Nebraska United Methodists and Immigration Reform

Below is a press release sent out across the sate today.

United Methodists weigh in on immigration, LB48 debate

Public witness through banners at Nebraska Conference headquarters in Lincoln

LINCOLN, Neb. -- Those who drive by the Nebraska United Methodist Conference's headquarters at 3333 Landmark Circle in northwest Lincoln will notice two large blue banners on display, one in English and one in Spanish. They read "God's Love Has No Borders! Immigration reform must be just."

Bishop Ann B. Sherer-Simpson, the Immigration Task Force and Common Table of the Nebraska Conference United Methodist Church are speaking out on behalf of vulnerable persons in our state.

In the words of Sherer-Simpson, "There is a clear biblical injunction to care for the widow, the orphan, the sojourner, the stranger in our midst that is repeated over and over in the biblical record. The marginalized, the poor, the victims of poverty, war and circumstances beyond their control are the ones about whom God is most concerned. God cares for the vulnerable among us and calls on us to be God's own people caring for, defending and partnering with the vulnerable among us."

She continued, "The experience of many in Arizona is that a bill, such as LB48 which is being proposed, makes the vulnerable more vulnerable. If we judge whether persons are legal residents because of their nationality or language or country of origin, we are making whole classes of persons more vulnerable. We are tearing the fabric of our common life. I urge us to reject this legislation and to ask our senators and representatives in Washington to frame appropriate and just legislation, reforming our current national immigration policy."

Similar banners are on display at places of worship throughout Lincoln. Before putting banners on their property, Aldersgate United Methodist Church spent four Sundays studying, discussing and worshiping around the theme of biblical justice and how that informs the conversation about immigration.

For more information on the work of the Immigration Task Force of the Nebraska United Methodist Conference, visitwww.umcneb.org/RTMJ.