Another reason we should care about the plight of strangers and sojourners.
While to some it may seem Christianity is in decline, in fact, quite the opposite is the case.
As Wes Granberg-Michaelson showed in an article in the The Washington Post, Christianity is spreading rapidly in the global south and in China (“Think Christianity is dying? No, Christianity is shifting dramatically,” May 20, 2015).
The Christian faith is rapidly increasing in these parts, and the most common form of it is Pentecostal or charismatic. As people from these regions migrate to Europe and the U. S., they bring their faith with them. “Fresh spirituality in both North America and Europe is being fueled by the process of global migration.”
In the US 43 million people have immigrated here, and 74% of these are Christians. The author suggests Christians in this country should demonstrate more openness to immigration reform that makes it easier for immigrants to come here, if only because the great majority of them are Christians. He adds, “The religious impact of immigration, largely unnoticed in hotly contested rhetoric around political reform, offers the potential, once again, to enrich our society in ways we have not imagined.”
I agree. The Biblical teaching on strangers and sojourners encourages an openness to immigration that Christians today do not seem to under-stand. Immigration reform – and improvement – could be a social issue to which Christians could make a significant positive contribution, with uncountable numbers of immigrants grateful for their assistance and perhaps open to their message.