At the moment, many Christian places of worship are assisting asylum seekers and immigrants through education programmes, especially concerning the treatment of women.
In some cases, asylum seekers are coming to Northern Ireland with a vastly different cultural interpretation of how women should be treated and the role of women in society.
Put bluntly, the churches can find themselves in a situation where they are telling a section of the asylum seeker community that women are not sexual play things.
Unfortunately, across the United Kingdom, because of the actions of a few convicted asylum seekers in relation to the treatment of women, there is the real danger that all immigrants will be ‘tarred with the same brush’ in terms of cultural perceptions.
While the churches are doing their best to instil Western Christian values into asylum seekers by helping them integrate into Northern Ireland society, the bitter reality that these same Christian Churches must face is the need to prepare for the consequences of a Reform UK-led Government after the next Westminster General Election.
If the opinion polls are replicated into actual votes, then Reform UK is on course to be a major player in the next Commons Government.
Even if Reform UK does not win an outright majority on the green benches, it could enter a coalition with Right-wing Tory MPs and maybe even Unionist MPs from Northern Ireland.
This arrangement could be similar to the so-called Lib-Lab pact between the Labour and Liberal parties which existed at Westminster in the Seventies. Or, it could be in the form of a ‘confidence and supply’ arrangement which existed a few years ago between the Conservatives and the DUP in the Commons.
Whatever the outcome of the next General Election, the deportation of asylum seekers and migrants will be a key issue of government. What has still to be decided is whether these deportations will be the so-called ‘one in, one out’ agenda, a trickle of deportations in dozens at a time, or mass deportations numbering in the thousands of people.
The following is a quote from a party political manifesto:
… is committed to the ending of all non-White immigration and to the phased and financially assisted repatriation of all non-Whites, together with their dependants and descendants.
That is not a statement of policy in 2025 from either Reform UK or hardline Right-wing Conservatism; it comes from the Seventies and the manifesto of the Far Right National Front.
In the early Seventies, the NF gained support because the then Tory Party under former PM Ted Heath was seen as politically ‘wet’ on the issue of immigration. Then Maggie Thatcher toppled Heath in a leadership coup mid way through the decade.
This move ultimately led to the Conservative party swinging to the Right, and eventually winning the 1979 Westminster General Election.
The NF stood around 300 candidates in that election, but because of the Right-wing Thatcher-led Tories, no NF candidate got elected with many losing their deposits.
Reform UK, like its predecessors in the Brexit Party and the United Kingdom Independence Party, is taking a tough line on immigration.
The challenge for the Christian Churches is that they cannot afford to wait until the outcome of the next General Election is decided before they formulate a policy on the deportation of asylum seekers and immigrants.
On past issues where Biblical teaching has been challenged, such as gay marriage, abortion and even trans rights, the Christian Churches have not got their acts in gear in time and have only reacted after legislation has been passed.
The bitter medicine which the Christian Churches may now have to face in 2025 is that they have to prepare to help asylum seekers and immigrants return to their countries of origin if deportations become the order of the day via Westminster.
This could see many places of worship having to undo their programmes of education which were aimed at helping asylum seekers and immigrants integrate effectively into Northern Ireland society.
Many places of worship are already finding themselves in a delicate social balancing act between helping asylum seekers integrate effectively and helping folk from their own communities cope with the pressures of the cost of living crisis.
Once again, many churches - like some charities - are finding themselves in the frontline of Good Samaritan work in terms of supplying products to food and clothing banks, as well as caring for the homeless in society.
Within the next few weeks, many Christian Churches will be holding their traditional harvest thanksgiving services where flocks will be encouraged to give items to food banks.
Much of the fruit and vegetables displayed in places of worship on Harvest Sundays make their way to residential and nursing homes or to folk in need in the congregations and fellowships.
Perhaps the reality which churches will face after the next General Election is that they will use the traditional Harvest Thanksgiving season to prepare food baskets for asylum seekers and immigrants being deported back to their countries of origin.
The key issue facing churches - are they ready to meet this potential challenge?
 |
| Follow Dr John Coulter on Twitter @JohnAHCoulter John is a Director for Belfast’s Christian radio station, Sunshine 1049 FM. |
The Christian Churches should be encouraging their flocks to do everything possible to prevent the Fagash Fuhrer from coming to power. Some do tbf.
ReplyDeleteWant to implement digital ID? Allow unchecked illegal immigration. How long til its a social credit score with a digital only currency? This is what the churches should be opposing.
ReplyDelete