Love your neighbor as yourself
Jeff Sessions' church slams his use of the Bible to defend separating migrant families
Attorney General Jeff Sessions is a United Methodist, and he is also the face of the Trump administration's widely condemned policy of separating migrant children from their families at the border. In a Friday statement slamming the policy as "a shocking violation of the spirit of the Gospel," the United Methodist Church registered its dissent to Sessions' use of the Bible to defend the separations:
Jesus is our way, our truth, our life. The Christ we follow would have no part in ripping children from their mothers' arms or shunning those fleeing violence. It is unimaginable that faith leaders even have to say that these policies are antithetical to the teachings of Christ.
Christian sacred texts should never be used to justify policies that oppress or harm children and families. [United Methodist Church]
The statement explicitly called out Sessions as a "fellow United Methodist," asking him to reverse the decision to split up families. It noted that the close context of the passage Sessions cited, Romans 13, includes instructions for Christians to "extend hospitality to strangers" and to do "no wrong to a neighbor."
Nearly 2,000 children were separated from their families in April and May alone; some of these families crossed the border illegally, while others are legal asylum-seekers. Read the full United Methodist statement here.