The Life We Hunger For

Immigration has, once again (and as it often does), become an inescapable topic of public discussion across North America.    

In Canada, surveys show that “Canadians are now significantly more likely than [two years] ago to say there is too much immigration to the country, dramatically reversing a trend dating back decades,” and a growing number of Canadians are blaming the housing shortage on increased immigration (even as experts caution that this doesn’t give a complete picture). In the United States, a presidential candidate’s primary talking points revolve around drastically cutting immigration numbers and he regularly stokes fear of newcomers (even as the stories are refuted by public officials in the communities in question). Across the continent, there seems to be movement towards greater suspicion, greater restriction, and a less hospitable welcome. 

As the discussion moves beyond media and into my social circles, or dinner table, or workplace, or church coffee hour, I’ve been asking myself how to participate well as a follower of Jesus – especially when some of my instinct is either to avoid (because hiding or silence seems easiest) or entrench (without truly engaging the conversation).  

But when I stop long enough to consider the question of Christian engagement in full, I find the Holy Spirit pushing against these instincts, reminding me that we are called to “stretch toward shalom” (to use the words of Mike Hogeterp): to work for wholeness, and flourishing, and restoration.  

As the Spirit pushes me to examine what “stretching toward shalom” might look like here, I’ve frequently returned to the words of Chuck DeGroat, Professor of Pastoral Care and Christian Spirituality at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Michigan, and Executive Director of the school’s Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program. A few years ago, Dr. DeGroat shared some words on X – formerly Twitter – that have stayed with me (at least small proof that social media still has some redeeming qualities and voices worth a follow): 

I love the eight qualities of true self in Internal Family Systems theory: calmness, curiosity, clarity, compassion, confidence, creativity, courage, connectedness.  In this inner space, we're in sync with the Spirit and deeply connected to others.  It's the life we hunger for...

It seems to me that Dr. DeGroat’s words and vision for “the life we hunger for” are deeply Christian. And I suspect that the Apostle Paul, with his words to the churches in Galatia about the fruit of the Spirit, would agree. 

So then: if we were to be “in sync with the Spirit” as we each personally considered the discourse around immigration in our own contexts, how might we approach that discourse differently? How might the “eight qualities of true self” that Dr. DeGroat lists inform the questions we ask?  

Here’s my attempt at a response: 

1. Calmness: in a frenzied environment that is often filled with angry voices and half-truths (on any “side” of the spectrum), what would it sound like to be the calm, non-anxious voice, calling people to restorative dialogue? 

2. Curiosity: what questions – especially hard ones – do we need to ask of ourselves, of others, and of the situation? Especially questions that challenge the positions we each hold? And how can we approach those we disagree with on immigration with a wondering posture, rather than with anger or defensiveness? 

3. Clarity: what are the realities of immigration – both causes and effects, and “pushes” and “pulls” – and where can we look for reliable sources of information that don’t only reinforce the walls of our own echo chambers? What are our own biases that we bring into the discussion, or into how we read a news article? Who can we trust to help us honestly name these biases (since it is often difficult for us to fully recognize them in ourselves)?  

4. Compassion: in a conversation that tends to demonize rather than humanize, how can we maintain compassion both for those looking for safety or a more hopeful future and for those who are afraid of the pressures of immigration on their communities?  

5. Confidence: amid the important questions above, how might we remain confident in our faith and in our call to “do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with God”? And remain confident in Jesus and God’s new creation instead of in scarcity, protectionism, or self-sufficiency?  

6. Creativity: what are imaginative approaches, both to dialogue and to displacement, that bring us beyond hopelessness? How might we re-imagine home, welcome, and community?  

7. Courage: what does it sound like to be a courageous voice in our own context, especially if we’re the lone voice in a sea of outrage, dismissiveness, or apathy? How do we reach out to “the other,” whoever they may be?  

8. Connectedness: how can we remain connected not only with those who share our citizenship, but also with those who countries have become places of death or despair? How might we call each other to remember that we are all image bearers of God?  

And how might we work together? For even as we seek to keep in step with the Spirit and examine our own hearts, responses to these questions will require far more than just an individual response. The questions of immigration, displacement, welcome, and community-building require collective commitment and collaborative effort.  

In Canada, decades of poor policy on housing and healthcare that lead to the scapegoating of immigrants and refugees will not be reversed simply by our own personal reflection. In the United States, the kind of polarization that allows false rhetoric to gain traction will not be diminished solely by individual action.  

This will take each of us, and will require our broad range of experience and interests and skill sets. And it will take hard, faithful work. But this work is a hopeful perseverance - a “long obedience in the same direction” – that will, I believe, bear the best kind of fruit for us all.   

Are you in Canada and interested in putting some of these questions into concrete action? Consider participating in our advocacy campaign encouraging the Canadian government to remain committed to welcoming refugees as it sets its immigration levels target for the coming years. 

Photo by Anna Tukhfatullina Food Photographer/Stylis