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Mormon Church Illegal Immigrants - Mormon Doctrine Studies - Posted: 27th Feb, 2008 - 8:19pm
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Illegal Immigrant Mormons - "Lawmakers should show more compassion" - Could your Bishop or Full-Time Missionary be illegally in the USA and still serve in the Church?Mormon Church And Illegal Immigrants
LDS Church And Illegal Immigrants
Now, isn't this interesting? Is it me or the Church (since Romney has been a Presidential candidate) is becoming more and more "open" on politics and others issues even though we are supposed not to get involved? Read the parts in bold particularly.
QUOTE Amid an increasingly rancorous debate about immigration, LDS leaders have urged Utah representatives to be compassionate in their push for legal reforms.
  "The basic message was that we need to step back, not be so reactive and let cooler heads prevail," said Rep. David Litvack, D-Salt Lake City, who met on Jan. 11 with LDS Apostle M. Russell Ballard and other church officials. "The anti-immigrant community has become hateful and vilifies all undocumented workers." The LDS leaders said, in essence, "We must remember that we are talking about human beings."
  Litvack, House minority whip, considered that valuable advice for lawmakers who are considering a number of anti-immigration bills, including a push to eliminate in-state tuition for children of undocumented immigrants.
  Though many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including presidential candidate Mitt Romney, take a hard-line view of any people in the country illegally, others believe kindness fits better with the church's beliefs about treating strangers as if they were Jesus himself. They say a compassionate stance also is less hypocritical for the church, whose early members were almost all immigrants. Today, many of Utah's estimated 100,000 undocumented immigrants likely are LDS.
  The church remains neutral on immigration legislation, said spokesman Scott Trotter, but it does send missionaries among undocumented immigrants, baptizing many of them without ever asking about their status. It also allows them to go to the temple and on missions.
  "The blessings of the [LDS] Church are available to anyone who qualifies for and accepts the Gospel of Jesus Christ," Trotter said. "Federal law allows undocumented persons to provide volunteer church service, including missionary service, within the United States."
  The church has more than 500 foreign-language units in the U.S., made up almost entirely of first-generation immigrants.
  "I look back on dozens of people we taught and baptized, and I personally can't think of one who did have legal status," said Rebecca van Uitert, an LDS immigration attorney in New York City who was a Spanish-speaking Mormon missionary in rural southern California from 1998 to 2000. "There were even some undocumented bishops and stake presidents. Basically, everyone was undocumented."
  "The basic message was that we need to step back, not be so reactive and let cooler heads prevail," said Rep. David Litvack, D-Salt Lake City, who met on Jan. 11 with LDS Apostle M. Russell Ballard and other church officials. "The anti-immigrant community has become hateful and vilifies all undocumented workers." The LDS leaders said, in essence, "We must remember that we are talking about human beings."
  Litvack, House minority whip, considered that valuable advice for lawmakers who are considering a number of anti-immigration bills, including a push to eliminate in-state tuition for children of undocumented immigrants.
  Though many members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including presidential candidate Mitt Romney, take a hard-line view of any people in the country illegally, others believe kindness fits better with the church's beliefs about treating strangers as if they were Jesus himself. They say a compassionate stance also is less hypocritical for the church, whose early members were almost all immigrants. Today, many of Utah's estimated 100,000 undocumented immigrants likely are LDS.
  The church remains neutral on immigration legislation, said spokesman Scott Trotter, but it does send missionaries among undocumented immigrants, baptizing many of them without ever asking about their status. It also allows them to go to the temple and on missions.
  "The blessings of the [LDS] Church are available to anyone who qualifies for and accepts the Gospel of Jesus Christ," Trotter said. "Federal law allows undocumented persons to provide volunteer church service, including missionary service, within the United States."
  The church has more than 500 foreign-language units in the U.S., made up almost entirely of first-generation immigrants.
  "I look back on dozens of people we taught and baptized, and I personally can't think of one who did have legal status," said Rebecca van Uitert, an LDS immigration attorney in New York City who was a Spanish-speaking Mormon missionary in rural southern California from 1998 to 2000. "There were even some undocumented bishops and stake presidents. Basically, everyone was undocumented."
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Immigrants Illegal Church Mormon
Sometimes I do not understand the position the Church is taking on things. On one hand we emphasize to obey the law of the land and on the other hand we are giving leadership callings to Members who are there illegal and breaking the laws of the land in real time?
Mormon Church And Illegal Immigrants Studies Doctrine Mormon
Someone wrote a letter to the Salt Lake Tribune about this issue, what do you think?
| QUOTE |
| My first question regarding the front-page story, "LDS Church urges lawmaker compassion in addressing illegal immigration" (Tribune, Jan. 24) is why on God's green Earth are we looking to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for guidance regarding our immigration policies? Since when is any church the authority on secular regulations? Whatever happened to asking the people of the state, and not a private religious entity, for guidance on public policy? If LDS leaders wish to become champions of illegal immigrants by baptizing undocumented persons, from whatever country, and sending them on missions as their representatives, then perhaps they ought to also fund their medical insurance, housing subsidies, food stamps and welfare payments. It's all well and good to welcome someone to your fold, but when they are actively breaking the law of the country that gives the LDS Church its freedom, it's a slap in the face to all Americans who worked hard, immigrated legally and built a life. It has nothing to do with treating immigrants as humans. It's about being fair. Connie A. Anast Murray |
Post Date: 15th Feb, 2008 - 8:05pm / Post ID: #
NOTE: News [?]
Immigrants Illegal Church Mormon
Compassion call could affect immigration bills
A call from the LDS Church for compassion on the issue of illegal immigration has many immigrant rights advocates hoping for a potential reprieve from legislators who are debating a large slate of bills addressing the issue.
Ref. https://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695253341,00.html
Immigrants Illegal Church Mormon
I am really trying hard to understand the Church position on this matter. First of all, I think the Church as a Religious group should not get involve in the matter or try to influence politicians on the issue by indirectly given statements on illegal immigrants. It goes against our Articles of Faith about being honest and sustaining the Law so how can we possibly call illegal immigrants as Bishops or allow them to hold Temple Recommends?
Mormon Church And Illegal Immigrants
I am surprised some of you have not responded to this thread as yet. Did anyone read the remarks by Elder Marlin K. Jensen of the Seventies? He said "the church's view of someone in undocumented status is akin, in a way, to a civil trespass. There is nothing inherent or wrong about that status."
Also, Deseret Morning News (in the same article) asked one of the Church spokesmen that "Some members can't reconcile church membership and illegal status, particularly in light of one of the church's Articles of Faith that states, "We believe ... in obeying, honoring and sustaining the law."
The reply of the spokeman (Tuttle) was: "I wonder how they'd feel about the second great commandment, to love thy neighbor as thyself. It's not an answer to your question, but it's another question. Sometimes it's hard to do them all," Tuttle said.
https://deseretnews.com/article/1,5143,695253342,00.html
Are we all nuts? 
Mormon Church Illegal Immigrants
My biggest question with this is where do you draw the line?
Someone has a traffic ticket and you may say that this should not matter with regards to callings, but supposed that traffic ticket came because of reckless driving where the person was grossly inconsiderate, then is just for it to be considered as negligible when the question of worthiness comes up? You may ask why, well... can you really love your neighbor and still try to hurt them while driving? Bad driving can kill, being a road hog can mame, seems serious to me.
Therefore is entering a country illegally any less or more serious? In my opinion having a person PURPOSELY stay hidden, go against the laws of the land, steal jobs, not pay taxes and in many cases leech on the system is very serious. Suppose that person that comes across the border is a criminal with no checks made to stop him, he ends up getting a calling.
I am surprised none of our US LDS folk within this Community have responded to this as yet as the issue will affect them mostly. Perhaps they are scared about the end result of doing so (LDS Musican).
Mormon Church Illegal Immigrants Mormon Doctrine Studies
I live in Southern Arizona where this topic holds some significance and I definitely have strong opinions about and against illegal immigration. But I would disagree with those who are LDS (Rep. David Litvack) that are characterizing those who have some issues with Illegal immigration "The anti-immigrant community (who) has become hateful and vilifies all undocumented workers."
I have no ill will against illegal immigrants. They are children of God and I love them as I would any other individual. I would never vilify people who are trying to better their lives. I am sympathetic to their desire to live a better life,and I would in fact try to cross the border if I were them.
But I do believe a country has the right to enforce its borders without being called hateful. I hope the Church does not actually come out and state a political view on this topic, as I feel I might have some disagreements with that view. I hope that they state their view on this as a matter of opinion rather then codified doctrine.
If it did come out as doctrine it may be one of those situations where my personal political beliefs may conflict with the Church's stance, a situation that has not yet occurred in my life
| Rather off topic, but... I have a situation where I have personally seen the internal conflict that can arise from this topic I am a leader in the 11 year old boy scouts troop and one of the requirements to enter is to have a valid Social Security Card and it has kept some people from joining the Scouts (as one of the boys does not have proof of citizenship). I am having a conflict with this as I do not want to stop a boy from progressing, just because he is not a citizen. He is a great kid. I guess it will work out in the end. |
TOPIC: Mormon Church And Illegal Immigrants