A just society will attract those trapped in injustice.
“Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’” Deuteronomy 4.6
Foundational to God’s Covenant is the promise that His people would be a blessing to all the nations of the earth (Gen. 12.1-3). This is accomplished supremely in their being ambassadors of His Kingdom and heralds of His salvation through Jesus Christ. However, God intends His people to bless the nations in other than spiritual ways as well, although never completely apart from spiritual objectives.
The economics of justice encoded in the Law of God was designed to work out in public policies that would promote love for God and neighbor. Righteousness, meekness, justice, and equity obtain where God rules over His people by His Word and Spirit (cf. Pss. 45.4-6; 99.4). This is the way people were meant to live together in community. When they do, wisdom and understanding prevail, and the steadfast love of God, which sustains all things, comes to the surface in all human roles, relationships, and responsibilities.
People have the works of God’s Law written on their consciences (Rom. 2.14, 15). It is thus inherent in what it means to be human to seek justice and to long for righteousness, equity, and neighbor-love. Certainly the human conscience can become immune to such longings, after years of suppressing the knowledge of God and worshiping idols (Rom. 1.18-32); nevertheless, in most people this desire to live safely, securely, in peace and prosperity represents a perpetual longing and hope.
It is thus to be expected that, in any community, any nation where justice is the prevailing virtue, people from other places will take note, the longings of their hearts will be plucked, and their souls will stir with the prospect of realizing such hope for themselves.
And in the case of many people, this will mean moving toward the source and context of such hope, transplanting themselves from their native country or present community and seeking relocation in those places where the justice of God obtains (cf. Mic. 4.1-5).
While many came to the American colonies with the primary motive of seeking their fortunes, the driving force for the large majority of immigrants was religious and personal freedom, as Barry Alan Shain has shown (The Myth of American Individualism). That same motive continued to attract scores of immigrants to America during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Today people come to America largely, I suspect, for the freedom to pursue material wealth and happiness. This objective has largely supplanted the desire for justice everywhere in the world, but it still appeals to the same, deep longings of the human soul – although it can only lead to disappointment in the end. This makes it a difficult task to interpret the Law of God into policies regarding immigrants and immigration. However, as we shall, here is an area in which God’s people may expect to discover something of the wisdom and understanding of God, and fulfill our calling to be a blessing to this nation.
Subscribe to Crosfigell, the devotional newsletter of The Fellowship of Ailbe. Sent to your desktop every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Crosfigell includes a devotional based on the literature of the Celtic Christian period and the Word of God, highlights of other columns at the website, and information about mentoring and online courses available through The Fellowship.
