Harold Smith
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Harold Smith
Promoting Illegal Immigration & Refugee Resettlement
Harold Smith signed a letter to President Trump written by World Relief.[1] titled "Top evangelical leaders and pastors from all 50 states urge action to help vulnerable immigrants" which lamented a decrease in refugees entering the United States, and requested amnesty for DACA recipients.
Letter
- "Dear President Trump and Members of Congress,
- "As Christian leaders, we have a commitment to caring for the vulnerable in our churches while also supporting just, compassionate and welcoming policies toward refugees and other immigrants. The Bible speaks clearly and repeatedly to God’s love and concern for the vulnerable, and also challenges us to think beyond our nationality, ethnicity or religion when loving our neighbor.
- "We are committed to praying for you, our elected leaders, just as Scripture mandates (1 Timothy 2:1-2). In particular, we pray that you will not forget the following people as you craft our nation’s laws and policies:
- "Dreamers. Roughly 700,000 young people are poised to lose their right to work lawfully in the U.S., not to mention their dreams of a future in this country—the country they were brought to as children, without choice. Our prayer is that these young people would be allowed to continue contributing to our society without fear of deportation.
- "Refugees. We are troubled by the dramatic reduction in arrivals of refugees to the United States, which declined from 96,874 in 2016 to just 33,368 in 2017. Based on arrivals so far in this fiscal year, the United States is on track to admit the lowest number of refugees since the formalization of the U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program in 1980. This, at a time when there are more refugees in the world than ever before in recorded history. Our prayer is that the U.S. would continue to be a beacon of hope for those fleeing persecution.
- "Persecuted Christians. Refugees of all faiths and nationalities deserve our welcome, for they (like all human beings) are made in the image of God. We are particularly aware, though, of the Christian refugees and other minorities facing persecution in countries like Iraq, Iran and Syria. Admission of Christian refugees to the U.S. from these three countries has declined by 60%. We pray that those facing religious persecution would be protected overseas as well as in the U.S.
- "Families Waiting for Reunification. God ordained the family as the cornerstone of society, and we believe that our country is stronger when our citizens can be quickly reunited with their close family members. For some U.S. citizens, the waiting period can be years or even decades. We pray you will respect the unity of the family.
- "We are mindful of the difficulty of serving in public office and are grateful for your service. We ask that God would grant you wisdom and courage as you confront these and various other complex policy issues in the days and months ahead.
Signatories
- Leith Anderson, National Association of Evangelicals
- Beth Moore, Living Proof Ministries
- Russell Moore, Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission
- Matthew Chandler, The Village Church
- Andy Crouch, Author & Speaker
- Max Lucado, Oak Hills Church
- Samuel Rodriguez, National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference
- Bill Hybels & Lynne Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church
- Gabriel Salguero, National Latino Evangelical Coalition
- Scott Sauls, Christ Presbyterian Church
- Ed Stetzer, Wheaton College
- Kenton Beshore & Laurie Beshore, Mariners Church
- Jen Hatmaker, Austin New Church
- Shirley Hoogstra, Council for Christian Colleges & Universities
- Cal Jernigan & Lisa Jernigan, Central Christian Church
- Karen Swallow Prior, Professor of English, Liberty University
- Ann Voskamp, We Welcome Refugees
- Jud Wilhite, Central Church
- Bryant Wright, Johnson Ferry Baptist
- Thabiti Anyabwile, Anacostia River Church
- Jay Barnes, Bethel University
- Peter Barnes, First Presbyterian Church
- Stephan Bauman, Author, Seeking Refuge
- William Bohline, Hosanna! Lutheran Church
- Carol Bremer-Bennett, World Renew
- Chad Bruegman, Red Rocks Church
- Noel Castellanos, Christian Community Development Association
- Joseph Castleberry, Northwest University
- Rob Cattalani, Browncroft Community Church
- Eugene Cho, Quest Church
- Shane Claiborne, Red Letter Christians
- Eric Costanzo, South Tulsa Baptist Church
- Alan Cureton, University of Northwestern - St. Paul
- Dharius Daniels, Change Church
- Wilfredo de Jesus, New Life Covenant Church
- Chris Dolson, Blackhawk Church
- Scott Dudley, Bellevue Presbyterian Church
- Matt Erickson, Eastbrook Church
- Dave Ferguson, Community Christian Church
- Micah Fries, Brainerd Baptist Church
- Mike Goldsworthy, Parkcrest Christian Church
- Lance Hahn, Bridgeway Christian Church
- Ron Hamilton, Conservative Congregational Christian Conference
- Matt Hammett & Roxanne Hammett, Flood Church
- Alec Hill, Author & Speaker
- Brad Hoffmann, Cool Spring Baptist Church
- Cole Huffman, First Evangelical Church
- Hyepin Im, Faith and Community Empowerment (formerly Korean Churches for Community Development)
- Kent Ingle, Southeastern University
- Dean Inserra, City Church Tallahassee
- John Jenkins, First Baptist Church of Glenarden
- Joe Johns, Fellowship Missionary Church
- Tim Johnson, Life Center Foursquare Church
- Tyler Johnson, Redemption Church
- Paul Kim, Redeemer Presbyterian Church - San Diego
- Josh Kouri, Frontline Church
- Duke Kwon, Grace Meridian Hill
- Jo Anne Lyon, The Wesleyan Church
- Marc Maillefer, Door Creek Church
- Kevin Maloney, Grace Road Church
- Michael McClenahan, Solana Beach Presbyterian Church
- Rick McKinley, Imago Dei Community
- James Merritt, Cross Pointe Church
- Jon Middendorf, OKC First Church of the Nazarene
- Stephen Montgomery, Idlewild Presbyterian Church
- Steve Moore, nexleader
- Latasha Morrison, Be the Bridge
- Richard Mouw, Fuller Theological Seminary
- Shirley Mullen, Houghton College
- Rich Nathan, Vineyard Columbus
- Carl Nelson, Transform Minnesota
- Tsh Oxenreider, Author & Speaker
- Suzii Paynter, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
- Dennae Pierre, Surge Network
- Vance Pitman, Hope Church
- Clint Pressley, Hickory Grove Baptist Church
- Gus Reyes, Christian Life Commission, Texas Baptists
- John Riley, Whittier Area Community Church
- Jesse Rincones, Hispanic Baptist Convention of Texas
- George Robertson, Second Presbyterian Church
- Stewart Ruch, Anglican Church in North America
- Philip Ryken, Wheaton College
- Brenda Salter McNeil, Quest Church
- Jo Saxton, Author & Speaker
- Peter Scazzero, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality
- Harold Smith, Christianity Today
- Keith Stewart, Springcreek Church
- Warren H. Stewart, Sr., First Institutional Baptist Church
- Walter Strickland, Southern Baptist Convention
- Steven Timmermans, Christian Reformed Church in North America
- Pasqual Urrabazo, International Church of Las Vegas en Español
- Sandra Van Opstal, Grace and Peace Community
- Gary Walter, Evangelical Covenant Church
- Michael Wear, Public Square Strategies
- Jason Webb, Elmbrook Church
- Craig Willford, Multnomah University
- Joe Wittwer, Life Center Foursquare Church
- Jay Wolf, First Baptist Church
- Dave Swaim, Highrock Covenant Church
- Ron Zappia, Highpoint Church
- Tim Breene, CEO, World Relief
- Scott Arbeiter, President, World Relief