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Calling
it “a major step forward,” the U.S. Jesuits, the Jesuit Refugee
Service/USA, and the Kino Border Initiative, a bi-national border
ministry, have added their voices to Catholic groups welcoming
President Obama’s executive order to provide immigration relief.
They added that there remains much work to be done.
The Obama announcement Nov. 20 offers temporary relief from deportation
for as many as five million of our people. The groups said they
were pleased with the initiative.
BUT: All
developed countries in the world have immigration laws.... There is
nothing in the Bible to prohibit a country from having completely open
borders or to have completely closed borders. Romans 13:1-7
also gives the government the authority to punish lawbreakers. Whether
the punishment is imprisonment and/or deportation, or even something
more severe, it is within the rights of the government to determine.
“At the same time we acknowledge that millions more families will
continue to suffer under the constant specter of family separation
caused by our broken immigration system, which can only be permanently
resolved through positive, humane and practical legislation.”
“Through our ministries, we witness on a daily basis the tragic
consequences of our nation’s current immigration laws and policies,”
the statement reads.
“As Jesuits, we assess each immigration policy by whether it adheres to
the Catholic and American value of promoting and affirming human
dignity.”
“The President has exercised his constitutional discretion to
prioritize immigration enforcement resources, while offering a process
by which some of the 11 million undocumented may apply for a temporary
reprieve. Meanwhile, Congressional leaders must complete the
urgent and necessary work of permanently fixing our unjust and broken
immigration system.”
[Full]
Here are Biblical
passages
that I assume the Jesuits are complying with:
Romans
13:1-7states,
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there
is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities
that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels
against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and
those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers hold no
terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want
to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and
he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you
do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is
God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.
Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only
because of possible punishment but also because of conscience. This is
also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who
give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If
you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then
respect; if honor, then honor.”
This
passage makes it abundantly clear that we are to obey the government
God places over us. God created government to establish order, punish
evil, and promote justice (Genesis
9:6;1
Corinthians 14:33;Romans
12:8).
We are to obey the government in everything—paying taxes, obeying rules
and laws, and showing respect. If we do not, we are ultimately showing
disrespect towards God, for He is the One who placed that government
over us. When the apostle Paul wrote to the Romans, he was under the
government of Rome during the reign of Nero, perhaps the most evil of
all the Roman emperors. Paul still recognized the Roman government’s
rule over him. How can we do any less?
The
next question is “Is there a time when we should intentionally disobey
the laws of the land?” The answer to that question may be found inActs
5:27-29,
“Having brought the apostles, they made them appear before the
Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 'We gave you strict
orders not to teach in this Name,' he said. 'Yet you have filled
Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of
this man's blood.' Peter and the other apostles replied: ‘We must obey
God rather than men!'“ From this, it is clear that as long as the law
of the land does not contradict the law of God, we are bound to obey
the law of the land. As soon as the law of the land contradicts God's
command, we are to disobey the law of the land and obey God's law.
However, even in that instance, we are to accept the government’s
authority over us. This is demonstrated by the fact that Peter and John
did not protest being flogged, but instead rejoiced that they suffered
for obeying God (Acts
5:40-42).
Jesuits
(The Society of Jesus) was founded by Ignatius of Loyola in
1540. Loyola had a strong military background and the Order was
for "whoever desires to serve as a soldier of God." Jesuits
are sometimes referred to colloquially as "God's Soldiers" or "God's
Marines"
To
this day, the Drinan case constitutes a good example of the potential
harm that can be done when Catholic clergy become unduly involved in
contemporary civil politics. The controversial voting-record of
Congressman Drinan, and the understandable scandal it was causing,
might very well have been the motivating factor behind John Paul II’s
decision to revamp canon law on this issue.
First, in learning and dedication to living the
word
of our Lord Jesus Christ, Jesuits are my superior, and I would do well
to emulate their devotion. I do however tend to see Jesuits as
the
Left Wing of the Roman Catholic Church in some cases. Perhaps
I'm influenced by Father Robert Drinan, the fiery
Jesuit priest from Massachusetts, who demonstrated against the Vietnam
War, ran for Congress as an antiwar candidate and won. A true
Democrat, and perhaps roll model of other rogue Catholics (like Pelosi
and Kerry, et.al.), Fr. Drinan repeatedly voted in favor of
abortion,
while claiming at the same time to be “personally opposed.” In
1980
Pope John Paul II ordered "that priests would henceforth not be
permitted to hold political office."
[Canon Law Made Easy] I see more than a little Drinamyte in the Jesuit
endorsement of our rogue president.
Spent
six years in junior seminary,(not Jesuit) wanting to be a Jesuit so bad
I could taste it. Applied at the seminaries I could maybe afford, but I
didn't have a chance, because of my schoolwork. My tested IQ (154) was
borderline, my sat's (640 english, 720 math)were, well, just OK, and my
grades sucked(I hated being in a classroom), so not a chance. Money
could have fixed these issues, but I didn't have that either. I would
still give an arm and all of my teeth to be able to sign SJ after my
name. - Billy
Rubin
All
developed countries in the world have immigration laws.... There is
nothing in the Bible to prohibit a country from having completely open
borders or to have completely closed borders. Romans 13:1-7
also gives the government the authority to punish lawbreakers. Whether
the punishment is imprisonment and/or deportation, or even something
more severe, it is within the rights of the government to determine.
Liberal Tricks
So, this statement by the Jesuits infers conditions that
simply do not exist in this country. Again, I can't help but
question
motive.
“The President
has exercised his constitutional discretion to
prioritize immigration enforcement resources, while offering a process
by which some of the 11 million undocumented may apply for a temporary
reprieve. Meanwhile, Congressional leaders must complete the
urgent and necessary work of permanently fixing our unjust and broken
immigration system.”
How, pray tell, is our legislated immigration
policy unjust? If it's broken, blame Eric Holder for breaking it by prosecuting states like Arizona for trying to uphold the law. It's that law that Obamunists have been violating. It's they who
ignore our written Constitution and immigration laws by fiat! If
the
Jesuits are to be consistent, they ought be demanding rebellion against
this tyrannical Obama government. Or, maybe just STFU.
JMJ
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