Society & Culture

Few subjects can stir up hot debate like the current immigration crisis in America. Regular readers of (insert name of political blogger here) or watchers of (insert name of fair-and-balanced cable news network here) cannot help but have strong opinions on the subject.

M. Daniel Carroll R., author of [amazon 080103566X]([amazon 080103566X publisher], [amazon 080103566X publicationyear]) confronts the issue on a very personal level. Born to a Guatemalan mother and American father, he divided his formative years between the two cultures. Currently a professor at Denver Seminary, he continues as adjunct professor at a Guatemalan institution.

With this background and sympathetic point of view, Carroll seeks to “move Christians to reconsider their starting-point in the immigration debate” (p. 19). Elsewhere he states that his intended audience includes believers of both the dominant culture and the immigrant community. The preponderance of the book, however, is clearly aimed at non-immigrant American Christians.

The author’s stance becomes quite clear in the helpful section “Defining Terms” at the end of the introduction:

“I prefer the term undocumented rather than illegal for several reasons. Illegal can carry a pejorative connotation, suggesting by definition that the person is guilty of some act, has few scruples, and is prone to civil disobedience. This is not the case with the overwhelming majority of Hispanic immigrants. Most would gladly regularize their status with the government, but the present system simply does not provide appropriate avenues to do so.”