Torch, Spring/Summer 2012

have anything like that in Europe.” Five years later, Germany was exterminating its Jewish citizens. Bonhoeffer had to decide how he would respond to both the government leaders and Lutheran leaders who were supporting Hitler. Bonhoeffer acted on these three principles: 1. Help the state be the state God has ordained. In other words, speak to the issues that must be spoken to with biblical compassion and biblical justice. 2. Aid the victims of the state. In Bonhoeffer’s context, it meant standing by the Jews. In our context, it’s acknowledging that an immigrant, even an undocumented worker, is my brother. It means recognizing that the immigration system is unevenly applied. While most recognize the need for a new law, politicians argue over who should get the credit. As a result, politicians have failed to pass laws that give immigrants some legal status. This vacillation exposes immigrants to abuse. Organizations like Immigrant Hope assuage the pain by sharing the Gospel, providing legal advice, and showing compassion. 3. Put a stick in the spokes. Don’t simply bandage the victims under the wheel, but put a stop to ongoing injury. Bonhoeffer chose to oppose the state by becoming part of a plot to kill Hitler, which ultimately got him killed. We are nowhere near this point on the immigration issue, but Bonhoeffer’s actions show he was willing to defend with his life what he knew was right. A Ready Harvest The United States is already the world’s third largest mission field. In 2006, the 300 millionth American was born. According to statisticians, it was a Hispanic male living on the border of Texas. Seventeen of the 20 largest American cities, and our four largest states, are already majority-minority. The American Church can no longer afford to ignore the “Samerica” that is growing around us. People often ask me, “Why are the immigrants coming?” The Bible tells me exactly why: “He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us” (Acts 17:26–27). For all of the missions effort in Mexico — for the billions of dollars given, lives invested, buildings raised — the percentage of professing evangelicals in that country is 4 percent, according to Christianity Today . Yet a 2012 Pew Hispanic Center report suggests that when Mexican immigrants come here, that percentage increases to 13. Imagine the increase if the Church began to intentionally reach out and show them Christ. God is at work. In the book of Philemon, Paul encounters a runaway slave. Paul responds by loving him, sharing the Gospel with him, and discipling him. He sends Onesimus back with a letter — part of God’s eternal Word — that exhorts Philemon, because of love, to treat this man like a brother (verse 16), and to charge Paul’s account to repay the man’s past debts (verse 18). When the Church has shown this type of love, then we truly can say we have done all that we could do. Dr. Alejandro Mandes is director of Hispanic ministries for the Evangelical Free Church in America and the executive director of Immigrant Hope. He lives in San Antonio, Texas, with his wife, Julie. He received his B.A. and M.S. from The University of Texas at Austin and his Th.M. and D.Min. from Dallas Theological Seminary. Spring-Summer 2012 | TORCH 7