WASHINGTON POST: Obama task force: Consult religious groups more on foreign policy

Among the major recommendations of the task force on inter-religious cooperation is to involve religious communities more in the making of American foreign policy. According to Dalia Mogahed, an advisory board member who is on that task force and also runs Gallup's Center for Muslim Studies, that means both religious leaders abroad and domestic ones. This theme was also sounded earlier in the week by a group of mostly faith leaders called the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the idea being that U.S. foreign policy is governed without enough understanding of religion.

I asked Joel Hunter, an evangelical mega-church pastor from Florida who also sat on the group, what's new about this philosophy (of pushing for more interfaith work)? How will the average American notice anything different from the pro-interfaith vibe that's been lauded and talked about by religious and political leaders for years and years?

Hunter said the difference is that, for decades, "interfaith" was viewed as a liberal idea, largely consisting of (in the minds of skeptics) sitting around talking about your faith and papering over the profound differences between competing truth claims.

Today's interfaith, Hunter said, doesn't seek those interactions, but rather finding shared goals dissimilar faith communities can collaborate on, such as decreasing poverty or boosting health care. More socially conservative types - Hunter was nominated in 2006 to be head of the Christian Coalition, though he wound up stepping down - can and do embrace this vision, he said.

"I don't want to get into a lot of homogeneity," he said Friday.

Among the most significant recommendations of the task force focused on economic recovery, according to National Council of Churches President Peg Chemberlin, who sat on that group, is its urging of the White House to redefine the guidelines used to measure poverty. The current measure, she said, is too reliant on the cost of food, which Chemberlin said has become less accurate.

BY MICHELLE BOORSTEIN. READ ORIGINAL ARTICLE.

U.S. Islamic Forum Raises Hope for the Future

This year’s U.S.-Islamic World Forum, held Feb. 13-15 in Doha, Qatar, comes at sensitive time in U.S.-Muslim relations.

In a report for Religion News Service (RNS), journalist Omar Sacirbey wrote: “Following the attempted Christmas Day airliner bombing and other recent terror-related arrests, many Americans are increasingly worried about terrorism, and critics are accusing President Obama of being soft on Muslim extremists.”

He added that in the Muslim world, “many people are angry about the war in Afghanistan, U.S. drone attacks in Pakistan, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, their own economic problems, and expect [President] Obama to deliver remedies faster than his administration may be able to.”

Now in its seventh year, the Forum has become the foremost meeting for positive cross-cultural engagement among leaders from the United States and the Muslim world—bringing together key leaders in the fields of politics, business, media, academia and civil society. It seeks to address the critical issues dividing the United States and the Muslim world by providing a unique platform for frank dialogue, learning and the development of positive partnerships between key leaders and opinion shapers from both sides.

American religious figures who attended this year’s conference said the sensitive state of U.S.-Islamic relations requires increased religious involvement in diplomacy.

Episcopal Bishop John Chane of Washington D.C., who has attended two previous forums, said: “When you have 1.5 billion Muslims, 2 billion Christians, and 13 million Jews, from an Abrahamic perspective, you have a lot of influence. Twentieth-century diplomacy has failed so far, and we have to recognize that you need religion in the mix.”

Dr. Joel C. Hunter, who has attended three forums, agreed: “In the Muslim world ... their faith is a very integral part of their foreign policy. They want to hear secular and religious ideas.”

Despite current tensions, observers say U.S.-Islamic relations are improving under President Obama.

“A lot of the Islamic world is more anxious to engage because we have a president who wants to restart relations with Muslims,” Dr. Hunter explained. “We’ve gone from a defensive mode to a development and diplomatic mode.”

Al-Husein Madhany, a Muslim-American scholar and technology activist who convened a conference workshop on how to use new media to build grassroots organizations and civic institutions, added: “We have a moment in history where there’s been a promise made by the leader of the free world for a new beginning. There’s an excitement in people’s voices about America that I didn’t hear during the previous administration.”

VIDEO: Pastor Joel Testifies Before the Senate

Dr. Hunter was a witness at a hearing on “Comprehensive Immigration Reform in 2009, Can We Do It and How?”, scheduled by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Refugees, which was presided over by Sen. Charles Schumer.

Dr. Hunter's Testimony on Immigration to the Senate

On April 30, 2009, Northland's senior pastor, Dr. Joel C. Hunter, was a witness at a hearing on "Comprehensive Immigration Reform in 2009, Can We Do It and How?", scheduled by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Refugees. Sen. Charles Schumer, who presided over the hearing, personally extended the invitation to participate to Dr. Hunter, who is a member of President Obama's Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. Following is the testimony offered by Dr. Hunter.

Thank you, Chairman Schumer, distinguished members of the subcommittee, esteemed colleagues on this panel, and other guests, for providing me an opportunity to speak on the moral and religious reasons for immigration reform.

I am a one of hundreds of thousands of local religious leaders in this country. I have been a pastor for almost 40 years and that is what I want to be in all my years remaining. Even though I am also in leadership positions of national and international groups that are dealing with immigration, it is at the local level that I am continually reminded that policy truly does hurt or help people.

In my faith tradition we all start as strangers and aliens, outsiders to the commonwealth of God. But because we have a God who was willing to do what it took to include us (at great personal cost), we "are no longer strangers and aliens, but [we] are fellow citizens..." (Ephesians 2:18-19a)

So I find it a high honor to speak to those in power as an advocate for those who have no power. In a verse that would be echoed in many religions, Proverbs 31:8 commands us to "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves."

"You will make known to me the path of life..." (Psalm 16:11) The hope of any religion is that those who have been on the wrong path can be set upon the right path. The need for Comprehensive Immigration Reform is to create a path that will help people do the right thing. A broken system produces a dysfunctional society, fractured families, and it increases the vulnerability of both legal and illegal residents. It helps criminals who thrive in the shadows and it harms decent people, consigning them to a life of insecurity, hiding, and minimal contribution to the general welfare.

A broken system produces both broken and crooked people. The cost to our nation in terms of productivity, national unity, and national security is depressing. But it does not compare to the damage being done to individuals and families.

A broken system tempts many to predatory practices. I cannot count the stories I have heard about attorneys taking the entire life savings of undocumented workers, producing no results, then abandoning those workers when the money was gone. Is that typical of the profession? We would not believe so. But "lead me not into temptation." It is a mighty temptation to de-prioritize those who are desperate and too intimidated to raise their voices to complain. And what about employers that take advantage of the powerless because there is no system of accountability? Or the bureaucrats that have no incentive to produce results (or even to keep track of the paperwork) because, who will know? Or the talk show hosts that increase their fame and fortune by picturing those without the proper papers only as conniving and dangerous parasites instead of persons made in the image of God, deserving both respect and help to do the right thing?

We are producing cottage industries of exploitation. We are also hearing millions of stories that are the opposite of the American dream.

My friend Rev. Silas Pintos tells of a family in his Hispanic congregation that came from England. Both the husband and wife were successful business people, and they hoped that in the U.S. their children would be immersed in a better environment for family values. So they came to start an alternative energy company.

After a two-year ordeal with the immigration system and absurd legal fees, the immigration department could not even clearly explain to them why their residency application had not gone through. They returned to England emotionally and financially devastated.

My friend Imam Mohammed Musri told me the wife of a 60 year old man in his congregation was very sick. The man had papers but when the attorney handling his case took a judgeship, the man was not told he needed to re-register. He was deported even though his wife was too sick to go with him. She was hospitalized and died without him because he could not get back into the country to be by her side.

Pastor Augustine Davies is on the staff at my church. He and his wife are from Sierra Leone and have just completed the long and arduous task of becoming citizens, but they have special relationships with many of the Africans inside and outside our congregation who are caught in the system. One of them is George.

George is from Liberia, West Africa. He is married and has four adult children who live in poverty back in his home country. When George arrived, INS approved the refugee for TPS. George completed a nursing program and got a job. He was turned down for TPS renewal, but now George feels the almost crushing pressure of providing for his family and other countrymen who need the money he can send them because of his job. He stays in the shadows for now. I do not agree with what he is doing, but I know his present life is because he loves his family, not because he is out for himself.

Our immigration system can also intimidate congregations as well as individuals and families. My friend Rabbi Steven Engel told me that his congregation had sponsored a family from Argentina to come to the U.S. The INS lost the paperwork many times, and they made regular visits to the synagogue, suspicious that the congregation might be doing something wrong. The whole process was so stressful and unwelcoming that when Sergio died from a heart attack at the age of 43 the remaining family returned to Argentina.

These stories and many others don't live up to the ideals of our country. We can do better, and we know it. Everyone is frustrated with the present system. Our immigration system in many cases has us echoing the words of the despairing saint who proclaimed, "I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate." (Romans 7:15)

The urgency for immigration reform that yields efficiency and compassion cannot be overstated because it is so overdue.

The moral principles for a better system Some of the central principles that comprise most major religions are also woven into our country's history and can be used as a standard for immigration reform:

These principles deem each person as valuable, "endowed by their Creator" with a dignity that transcends earthly circumstance. Therefore, our system must treat each person respectfully.

They acknowledge the family as the bedrock of personal and social development, and the support of the family as the foundation of a strong society. Therefore, our system should prioritize the family.

They see law as not only necessary for restraining evil, but as needed for structuring healthy relationships. It is right that wrongdoers are restrained and/or punished, but it is a better justice when the laws yield correction and the redemption of bad circumstances. Therefore, our system should have ways to choose to live upright lives after the penalties for wrong decisions.

So most people of faith are hoping for policies that will prioritize family togetherness, respect for the law, personal productivity, and compassion for those who are most helpless.

Conclusion We do not envy you your charge. Immigration reform is a morally complex as well as a politically explosive challenge. But many of us are praying earnestly for you and for God's wisdom in this matter.

Including the stranger is not just a matter of compassion but a necessity for greatness. Loving your neighbor as you love yourself is not only a moral commandment but a path to national nobility, if we can build a nation of families and support networks that not only help the marginalized to be successful, but help the successful to be helpful, then we can better live up to our potential as a people.

In the end, I believe our nation will be not be judged by the productivity of our budgets, or the genius of our laws, or even the earnestness of our faith communities. We will be judged, both by history and by God, by the way we treated people, especially those who needed our help.