Six Things I’ve Learned from Gathering and Mobilizing Immigrant Churches in 2022
In 2012 I helped establish a network of immigrant churches and churches seeking to partner with immigrants in the western Suburbs of Chicago called Mosaic. This network put on a yearly equipping conference called Mission On Our Doorsteps. This past year, launching the Diaspora Network, I’ve once again been visiting, building relationships with and listening to immigrant churches and leaders in the Austin area and around the country. Much has changed 10 years later and much has remained the same. The following are some of the trends I’ve observed in this past year.
Diaspora leaders and churches truly are the hope for renewal for the Church in North America. While interacting with the broader White church in the US seems to be in a moment of crisis, my own faith has been challenged, renewed and greatly encouraged by each encounter with immigrant leaders and churches. Marginalization, persecution (particularly in the case of refugees in their countries of origin) and poverty are often sources of purification and formation that shape these churches and leaders to be God’s chosen vessels of renewal, like it was for Daniel in Babylon and for other Biblical diaspora heroes. These forces help provide resistance to the allures of power, privilege and wealth that have often assailed the broader White American church.
New language must continue to be developed and tweaked to accurately talk about immigrants and refugees in ways that don’t divide or prioritize one group over another based on how they arrived in the US or their immigration status. Furthermore language is needed that accurately reflects the new numerical reality and their tremendous influence and agency. The development and increasing use of Diaspora theology and language is a positive step in this direction. Words and phrases like “ethnic church” “ethnic minority” or “minority” language more broadly are inaccurate and need to be discontinued. Global diaspora churches and leaders (both first and second generation) are the new center (in terms of who God is using) of the church in the US and in many, if not most, cases becoming or already are the numerical majority of active Christians in US cities. This has profound implications for how we think of the church and of mission more broadly. Many diaspora churches are actually multiethnic, multicultural and multilingual in profound ways that “ethnic” White American churches find it difficult to comprehend. For example many Latino churches are mutliracial, multiethnic and multinational with Spanish language being the common denominator that brings them together across a wide range of differences. Many African churches bring together people from several countries and languages, etc.
To invest in immigrant churches and leaders is to impact the world here and there. Partnering with diaspora leaders should be one of the key global mission strategies of most churches, but it is one that requires a significant reworking/structuring of current models that are still primarily built around one-way sending (“from the West to the rest”). Diaspora leaders and churches truly are remarkable forces for deep impact doing much with very little in sacrificial ways. Almost every single immigrant church leader in I’ve met this past year has been engaged in local cross-cultural ministry (not just among their own ethnic/cultural group) in addition to being engaged in global mission while doing so with very few resources or visibility
A deep commitment to prayer and fasting is one of the primary gifts the immigrant church brings to the broader US church. Almost every single immigrant church I’ve worked with this past year has a weekly (if not daily) rhythm of prayer and fasting. Prayer is the life of the Church and a reality the immigrant church breathes and oozes. The pandemic forced many immigrant churches that hadn’t used much technology to begin using video conference tools such as zoom. Many immigrant leaders now host prayer meetings for people from their ethnic/diaspora group around the world. For example, a Nepali pastor here in Austin has a daily prayer zoom meeting lasting several hours and including Nepali and Bhutanese Christians in 10-15 countries (including Israel, Iraq and the UK) every day.
The gifts of the White and more established Asian, African American, Multi-ethnic and other established churches in the US (such as structure, stability, accountability, counseling/therapy, etc) can be a great blessing, if humbly offered and correctly positioned under the leadership / direction of diaspora leaders and leaders of color). These gifts and resources they bring are particularly helpful for the 2nd generation of diaspora - again if properly positioned under the leadership of non-White leaders and direction.
There is a Crisis of pride and power in the White US Church. I’ve found that it is very difficult to re-form White pastors and Churches toward Diaspora centered ministry. The re-positioning and re-ordering that is required for the White American church and White American leaders - particularly those from larger and wealthier churches, can be perceived as a threat. This truly is a counter-cultural formation process that is painful and difficult. The more power, the harder it is to develop humility and teachability and to move towards true mutuality. This power often expresses itself as a desire to “help” “teach” or “meet needs” all of which can be ways to continue to exercise power over and remain distant from - in other words to continue to “play God in the lives of the poor” as Bryant Myers has called it. Tied to this is a deep lack of awareness of the “other” and the gifts they bring to the table.
Most church mobilizing efforts continue to center the more resourced White churches and leaders. In my experience, most parachurch agencies continue to center the mobilizing of White churches in local efforts to welcome immigrants and refugees, even though the majority of welcoming is actually being done by other immigrants themselves. Similarly, most mobilizing for global mission continues to center the sending of White American missionaries. This center of gravity is very difficult to resist unless it is named and done so with much intentionality. Very little mobilizing efforts and communication truly centers immigrants and the immigrant church itself, furthering inequities in resources for mission. Immigrants are often invited to the table but there is not much effort made to join the tables immigrant leaders have already formed and set themselves. The immigrant church (and the Black church as well) is a very diverse and varied body yet to truly be seen and valued in the broader immigrant and refugee conversation. One example is larger, older and more established immigrant churches (like many multigenerational, established Asian congregations) have great potential for glocal mission efforts but are almost completely ignored and forgotten in the prominent spaces and conversations around Global mission and local church planting and welcoming of the stranger.
God truly is on the move through diaspora! I’m grateful for the privilege of partnering with and learning from leaders such as Rev. Jose and Carmen Zurita in the Latino community and Drs. Samuel and Adora Obi in the Nigerian community. In upcoming blogs (and at our next conference July 28 and 29!) we hope to hear more of their stories and those of the others on our leadership team.
Rev. Jonathan Kindberg is the Diaspora Network mobilizer.