I am against denying refugees the rights to America’s soil and my neighborhood. These are not people who hate America, hate Christians and vow to destroy our way of life; they are people desperately fleeing an atrocious war. Perhaps these leaders should refer to Jesus’ order to love our enemies and persecutors. Why would He give such instructions? Because we are not to be overcome by evil, but to overcome evil with good. This is a matter of loving your neighbor — not only the people who share your values, but the people you encounter daily, especially those hungry for the gospel.
We owe it to our posterity to make good decisions. And opening up our country to tens of thousands of refugees who have been carefully examined and deemed nonthreatening will demonstrate America’s self-proclaimed Christian values and better our children’s future.
Yes some refugees are indeed people who are willing to give their lives for Allah, just as we claim we are willing to give our lives for Christ. Their religion does not cause them to hate Christians; our religion should not cause us to hate Muslims. In fact quite the opposite.
Why fear the construction of mosques? What a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate Jesus in the way we welcome our new Muslim neighbors.
What these leaders who are against allowing refugees in are communicating is, “I believe that Christ died for me and commanded me to reflect His great love for His people by, quite simply, loving His people. I know that this is a perfect opportunity to not only tell you about Jesus, but show you Jesus. However, you are the enemy, and you are not welcome here.”
Lauren Deutsch
Tuscaloosa, Ala.
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