Using a blend of travel narrative, interviews, theological insight, and biblical scholarship, Daniel tackles the controversial issues that surround undocumented migration in the United States by taking the reader to the spiritual, legal, and geographical front lines of the immigration debate. Here, the political becomes personal and talking points have a human face. The result of this journey is a compelling argument that encourages Christians to meet undocumented migrants as neighbors and as friends. Study questions are included.
Neighbor: Christian Encounters with "Illegal" Immigration
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
This is not the book for those seeking a dispassionate political analysis of the U.S. immigration system. A Presbyterian minister in San Jose, Calif., Daniel offers an unequivocal pastoral welcome to all immigrants, legal and illegal, rather than nuanced policy solution to the crisis. Mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic church members open to working with immigrants but seeking a more in-depth biblical and theological rationale for their outreach efforts will appreciate this slim volume. A clear writer with a flair for journalism, Daniel goes beyond the spiritual arguments calling Christians to welcome the stranger, and takes to the road--interviewing a California Democratic congresswoman and a U.S. district judge from New Mexico along the way. A fluent Spanish speaker who has been on the front lines of the immigration issue since he was a teen, Daniel is fully invested in helping Hispanics find a future of life, liberty, and happiness on both sides of the border. With the passage of a tough, anti-immigrant law in Arizona, this volume may strike a resonant note among people previously unmotivated to protest the issue.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"Daniel is successful in his purpose; he aims to not only to open the Christian readerÂ's mind to the plight of the immigrant, but also to open the readerÂ's heart to the immigrant herself. In a context in which immigrant issues are hotly debated on a macro level, it is refreshing to hear a voice that examines the historical and political conundrums of illegal immigration through the lens of human dignity and a practical love for others who are, in fact, our neighbors."--Gabriela Worrel, ForeWord Reviews, July/August 2010
"This is not the book for those seeking a dispassionate political analysis of the U.S. immigration system. A Presbyterian minister in San Jose, Calif., Daniel offers an unequivocal pastoral welcome to all immigrants, legal and illegal, rather than nuanced policy solution to the crisis. Mainline Protestant and Roman Catholic church members open to working with immigrants but seeking a more in-depth biblical and theological rationale for their outreach efforts will appreciate this slim volume. A clear writer with a flair for journalism, Daniel goes beyond the spiritual arguments calling Christians to welcome the stranger, and takes to the road--interviewing a California Democratic congresswoman and a U.S. district judge from New Mexico along the way. A fluent Spanish speaker who has been on the front lines of the immigration issue since he was a teen, Daniel is fully invested in helping Hispanics find a future of life, liberty, and happiness on both sides of the border. With the passage of a tough, anti-immigrant law in Arizona, this volume may strike a resonant note among people previously unmotivated to protest the issue."--Publishers Weekly, June 14, 2010
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More About the Author
Ben Daniel is a Presbyterian minister in San Jose, California. His first book, Neighbor, was named 2011 religion book of the year by ForeWord Reviews, a journal that highlights and reviews books from small and independent publishers. He is a Huffington Post blogger, and provides commentary for KQED FM, the largest NPR affiliate in the United States. His writing has been translated into four languages and has been published by a variety of local, regional, national, and international print media and has appeared on Beliefnet.com, TheRevealer.com, and on the websites of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the United Nations' mission to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. His work has been linked by BBC.com and by Al Jezeera's English language website. He is a graduate of Westmont College and of Princeton Theological Seminary.
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By JRKR
Format:Paperback
When my family and I immigrated to the US in the late 70's from Korea, my uncle's family was scheduled to come with us. We went through the same visa process (which I think took about ten years) and a couple of months before our visas were granted, my uncle died of a massive stroke. He and my mother were the blood links to our maternal uncle residing in the US. The US law didn't recognize my cousins and my aunt (the dead uncle's family) as being related to the uncle residing in the US. They, who were like family to us (my father joked that he had six kids, not three), had to be left behind, and we came to the US. My brothers and I grew up, forever longing to have them join us in the US, but there were no viable options. So, to this day, we long to see them more regularly, but even tourist visas are hard to come by. My cousins, living a very comfortable middle class life in Korea, are not wealthy enough to get easy visas. So, they must wait and wait, even for a tourist visa (this is the story they tell me, anyhow).
So, the issue of illegal immigrants in the US is a topic of profound ambivalence to me. My family, who played by the US rules, was torn apart, while these illegal immigrants who find their way here breaking the rules get to stay? It punches me in the guts everytime I think about it. 30 years later, I still miss my cousins and wished I had them with us, in the US.
Having said that, I believe in grace and compassion. I believe that we are our brother's keeper, and I don't want to see another person, male or female, young or old, perish in the desert because they want to find a better way of life. What gets me is that if a person wants to be here THAT badly...wants to be part of this society THAT much, the lasting the person wants to do is to tear down the very thing they want to be a part of.
I believe that God wants us to take care of one another and that should start with the least among us, legal or illegal. I was shocked to find that the illegal immigrants can't hold a driver's liscence. To live everyday in fear of discovery is a terrifying thing to consider and to be wrenched away from my children.... In a Biblical sense, I'm not sure if cost analysis of an illegal immigrant is relevant. As human beings, I think we should take care of one another, just like what Jesus tells us to do in the Bible.
I've grown to like President Bush much more since he left the office (I've grown to like President Obama much less since he took the office. Maybe the key is the office, not the person....)and I'd like to challenge him. He could completely change his legacy, from a list of failures to one gigantic win for the human kind. Embrace and champion one of the best ideas he had in office, the immigration reform, and work across the party lines to make that happen. That would totally reshape his presidency and leave a legacy he and his descendants could be proud of.
Going back to the book, did I agree with everything? Nope. Somethings I disagreed with him very strongly.
Do I think it's an important book? Yes. I do. Even if you disagreed, I think you'd come away with something new to think about.
Would I recommend it? Yes! Resounding yes! I actually think this should be required reading for all border patrol personnel (I'm not joking. I think they should try to "walk in their shoes", just to understand a little more of what the illegal immigrants go through).
So, the issue of illegal immigrants in the US is a topic of profound ambivalence to me. My family, who played by the US rules, was torn apart, while these illegal immigrants who find their way here breaking the rules get to stay? It punches me in the guts everytime I think about it. 30 years later, I still miss my cousins and wished I had them with us, in the US.
Having said that, I believe in grace and compassion. I believe that we are our brother's keeper, and I don't want to see another person, male or female, young or old, perish in the desert because they want to find a better way of life. What gets me is that if a person wants to be here THAT badly...wants to be part of this society THAT much, the lasting the person wants to do is to tear down the very thing they want to be a part of.
I believe that God wants us to take care of one another and that should start with the least among us, legal or illegal. I was shocked to find that the illegal immigrants can't hold a driver's liscence. To live everyday in fear of discovery is a terrifying thing to consider and to be wrenched away from my children.... In a Biblical sense, I'm not sure if cost analysis of an illegal immigrant is relevant. As human beings, I think we should take care of one another, just like what Jesus tells us to do in the Bible.
I've grown to like President Bush much more since he left the office (I've grown to like President Obama much less since he took the office. Maybe the key is the office, not the person....)and I'd like to challenge him. He could completely change his legacy, from a list of failures to one gigantic win for the human kind. Embrace and champion one of the best ideas he had in office, the immigration reform, and work across the party lines to make that happen. That would totally reshape his presidency and leave a legacy he and his descendants could be proud of.
Going back to the book, did I agree with everything? Nope. Somethings I disagreed with him very strongly.
Do I think it's an important book? Yes. I do. Even if you disagreed, I think you'd come away with something new to think about.
Would I recommend it? Yes! Resounding yes! I actually think this should be required reading for all border patrol personnel (I'm not joking. I think they should try to "walk in their shoes", just to understand a little more of what the illegal immigrants go through).
17 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I remember the old days - now more than forty years ago - when I did a lot of hitchhiking all over the world. Sometimes after a very long wait I was almost annoyed with the kind person who finally stopped to pick me up. "Where the hell have you been?" I illogically was about to ask when I clambered into the "Good Samaritan" of the moment's car.
I feel the same way about "Neighbor: Christian Encounters With 'Illegal' Immigration." It's about time!
Daniels strikes a blow to reclaim the actual Christian witness on the subject of welcoming the proverbial stranger into our midst. This witness has of late been buried under an avalanche of hatred projected at "the other" by too many people - usually white "conservative" Americans claiming that they are also Christians.
To the "church" following the gospel of hate -- that is rapidly replacing the gospel of Jesus in "conservative" American political circles -- Daniels' book should come as a wakeup call. Lots of conservatives say they believe in Judgment Day. If so let this book be a warning.
We have a choice: follow the compassionate moral leader all call Christ and that we Christians call the Son of God, or follow the anti-immigrant lynch mob as they try to not just slam our borders shut but even - in some circles - revoke the 14th Amendment so that the babies born to the "wrong" (read brown and black) sort of people can no longer become citizens.
In the case of "illegal" immigrants Daniels literally asks us: what would Jesus do? I wrote the forward to his book because I believe - strike that I KNOW -- Daniels got the answer right.
I care about America and (as a Christian) I also care about Jesus' reputation. So I hope for all our sakes (both morally speaking not to mention economically speaking) that this book becomes a best seller.
The anti-immigrant folks aren't just wrong morally they are wrong factually: we NEED young workers to offset our aging population. We are so very lucky so many people want to come here to better their lives! Read this book and then help save the future of this country by spreading the word!
I feel the same way about "Neighbor: Christian Encounters With 'Illegal' Immigration." It's about time!
Daniels strikes a blow to reclaim the actual Christian witness on the subject of welcoming the proverbial stranger into our midst. This witness has of late been buried under an avalanche of hatred projected at "the other" by too many people - usually white "conservative" Americans claiming that they are also Christians.
To the "church" following the gospel of hate -- that is rapidly replacing the gospel of Jesus in "conservative" American political circles -- Daniels' book should come as a wakeup call. Lots of conservatives say they believe in Judgment Day. If so let this book be a warning.
We have a choice: follow the compassionate moral leader all call Christ and that we Christians call the Son of God, or follow the anti-immigrant lynch mob as they try to not just slam our borders shut but even - in some circles - revoke the 14th Amendment so that the babies born to the "wrong" (read brown and black) sort of people can no longer become citizens.
In the case of "illegal" immigrants Daniels literally asks us: what would Jesus do? I wrote the forward to his book because I believe - strike that I KNOW -- Daniels got the answer right.
I care about America and (as a Christian) I also care about Jesus' reputation. So I hope for all our sakes (both morally speaking not to mention economically speaking) that this book becomes a best seller.
The anti-immigrant folks aren't just wrong morally they are wrong factually: we NEED young workers to offset our aging population. We are so very lucky so many people want to come here to better their lives! Read this book and then help save the future of this country by spreading the word!
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