Resolution Number: 2018-D009
Title: Set Forth Christian Principles to Guide Responses to Human Migration
Legislative Action Taken: Concurred as Amended
Final Text:

Resolved, That the 79th General Convention of The Episcopal Church recognize that human migration has always been part of the human condition, and that human migration will continue in future, and will likely increase due to any number of variables including the effects of climate change on human habitat, economic instability, or ongoing war and conflict, and remembering the call in both Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to welcome the stranger, building stronger and more diverse community: “You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19) and “I was a stranger, and you welcomed me; …. Truly I tell you, just as you did it to the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Matthew 25: 35, 40); and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention set forth these principles to guide our church’s response to human migration, including internal migration, in the future:

  1. We recognize the fundamental human rights of all people as expressed in our Baptismal Covenant and we reaffirm that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights applies to all refugees and both regular and irregular migrants;
  2. We remember that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were refugees, as they were forced to flee into a foreign land to escape violence;
  3. We call on all governments to keep their commitments and legal obligations to respect the rights and dignity of all people, including access to justice and social services, while recognizing the complexity of developing just immigration policies in any country, and the legitimate need to protect borders and address security threats to sovereign nations;
  4. We commit the church to learning and engaging migration issues as part of the Jesus Movement, sacredly holding the voices and leadership of migrants themselves and honoring their leadership in this process;
  5. We will endeavor to learn and address root causes of migration and advocate for just solutions with Anglican/Episcopal, ecumenical, and interfaith partners;
  6. We acknowledge the connection between U.S. policies, and the policies of other states, and the root drivers of migration, including climate change, armed conflict, and disruption of local economies through global trade policies;
  7. We stress the importance of demonstrating hospitality and welcome as Christian values at the local level, preaching hospitality and positive storytelling to overcome xenophobia;
  8. We insist that the United States of America and other powerful, wealthy nations, and all nations to the best of their ability, contribute to resettlement, establish and maintain safe and orderly humanitarian protection for refugees, internally displaced persons, and other migrants seeking long-term solutions and safety;
  9. We call on all nations to maintain family unity and safety during migration;
  10. We insist that economic and foreign relationships among governments should not increase the need of migration due to economic hardships, persecution, and violence;
  11. We insist that governments strive to maintain conditions which are conducive to internal stability and employment opportunity;
  12. In the event that people are forced to migrate, we insist that our governments address the drivers holistically, without racial, ethnic, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental ability, health status, or religious prejudice;
  13. We insist that our governments adhere to the internationally accepted principle known as non-refoulement, that stipulates that countries should not return migrants and refugees to unsafe conditions in their home countries or other countries;
  14. We recognize the links between migrants in vulnerable transit situations and human trafficking and other dangers, and will seek to establish and maintain robust, safe, and orderly routes for refugees;
  15. We urge governments to expand refugee resettlement as a humanitarian response that offers individuals safety and opportunity;
  16. We recognize that displacement due to climate change already happens and will increase, and we insist that our governments and the international community must commit to development of long-term protection solutions for persons displaced by climate change; and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention recognize the process underway at the United Nations to establish a Global Compact on Refugees,[i] and a Global Compact on Migration, processes that have included advocacy by The Episcopal Church Representative to the UN and by the Office of Government Relations Refugee and Immigration Policy Advisor; and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention urge the Office of the Presiding Bishop to ensure continued representation of The Episcopal Church at the United Nations and other multinational consultations with faith communities on refugee and migrant issues, alongside the Anglican Communion Office, Lutheran World Federation, and other ecumenical and interfaith partners in responding to the global refugee crisis; and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention encourage all congregations and dioceses to learn about the intricacies of migration, including root causes through the resources provided by Episcopal Migration Ministries and its Partners in Welcome network and engage in aiding migrants to the best of their ability.

Citation: General Convention, Journal of the General Convention of...The Episcopal Church, Austin, 2018 (New York: General Convention, 2018), pp. 1065-1067.

Legislative History

Author: Ms. Helena Mbele-Mbong
Originating House: House of Deputies
Originating Committee: Social Justice and International Policy

House of Deputies

The House of Deputies Committee on Social Justice and International Policy presented its Report #18 on Resolution D009 (Christian Principles for Responding to Human Migration) and moved adoption with amendment.

Original Text of Resolution:

(D009)

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That the 79th General Convention of The Episcopal Church recognize that human migration has always been part of the human condition, and that human migration will continue in future, and will likely increase due to the effects of climate change on human habitat, remembering the call in both Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to welcome the stranger: “You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19) and “I was a stranger, and you welcomed me; …. Truly I tell you, just as you did it to the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:35, 40); and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention set forth these principles to guide our church’s response to human migration in the future:

  1. We recognize the complexity of developing just immigration policies in any country, and we acknowledge the legitimate need to protect borders and address security threats to sovereign nations;
  2. We commit the church to learning and engaging migration issues as part of the Jesus Movement, uplifting the voices and leadership of migrants themselves in this process;
  3. We will endeavor to learn and address root causes of migration and develop just solutions with Anglican/Episcopal, ecumenical, and interfaith partners;
  4. We acknowledge the connection between U.S. policies, and the policies of other powerful and wealthy states, and the root causes of migration, including climate change, armed conflict, and disruption of local economies through global trade policies;
  5. We insist that the United States of America and other powerful, wealthy nations, and all nations to the best of their ability, contribute to resettlement and establishing and maintaining safe and orderly humanitarian protection for refugees, internally displaced persons, and other migrants seeking long-term solutions and safety, demanding that our governments uphold their international legal obligations and maintain a focus on ensuring humanitarian protections for refugees and protections for the rights and dignity of all migrants, including the basic principle of keeping families together;
  6. We insist that all our governments strive to create conditions both at home and abroad where people are not forced to migrate due to economic conditions, persecution, and violence; but that when people are forced to migrate, our governments address these root causes holistically, without racial, ethnic, or religious prejudice;
  7. We insist that our governments not return migrants and refugees to unsafe conditions in their home countries or other countries;
  8. We recognize the links between migrants in vulnerable transit situations and human trafficking and other dangers, and will seek to establish and maintain robust, safe, and orderly routes for refugees to be resettled, contributing our own treasure and time to this project;
  9. We recognize that displacement due to climate change is likely to increase, and that while climate change refugees may not meet the currently recognized definition of refugee status, we insist that that our governments and the international community must commit to development of long-term protection solutions for persons displaced by climate change.

And be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention recognize the process underway at the United Nations to establish a Global Compact on Refugees, and a Global Compact on Migration, processes that have included participation of the TEC Representative to the UN and recommendations from the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities (JLI); and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention urge the Presiding Bishop to ensure continued representation of him and The Episcopal Church in United Nations and other multinational consultations with faith communities on refugee and migrant issues, alongside the Anglican Communion Office, Lutheran World Service, and other partners in responding to the global refugee crisis; and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention encourage all congregations and dioceses to learn about the intricacies of migration and become engaged in aiding migrants to the best of their ability.

Committee Amendment:

Resolved, the House of Bishops concurring, That the 79th General Convention of The Episcopal Church recognize that human migration has always been part of the human condition, and that human migration will continue in future, and will likely increase due to any number of variables including the effects of climate change on human habitat, economic instability, or ongoing war and conflict, and remembering the call in both Hebrew and Christian Scriptures to welcome the stranger, building stronger and more diverse community: “You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:19) and “I was a stranger, and you welcomed me; …. Truly I tell you, just as you did it to the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Matthew 25: 35, 40); and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention set forth these principles to guide our church’s response to human migration, including internal migration, in the future:

  1. We recognize the fundamental human rights of all people as expressed in our Baptismal Covenant and we reaffirm that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights applies to all refugees and both regular and irregular migrants;
  2. We remember that Mary, Joseph, and Jesus were refugees, as they were forced to flee into a foreign land to escape violence;
  3. We call on all governments to keep their commitments and legal obligations to respect the rights and dignity of all people, including access to justice and social services, while recognizing We recognize the complexity of developing just immigration policies in any country, and we acknowledge acknowledging the legitimate need to protect borders and address security threats to sovereign nations;
  4. We commit the church to learning and engaging migration issues as part of the Jesus Movement, uplifting sacredly holding the voices and leadership of migrants themselves and honoring their leadership in this process;
  5. We will endeavor to learn and address root causes of migration and develop advocate for just solutions with Anglican/Episcopal, ecumenical, and interfaith partners;
  6. We acknowledge the connection between U.S. policies, and the policies of other powerful and wealthy states, and the root causes drivers of migration, including climate change, armed conflict, and disruption of local economies through global trade policies;
  7. We stress the importance of demonstrating hospitality and welcome as Christian values at the local level, preaching hospitality and positive storytelling to overcome xenophobia;
  8. We insist that the United States of America and other powerful, wealthy nations, and all nations to the best of their ability, contribute to resettlement, and establishing and maintaining safe and orderly humanitarian protection for refugees, internally displaced persons, and other migrants seeking long-term solutions and safety; , demanding that our governments uphold their international legal obligations and maintain a focus on ensuring humanitarian protections for refugees and protections for the rights and dignity of all migrants, including the basic principle of keeping families together;
  9. We call on all nations to maintain family unity and safety during migration;
  10. We insist that economic and foreign relationships among governments should not increase the need of migration due to economic hardships, persecution, and violence;
  11. We insist that governments strive to maintain conditions which are conducive to internal stability and employment opportunity;
  12. We insist that all our governments strive to create conditions both at home and abroad where people are not forced to migrate due to economic conditions, persecution, and violence; but that when people are forced to migrate, our governments address these root causes holistically, without racial, ethnic, or religious prejudice; but that when In the event that people are forced to migrate, we insist that our governments address these the root causes drivers holistically, without racial, ethnic, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, gender identity, physical or mental ability, health status, or religious prejudice;
  13. We insist that our governments adhere to the internationally accepted principle known as non-refoulement, that stipulates that countries should not return migrants and refugees to unsafe conditions in their home countries or other countries;
  14. We recognize the links between migrants in vulnerable transit situations and human trafficking and other dangers, and will seek to establish and maintain robust, safe, and orderly routes for refugees; to be resettled, contributing our own treasure and time to this project;
  15. We urge governments to expand refugee resettlement as a humanitarian response that offers individuals safety and opportunity;
  16. We recognize that displacement due to climate change is likely to already happens and will increase, and that while climate change refugees may not meet the currently recognized definition of refugee status,we insist that that our governments and the international community must commit to development of long-term protection solutions for persons displaced by climate change;

and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention recognize the process underway at the United Nations to establish a Global Compact on Refugees,[i] and a Global Compact on Migration, processes that have included participation of advocacy by the TEC The Episcopal Church Representative to the UN and by the Office of Government Relations Refugee and Immigration Policy Advisor; and recommendations from the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities (JLI);[ii] and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention urge the Office of the Presiding Bishop to ensure continued representation of him and The Episcopal Church in at the United Nations and other multinational consultations with faith communities on refugee and migrant issues, alongside the Anglican Communion Office, Lutheran World Service Federation, and other ecumenical and interfaith partners in responding to the global refugee crisis; and be it further

Resolved, That this General Convention encourage all congregations and dioceses to learn about the intricacies of migration, including root causes through the resources provided by Episcopal Migration Ministries and its Partners in Welcome network and become engaged engage in aiding migrants to the best of their ability.

Motion carried

Resolution adopted with amendment

(Communicated to the House of Bishops in HD Message #210)

House of Bishops

The House of Bishops Committee on Social Justice and International Policy presented its Report #11 on HD Message #210 on Resolution D009 (Christian Principles for Responding to Human Migration) and moved concurrence.

Motion carried

The House concurred

(Communicated to the House of Deputies in HB Message #320)

Resolution Concurred by Both Houses, July 12.

Source Document:   United Nations, Global Compact on Refugees
     Source Citation: https://www.unhcr.org/gcr/GCR_English.pdf.   Last accessed 01/29/2020.
Abstract:   The 79th General Convention establishes principles to guide the church’s response to human migration, urges Episcopal bodies to continue existing advocacy and consultations with UN and ecumenical bodies to respond to the global refugee crisis.