PREVIOUS EVENT

Chicago Conversations in Faith looks at hospitality towards immigrants
By William Jordan

For years Catholic Theological Union has been a pioneer in the field of interreligious dialogue, bringing members of Chicago's Catholic and Jewish communities together to learn, debate, and grow together in faith.

CTU's practice of interreligious dialogue entered a new era on September 24. Dialogue became a three-way conversation as Chicago-area Jews, Christians, and Muslims came together at the Chicago Historical Society for the first of two "Chicago Conversations in Faith."

Organized by the Bernardin Center and supported by a grant from the Chicago Community Trust, this groundbreaking initiative gives religious and civic leaders and members of the public an opportunity to discuss matters of social concern from the shared perspective of the Abrahamic faiths. By facilitating interreligious dialogue, Chicago Conversations encourage collaboration, reduce tensions, and improve relationships in the community.

Entitled, "Welcoming the Stranger: Liberty, Homeland Security, and the Immigrant," this event examined some of the challenges that face immigrants in the United States in the wake of September 11.

Founded on the premise that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all mandate hospitality to the stranger, the evening began with a dramatic presentation by the Interfaith Youth Core, a youth-led Chicago-based international interfaith group that engages in social action projects. The performance established hospitality as the guiding theme of the evening.

The main speaker was Rev. Craig Mousin, DePaul University ombudsperson and founder of the Midwest Immigrant Rights Center. Mousin surveyed the history of immigration in the United States. Although the U.S. prides itself on being a nation of immigrants, suspicion of outsiders dates from the early days of settlement. Quakers arriving in the Massachusetts Bay Colony faced persecution and even death. Throughout much of the history of this country free Americans ignored the immigrant issue simply by avoiding them, moving west to escape unwelcome neighbors. As long as Americans were free to pull up stakes and start their own towns and religions, "the nation had, as a whole, little issue with immigration."

That changed in the 1870s when large numbers of Chinese immigrants arrived to build the nation's railroads. By the end of the 19th century even the Supreme Court had adopted the rhetoric that immigrants comprised an invading army. This rhetoric influences judicial debates about immigration to this day, Mousin said.

Mousin outlined some of the specific problems that face immigrants in the post-September 11 climate. These problems include lengthy detentions, difficulty in securing legal representation, closed hearings, and the increased criminalization of immigration issues.

Mousin urged that when framing their attitude toward outsiders, American Jews, Muslims, and Christians recall the words of Lev. 19:33-34, a reminder to the Israelites that it is incumbent on them to welcome the stranger, having once been enslaved strangers in Egypt themselves.

In his response to Mousin's remarks, Rev. Paul Rutgers, executive director of the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago, pointed out that suspicion of immigrants today is not entirely a result of prejudice. He observed that, as a stranger, the immigrant challenges the boundary of the familiar, provoking a fundamental fear of the unknown. St. Paul insisted on hospitality to strangers.

In later centuries Christians conceived of a "City of God" that would be closed to no one. Historically and politically, this has proven to be an impossible goal. The best we can do, Rutgers urged, is to accept the challenge of living with the competing demands of faith and citizenship.

Rabbi Ira Youdovin, executive vice president of the Chicago Board of Rabbis, began his response to Mousin's remarks by recounting the story of the S.S. St. Louis, a ship that was refused entry into American waters in 1939. Most of the 937 passengers aboard were Jews fleeing Nazism. The ship returned to Europe, where many of its passengers faced death in concentration camps.

Youdovin observed that while the "prophetic heritage" of Judaism "animates Jews to resist attempts to stem the flow of immigrants to this nation of immigrants," this same heritage safeguards the right of self-defense. The principal challenge to the religious community, he said, is to work collaboratively to balance these competing imperatives. In this way members of the religious community can be "bearers of light."

The final response was by Kareem Irfan, president, Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago. Irfan focused on the experience of the Muslim community in the U.S. since September 11. He underscored the fact that Muslim immigrants are being unfairly singled out for scrutiny, and made to feel as if they are strangers in their own adopted land. Irfan maintained that this amounts to a test of faith and perseverance for the Muslim community. For Jews, Christians, and others, it is a test of their commitment to civil liberties and the biblical value of hospitality.

Chicago Conversations attracted a diverse and enthusiastic audience. Miriam Zayed is a Muslim and a member of the Illinois Humanities Council, which sponsored "Sisters: Women, Religion, and Leadership in Christianity and Islam," a two-day conference held at CTU last March. Reflecting on her experience at Chicago Conversations in Faith, Zayed said, "I liked the solidarity I saw" between the three communities. She said she appreciated the ties that the presenters drew between the Bible, the Torah, and the Qu'ran and the situation immigrants face in the U.S. today.

Melanie Maron, assistant area director of the American Jewish Committee, stated, "The most important thing CTU has done in convening Chicago Conversations is to create a forum that focuses shared energy and concern on issues that demand urgent attention."

Colin Crossey is a D.Min. student at CTU. Having come to CTU from Northern Ireland, he understands first-hand the need for dialogue in today's world. Crossey said he left the Conversation with an enhanced understanding that "hospitality is much more than the inclusion of the other." True hospitality recognizes different ways of thinking. It is the core of what it is to be a Jew, Christian, or Muslim. Although it is "risky," he said, it is also "absolutely necessary to bring Jews, Christians, and Muslims together to search out that common thread."

William Jordan received a Master of Arts in Theology at Catholic Theological Union in 2002. This article first appeared in the Fall 2003 edition of Logos, the newsletter of Catholic Theological Union.