Mormon teachings press the faithful to be both compassionate and law-abiding, while current government policies seem to make the two goals mutually exclusive, a theme struck over and over at Saturday’s Sunstone Symposium: "Choose the Right — But Which is Right?
Robert Crawford and five other panelists described how they have reconciled the question by applying their personal experiences, church teachings and some critical thought to an issue that defies a simple conclusion.
"The Scripture seems to be telling us one thing," said Crawford, a Provo medical doctor. "Man’s laws seem to be telling us another."
Crawford noted that he had been raised to look to LDS apostles and prophets for answers to many of the tough questions. And when LDS leaders began issuing a series of statements on immigration a few years ago, he could not help but take notice.
The leaders urged "a spirit of compassion" in considering immigration. And they advocated a "thoughtful and factual, not to mention humane approach."
Full article at http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/news/52340027-78/immigration-law-lds-crawford.html.cspWe pride ourselves on being a compassionate people, however, our helping hands have not quite grasped those of our foreign brothers and sisters. Some members of the church would argue that illegal immigration is against the law, and they would be right. However, I believe that human life is above the law. That people are more important than money. I think it's time we put our religious principles before our political principles.
Mallory Fox
Is it necessarily inhumane to not support illegal immigration? I'm personally not in favor of illegal immigration. That being said, I don't think the solution is to kill or harm illegal immigrants. I also don't think illegal immigration is okay and that we should welcome with open arms people who don't follow the proper channels.
ReplyDeleteI see my political and religious principles as entirely compatible. As a religious person, I value people and their happiness. As a citizen, I value laws. Perhaps the solution would be to change laws so that this country is more accessible to foreigners.
I see your point though. If God's laws and the laws of the U.S. are at odds in a particular circumstance, I'm in favor of upholding God's laws. They should take priority. In short, we should be lead by the Spirit in every instance. I absolutely believe this - even if it's oftentimes much more difficult to actually do than is anticipated.
As stated previously, I agree that God's laws should be obeyed before any other laws. The way to come to this country legally as an immigrant is extremely challenging and restrictive. Our economy depends on a lot of the cheap labor that they provide. While there is such a demand for their labor, it is important that we are accepting and compassionate to those that come here, no matter the circumstance.
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