Sojourners addresses a social concern that I have for Christians living in the United States.  We live the most prosperous and abundant lives that mankind has ever known.  Yet there are those beyond our borders and in our midst that do not live this lifestyle.  I am speaking of the sojourners seeking entrance to the United States by way of Mexico.

We have an obligation to assist the sojourner in our land and to help our starving neighbors.  The Lazarus story in Luke 16:20-22 is a painful reminder of our choice to ignore the least of our world.

Sojourners is a ministry attempting to create a workers program for foreigners seeking employment in the United States.  This is based on the Christian idea of helping the least, last, and lost.  It is not financially motivated or designed to help countries or employers find cheap labor.  It is not created to displace unemployed citizens of the United States.  Its purpose is to legally provide work and income to those from foreign countries who are willing to take employment when United States citizens are not available to do this work.  It is an organized effort to appeal to Congress and the President to establish such a program for the benefit of the sojourner.

It does have several advantages to the citizens of the United States.  It will stop the hemorrhaging at the Mexican border.  This will occur when those law-abiding, hard-working individuals are given legal passage to the United States.  This will reduce the flow of illegal traffic to those outlaws who Americans desire to keep out of the United States.  This is by far the minority of illegal aliens.  It will reduce the numbers to a manageable group that the Border Patrol can keep out of the country.  This will also establish a system of green cards and social security numbers, requiring immigrant workers to pay taxes and social security thereby paying the cost of the social benefits they receive while residing in the United States.  Sojourners also gives the sojourner protection from criminals and coyotes that abuse and exploit these workers.  It gives them protection from employers who exploit them.

Another major concern to United States citizens is the loss of the English language.  This is a red herring that needs to be debunked.  English is the lingua franca of the world and will remain so until English-speaking countries lose their position of power on the world stage.  Any student who has attended basic schooling in their own country is taught to read and write English.  Immigrants to this county come speaking enough English to survive.  It is true that many first-generation immigrants never learn to communicate fluently in English.  It is also true that most third-generation Americans only speak English.  Think about it.  How many of us speak Polish, German, or French?  I have lived in a border state all of my life.  Almost no one from English-speaking homes is bilingual.  Everyone from a Spanish-speaking home is either bilingual or only speaks English. 

As Christian we cannot expect people to stand at our borders and beyond and starve, or worse, watch their children starve.  The Bible clearly calls us to help those who are in need.  Jesus, God incarnate, specifically commanded that we not turn our backs on those with the greatest need.  Therefore, it is our responsibility as Christians to respond to these people who are not only in need but who are our next-door neighbors and therefore, within our ability to make a true and long term difference in their lives.  As Christians we also have the blessing of receiving fellow Christians into our county at a time when we desperately need Christian influence in our land.

The fact is, their need is so great that we cannot stop their desperate attempts to improve their lives by coming to the United States for employment, but we can create a system that works in the best interest of everyone, and more importantly, responds to Christ in a way that we can be proud of.

Write or e-mail your Congressman at www.house.gov/house
Write or e-mail your senator at www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators
Write or e-mail the President at www.whitehouse.gov

Refer to this web site for updates and continued progress on this ministry.