Myths of Sanctuary, Immigration, and the Law

This is Father Jared Cramer from St. John’s Episcopal Church in Grand Haven, Michigan, here with today’s edition of Christian Mythbusters, a regular segment I offer to counter some common misconceptions about the Christian faith. There’s been a lot of talk about Sanctuary Cities, both nationally and right here in Grand Haven lately. A lot of that talk is filled with fear, anxiety, and a desire to close doors and build walls. So, I thought I’d use this week’s Christian Mythbusters to unpack some of the myths about sanctuary, breaking the law, and the connection all of this has to Christianity. First, the idea of sanctuary cities comes from the Bible. In ancient Israel, there were six “Cities of Refuge” established by God himself in Numbers 35. The Hebrew word is “miklat” and it can be translated as refuge or asylum. If someone killed another person unintentionally, they could flee to those cities and be kept safe until there could be a just trial to determine guilt. Starting in the 5th century after Christ, churches became places of refuge and sanctuary under canon law, meaning that if someone was accused of a crime but was able to reach a church, they could claim sanctuary and avoid being arrested immediately. (Fun fact, this is the reason why many churches—including my own—have their doors painted red; it’s a symbol of sanctuary.) During the time of the reformation, as the Roman empire gave way to the rise of the nation-state, sanctuary laws were gradually abolished and modern protections like the right to due process were instead put into place. In the early 1980s, the idea of churches as sanctuary was revived because of the many Central American refugees who were fleeing civil conflict. Obtaining asylum (a recognized right for refugees under international law) was increasingly difficult and so churches offered to provide safe haven for refugees until they could receive legal status and safety. This sort of sanctuary is an act of civil disobedience, a choice someone or a group make because of their deeply held religious belief and because they believe that handing refugees over to immigration officials would violate their duty as Christians to care for the least of these. It was this same form of civil disobedience that inspired Christians who worked on the Underground Railroad, breaking the laws of cities, states, and even our own country to protect slaves seeking freedom because people matter as people. Currently, when a city chooses to become a sanctuary city, though, they aren’t actually breaking any laws or engaging in civil disobedience. Rather it simply means that simply be the local police and civil servants don’t work with immigration officials in enforcing immigration law. City employees and officials don’t inquire into or take action based on someone’s immigration status. Basically, it leaves immigration enforcement to ICE and says that the municipality won’t involve ourselves in this question. In fact, you might be surprised to learn that cities aren’t even required by law to do immigration enforcement. The courts have been clear that that is a federal responsibility. Even though the immediate warning people throw out there at this idea is that it would lead to a rise in crime, studies show that’s not the case. In fact, a 2017 study published in the Journal of Urban Economics found that sanctuary policies had no statistically significant impact on crime rates. In fact , in the same year, a report by the Center for American Progress indicated that “Statistical analysis illustrates that across a range of social and economic indicators, sanctuary counties perform better than comparable nonsanctuary counties.” And I will say that, as a Christian, I support the sanctuary movement. I support local governments focusing on caring for their residents instead of doing immigration enforcement. Our current immigration laws and system are broken and based upon the history of racism in our country. And I do believe that we need both civil disobedience on the part of Christians alongside of the refusal of municipalities to cooperate with this unjust system. Thanks for being with me. To find out more about my parish, you can go to sjegh.com. Until next time, remember, protest like Jesus, love recklessly, and live your faith out in a community that accepts you but also challenges you to be better tomorrow than you are today.