Complicit Christians

For the past several nights, I have been awakened by an obsessive-type of anger about the lack of anger and resistance exhibited by members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Later-Day Saints. Maybe it has something to do with the news of a new leader of the Church being confirmed, or the fact that Senator Jeff Flake finally stood up for something by condemning the President on the continual attack against the media, or maybe it’s about time I write how disgusted I am at Mormons (and Christians for that matter) at their lack of compassion for the plight of immigrants.

Have members of the Mormon Church forgotten the history of persecution during the early days of the Church’s organization? How their ancestors’ houses were burned, women were raped, members were killed, and their leaders were tarred and feathered. And how they, as a people, were chased out of state after state, denied their constitutional rights to liberty, the ability to practice their religion, and live a life in pursuit of happiness. Do they not remember that there was an 1838 extermination order given by Governor Lilburn Boggs in the state of Missouri (Missouri Executive Order 44) that gave license to kill members of the Mormon Church? It stated, "…the Mormons must be treated as enemies, and must be exterminated or driven from the State if necessary for the public peace—their outrages are beyond all description."

With the above being said, why aren’t Later-Day Saints, including their leaders, making more public statements in support of immigrants? Why are Mormons’ complicit with letting many Republican leaders wage war on Dreamers and refugees, those fleeing disaster-torn countries or political unrest, and support political leaders who are persecuting the modern-day version of themselves?

From what I’ve seen on the news, at least here in Texas, the only religious opposition to the current political “America First” insistence on immigration reform comes from the Pope; but even the Pope’s comments are dismissed by hardline GOP comments stating the reason the Pope is concerned with immigration is because a majority of Catholics come from many poor Hispanic countries. All I can say is shame. Shame on our government leaders, and shame on Mormons and Christians that support them in this philosophy.

We, as human beings, should be concerned about the welfare of other human beings—this is what Christians have prided themselves on as they preach the bible story of the Good Samaritan or recite the Beatitudes; yet, so many citizens in our country have been swept up in this false belief that we need to be concerned only with ourselves, so we ignore the basic principals in the bible and twist it to a version where the Samaritan is the victim and the poor should be reviled. It is our job to care for others by sharing what we have—whether it’s our country, our food, or our money. It is only through compassion that we will be able to make America great again.