Evangelicals and immigration

An Evangelical group is starting to organize in favor of immigration reform. I remain skeptical about how much this will matter. The problem?

When asked how evangelical voters might square immigration with other hot-button issues such as abortion and gay marriage, Land, who heads the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, said it’s a matter of individual conscience. 

“That’s a decision that each individual person has to make,” he said. “We tell people they need to vote their values, their beliefs, and their convictions. When they’re faced with a choice where they agree on some and not on others, they need to prayerfully decide for themselves what their hierarchy of issues are.”

I don't see immigration reaching that kind of level. In fact, I blogged about this exact issue two years ago, and nothing has changed since. Back then I just said to stay tuned, but there still isn't much to tune into.

There is a very real undercurrent of religious support for immigration reform, but up to this point it has fallen far short of becoming politically influential. Until it can tap directly into Congress, it will mostly be the topic of periodic newspaper stories.