Immigration activists in Miami last month. / Alan Diaz, AP
America has always been a nation of immigrants. Their
religiosity, high birth rates and work ethic settled a
continent, built railroads, populated our cities, filled our
houses of worship and grew our economy. Between 1840 and 1860,
1.7 million Irish endured an inhumane trans-Atlantic passage,
though nothing compared with that of slaves brought here against
their will. Italians, Greeks and Russian Jews fled poverty and
pogroms in the late 19th century. Cubans risked a watery death
on rickety craft to escape Fidel Castro. In our own time
Mexicans, Indians, Koreans and others come to the USA for the
same reason: They hunger to be free. Economics and security, too
As Congress wrestles with immigration reform, it must realize
that this is not only an economic and security issue; it also is
a moral issue. It reveals our character as a people and our
values as a nation. The Bible instructs God's people to show
compassion and love for the foreigner, a comman