrell Bock, Rev. Samuel Rodriguez, Dr. M. Daniel Carroll-Rodas, Dr. Alejandro Mandes, and Soraya Marin discuss a biblical response to the immigration issue, focusing on the challenges, pressures, and opportunities faced by churches and the Hispanic population in the United States.

Yesterday, I attended the Echo Conference in Dallas at Watermark Church. One of the employees who helped prepare this for launch on the web said that listening to it made her proud to be associated with the seminary.

Dr. Carroll-Rodas makes the point that we must stop looking at this issue through the eyes of the elephant or the donkey and instead look at it through the eyes of the lamb.

On Immigration

"Arizona was part of the New Spain for almost 300 years; then it became part of Mexico in 1821 until 1848. In 1912 it became part of the United States. However, now Hispanics 'look' like 'ilegal aliens' and will be targeted to inquiry their immigration status. Who can understand this idiocy?" --Dr. Octavio Esqueda, my former student at DTS who is today a Christian Education professor at the largest seminary in the world in Fort Worth

What do you think of Arizona's decision? What do you think U.S. policy should be?

Think Theologically about Immigration

You can now access the new issue of Kindred Spirit magazine on the DTS web site. Topic of this issue: Immigration. "I was a stranger and you welcomed me." Check it out.

Where Are You on Immigration?

It's my day to post over at the Tapestry blog. Today I discussed taking a view of immigration that goes beyond politics. Head on over and enter the discussion.

Immigration, Part II

Today we continue our conversation with Dr. Mike Pocock about immigration:

What constitutes a real, positive public policy of immigration reform from your perspective?

. One that recognizes the reality of the long-term residence and positive contribution of 9 to 12 million undocumented foreign-born people in this country and seeks to regularize their status and put them on a path toward citizenship, if desired, instead of forcing their return to their countries (which is unrealistic, unworkable, and, in many cases, cruel).

. One that makes undocumented but otherwise decent people aware that they have broken the law and must pay some monetary and civic penalty, payable in manageable installments to the government or community in which they live. Possibly include a required community-service penalty, such as working on Habitat for Humanity construction.

. One that seeks assimilation without cultural suffocation. This would include required English capability.

. An expanded guest-worker program that permits workers to serve a variety of employers instead of a single designated employer (H visas). This permit would allow workers to seek work instead of having to be matched with an employer prior to entry. A time limit could be established for finding such work, and possession of an adequate amount of money while looking for work. This approach recognizes the reality that much of the work needed is day labor, but day labor leads to regular employment where workers show their value. Guest worker visas would give the right to return home to family and back for work without the necessity of illegal and very dangerous border crossing. (420 died in border crossings in 2006.) A quota system keyed to the condition of the work market should be established.

. Establishment and staffing of more consular guest-worker permit offices in primary locations in foreign countries.

. Introduction of biometric national identity cards to help eliminate identity theft and fraud.

. Employers required to check certification of workers with national database, possibly one connected to ATMs because of their availability in convenience stores and because ATMs and credit card companies should also move to biometric bank cards. Fine employers who knowingly employ undocumented workers once a more comprehensive system is established.

. Strengthen border controls. I do not like walls but they have been shown to reduce crossings in the San Diego area and Mexicali. Walls at strategic high crossing locations may allow better oversight of unfenced areas.

I could endorse the White House proposal for immigration reform, but believe it should incorporate provisions from the SOLVE Act (Safe, Orderly, Legal Visas and Enforcement Acts) introduced by Democratic Reps. Luis Gutierrez, Bob Menendez and Ted Kennedy, because it addresses family unity and other issues. (See discussion by Navarrette and Waslin, July/August 2004 Issue, “Forum” in Hispanic Magazine http://www.hispaniconline.com/.)

What is the true social and economic impact of legal and illegal immigration? Are we being overwhelmed? What are the problems or dangers posed for people of faith if we base our opinions and actions in regard to immigrants on these concerns rather than religiously based ethics?

We are at a high point in the rate of immigration world-wide and in the USA. Currently the foreign-born population is 35 million, 11.5% of the total population. But there have been higher years. In 1880, 13.3%; in 1900, 13.6%; in 1930, 11.6%. We've seen a 54% increase between 1990 and 2000.

Total remittances worldwide of migrants, legal and undocumented, estimates were $232 billion in 2005. In the USA, buying power of Hispanics alone in 1990 was $222 billion; 2004, $686 billion, est. for 2009, $992 billion. Of all 35 million foreign-born persons, 11.5 million were undocumented. So two thirds of the foreign-born pay income tax and one third do not. However, all pay sales tax. Lost income tax has been estimated at $15 billion annually.

Parkland Hospital in Dallas delivered 15,590 babies in 2005. 70% were to undocumented Hispanic women. Parkland spent $70.7 million in 2004 with taxpayers covering 40% of the cost. Nevertheless, Parkland administrators say: “Most immigrant parents do have jobs and pay taxes including property and sales taxes. They have a better record for paying their bills than low income Americans.”

So yes, legal and illegal immigrants do constitute a burden in many cities, but even those who do not pay income tax are contributing to the system through other taxes. Clearly, bringing undocumented people into the light of legality would also create a stronger tax base among them.

Christian response or attitudes toward legal and illegal immigrants should not be based on pragmatics alone. Whether it is hospitality to strangers (Rom 12:13), or entertaining those who cannot repay us (Luke 14:12–14), doing good to all persons (Gal 6:10), or considering all people equally no matter their culture or ethnicity (Col.3:10–11), the Bible speaks to our attitude toward those of other races and cultures. The pastor of the Farmer’s Branch Church of Christ said: “I try to ask myself what God would do.” We should be very careful not to simply go with the conventional wisdom of people around us, not economic, and certainly not racist thinking. We really should love our neighbor as ourselves, not intellectualizing nor spiritualizing, but in concrete expression to whoever is in our community on whatever basis.

Good Migrations?

One hundred ninety-one million people lived outside of their country of birth in 2005.

Below is a Q/A with Michael Pocock, D. Miss., Chairman and Senior Professor of World Missions and Intercultural Studies at Dallas Theological Seminary on the subject of immigration. Dr. Pocock has much to say, having himself immigrated from the United Kingdom as a young teen with his parents in 1955. He spent sixteen years (1971–87) as a missionary in Venezuela and later as mobilization director. Since 1987 he has taught at DTS. He travels extensively, has written several excellent books, and was a driving force behind Ethnic Workers Summit in Dallas, 2005.

Many countries face immigration challenges. What are some foundational considerations for considering immigration from a biblical perspective?

. All people are valuable, made in the image of God. They should be treated with dignity even when out of desperation they attempt to circumvent laws. Therefore, there should be a protective system of advocacy for foreign workers, laws against exploitative use of foreign workers, against violence, domestic and public. Prosecution of abusive employers. Regular and fair payment of workers. Decent and affordable housing (Gen 1:26–27, 2:3; Matt. 6:25–33; Gal.6:10).

. The need to earn a living, have enough food and shelter and safety should be respected by everyone in countries with resources and jobs. This means people should be free to cross borders when desperate. This is clearly established in the rules for alien and poor workers in Scripture, and exemplified in the case of Ruth in the Old Testament. Boaz allows a foreign woman, Ruth, to glean in his fields, and offers her protection (from his own male workers), safety, respect, water, and shelter. He is not simply coming on to a nice foreign, but a vulnerable female worker; he is acting decently and in accord with national laws. (See also Ex.12:49; Lev 19:9–10; Deut 24:19–22.)

. National governments are basically a unit of governance that are established by God and in a sense serve him (Mt 12:17; Rom. 13). They are there for the wellbeing of the people, even though some slip into violent or self-serving ends. In any case their rule must be respected. The U.S. or any other country has a right and duty to establish policies for the wellbeing of its people. Those policies must be respected by citizens and foreigners alike. A nation has a duty and right to establish a reasonable (manageable) rate of flow of foreigners who immigrate or migrate for economic and other reasons.

What immigration policy would Jesus advocate?

It seems the only mandate he gave regarding immigration was that, as his disciples would go into all the world, they would make disciples of all nations! (Matt 28:19–20). He sees all Christians on the move as disciple-makers. I’m sure his mother and father told him stories of finding refuge in Egypt as a baby following the cruel edicts of Herod the Great. He knew what it meant to be a stranger within his own country, gripped by regionalism in which he was disparaged as a Nazarene and Galilean. He said “The son of man does not even have a place to lay his head,” (Mt 8:20) so he was a man of the road, he knew about marginalization (as Virgilio Elizondo has written in Galilean Journey), and he ministered from the margins.

So Jesus’ policy would reflect solidarity with migrants, understanding, compassion and respect, while he would also urge due respect and honor to governments. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus although they are different persons of the Trinity. When the Spirit works, it is not different from what Jesus would do. The first thing the Holy Spirit did at Pentecost in Acts 2 was to make the blessings of God clear so that people from fourteen nations present at that moment could understand. God is interested in all the peoples of the world. He is a global God, and his Spirit is an international spirit. Christ’s immigration policy would stress ministry to migrants and also the responsibility and privilege of Christian migrants to spread the Gospel wherever they find themselves.

Conservative Christians understand that America is a land of immigrants and that their parents at some point probably immigrated to this country. They look favorably on the U.S. as a land of opportunity and a magnet to the world’s people. Generally they do not seem to realize that we are not the only country to which the world’s 191 million immigrants have gone. Thirty-five percent of immigrants globally go to Europe. About 23 percent come to the United States.

More to come...

Talk about Immigration...

A “nobody” kind of girl, Ruth is born in the wrong place—Moab. She marries an Israelite at the wrong time—when his nation is experiencing a famine. And she ends up in the wrong circumstances—her husband dies leaving her childless with no Social Security or unemployment insurance. Yet miraculously, this humble widow ends up as the right person in the right place at the right time. After accompanying her bitter, thankless mother-in-law to far-away Bethlehem, Ruth marries a much older man—a relative of her deceased husband. Why? So her mother-in-law can eat. And in the end this selfless act means Ruth’s progeny include Israel’s King David and ultimately Jesus. Why? Anything can happen to those who trust God and love others.
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