FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 24, 2021

Contact: jromero@sojo.net

WASHINGTON, DC - Sojourners is launching El Camino - The Way, a collection of sermons from various faith leaders calling for just immigration policies and encouraging their congregations to understand immigration as a theological issue and join advocacy efforts.

With 53 sermons total, the 26 male and 21 female preachers come from 19 states and 10 countries. They also represent a variety of faith backgrounds, including Catholic, evangelical, and mainline protestant denominations.

“Now is the moment to push the House and the Senate to create a pathway to citizenship for Dreamers, TPS holders, farmworkers, and essential immigrant workers, whether through bipartisan legislation or through reconciliation,” Paola Fuentes Gleghorn, Sojourners’ Immigration and Women and Girls Campaign Coordinator says. “We know that good preaching and teaching can help congregations be strong advocates. Scripture has much to say about God’s heart for immigrant people. It is filled with stories of immigrant people by immigrant people. We hope this sermon collection will shape the way we think about immigration, accompany our communities, and advocate for just policies. If we work together, we can ensure that our elected officials create a more just immigration system.”

"This Pentecost, we are thrilled to launch El Camino, a resource to help us strengthen and reimagine how we walk with immigrant communities," Sandy Ovalle Martínez, Sojourners' Director of Campaigns and Mobilizing says. "In the Christian faith, Pentecost refers to the time when the Spirit of God came over God’s people and gave them the ability to speak in other languages so that all who were visiting from out of town could understand the love of God in their own language. It is our prayer that God’s Spirit would work powerfully through the words of every preacher featured in El Camino so that the church can meet this moment with a renewed zeal for immigrant justice. May God’s Spirit give us the ability to walk faithfully, welcome generously, and advocate together for communities where all can thrive!"

This extensive resource will help local communities, churches, and advocates understand immigration from diverse theological perspectives and will inspire clergy to continue to add their voice to this growing movement.

Interviews are available with project leads and sermon contributors.

Dedicated Sermon Series website: https://sojo.net/sermon/series/immigration-sermons