Please, let me share with you that over the past few days I found myself looking at several posts on social media that slowly filled my heart with gratitude, hope, and even a bit of joy.
They were photos of friends of mine. Clergy colleagues and lay leaders from different annual conferences, including the Greater New Jersey, who traveled to Washington, D.C. to take part in the Public Witness for Immigrant Justice organized by the United Methodist Church.
Seeing them there meant more to me than they may realize.
As many of you know, I serve our churches here in the United States as an international pastor. My visa is technically a non-immigrant visa, so actually, I am not an immigrant.
Still, living and serving in a country different from the one where one was born gives you a certain sensitivity. You begin to understand, in a very human way, what it means to cross borders, languages, and cultures.
Because of that, knowing that I belong to a church that stands publicly for the dignity of immigrants and refugees means a great deal to me.
This is not about political parties.
It comes directly from who we are as United Methodists.
Our Book of Discipline, through the Social Principles, reminds us that our faith calls us to both personal and social holiness, lived out through social witness. We believe that every person is created in the image of God and deserves to be treated with dignity, compassion, and justice.
During this season of Lent I cannot help but remember something about our Savior’s own story. The Jesus who called me into ministry began his life as someone displaced. His family traveled because of an imperial census when he was born, and soon after they had to flee to a foreign land to escape Herod’s violence against the children of Bethlehem. In that sense, the Lord we follow knew what it meant to cross borders and to seek safety far from home. Remembering that part of the Gospel story gives even deeper meaning to the church’s call to care for the stranger among us.
So when I saw those photos of prayer, worship, and peaceful witness in Washington, I simply felt grateful.
Grateful for friends who were willing to stand there in faith.
And grateful to belong to a church that continues trying to live the Gospel in the public life of our world.
Thank you.
Warmly,
Rev. David Gaitan
