The Migrant Crisis: An opportunity to respond
The migrant crisis over the summer of 2015 caught many people by surprise. The stories in this edition of Vista are snapshots of how individuals and churches responded, and are continuing to respond, to overwhelming need. They are only a few of hundreds of similar stories happening right across Europe.
As a network of national Evangelical Alliances, the European Evangelical Alliance is attempting to resource and support Christians across the continent who are dealing with the migrant situation.
“First there was the Call to Action , and finding resources to inspire and reassure, such as Bible Studies ‘how to’ tips and our regular prayer updates” explains Julia Doxat-Purser, Socio-political Representative & Religious Liberty Coordinator of the EEA. “Many of the national Alliances are doing a fantastic job with resourcing their nations. Others simply don’t have the capacity or staff to do that. But we are working on creative ways to assist them to enable local churches to pray and to act.”
“While there was shock and concern when the crisis began, in many places Christians are doing magnificent work. It is an amazing opportunity to reach out to the most desperate. The love of Christ is out there in word and deed, and the refugees and many in society are seeing it.
Conversely if Christians are concerned about what is happening we don’t want them to hide it; we have sought to provide resources to help people take their fears to God and think through what it means to help and welcome the stranger among them.”
“Europe has been profoundly shaken, but it has not taken God by surprise”
Beyond the immediate situation, there are also longer term implications. As Julia explains, these are at a political level as well as that of individuals and communities.
“Clearly the numbers of arrivees are not going to stop. There are critical challenges ahead with no clear answers. We don’t want to be naïve about that, and we don’t want our politicians to be naïve either. But some politicians who were always populist and rather too strong in their nationalism are using the crisis as an opportunity. We are concerned about what that might develop into, such as xenophobia towards new arrivals, possibly an over-reaction about security which encroaches on religious freedoms or tensions between nations in Europe.”
“We want Christians to be praying and thinking very carefully about what politicians are saying – to discern where there is truth, and where truth is distorted or communicated unhelpfully. In terms of nationalism, xenophobia, racism and Islamophobia, we believe the church needs to be vigilant and speak up against these things. And we will be better at doing that if we reach out in friendship to these new arrivals so we actually understand them.”
“So while we are not all on the route where the refugees are walking through, or near the railway stations where they arrive, at some point, these people are going to be living in your town. Even the smallest church can do something - if you are a hairdresser, offer to cut people’s hair. If you are a taxi driver, help people get to their appointments with the immigration lawyer. Be aware of the mum in the supermarket who is looking lost and befriend them.”
And where is God in all of this?
“Europe has been profoundly shaken,” says Julia, “but it has not taken God by surprise. He is sovereign, he is at work and he is testing us – the continent, and the church. As a continent, many of us are failing. As a church, we are learning as we go along. We have a responsibility to pray, reach out in friendship and speak out. We claim the sovereignty of God and trust in him but we also cannot afford to ignore what is happening in our continent today.”
Julia Doxat-Purser is Socio-political Representative & Religious Liberty Coordinator of the EEA
Resourcing you:
Resources from the EEA: www.eearefugees.org