After the most recent images of Aya (below), and her heart-wrenching story, I feel an even deeper burden. She looks like my daughter. She could be my daughter. How dare I imagine that Aya’s father loves her any less than I love my own children. It does not matter to me one bit whether her father is Christian, Muslim, atheist, or something else. I want to help him, and I want to help her. I want these atrocities to stop. If there is anything we can do to protect or aid people like Aya’s family, I am all for it. I am not afraid.
Just in case it seems like I am getting political here, I am not. If it seems like I am suggesting we open our doors to thousands and potentially tens of thousands of people without any boundaries, I am not.
MY REFUGEE STORY
I am all too familiar with the problems that exist in our immigration and refugee systems. For the last 5 years, I have had the privilege and challenge of working with one particular refugee just about as closely as one can. He has been in the United States for more than 30 years, after having safely escaped a country ruled by a brutal dictator. There was and is no going back.
His arrival in the U.S. provided him with safety from the evils of the regime in his country of origin, but new challenges soon arose. The system has failed this man greatly. After more than 30 years, he does not read or speak English well. He has lived on the streets, in homeless shelters, immigration facilities, and even spent time in prison. When I met him he had no job, no identification, no resources, and nowhere to go after his immigration-provided transitional facility was closed. I was told the only person who could help him was an immigration attorney. I took him to a few consultations, and they went nowhere. So I began learning immigration law and process for refugees like him.
For 5 years, I have helped him navigate this convoluted system. It often involves long drives, long waits, ill-trained or unkind system workers, and lots and lots of paperwork. Without an advocate, my friend would be on the streets or in a shelter permanently. There is no way he could have done this alone. He is only one case among hundreds of thousands. So, yes, I understand our system is ill-equipped to handle hundreds of thousands more. And, yes, I also realize these problems will worsen as more people seek refuge in our nation.
Do Syrian families desperately need to be rescued from the horrendous circumstances around them? Absolutely.
Do those who have already escaped Syria need better than the surrounding countries have to offer? My goodness, yes.
Is our system or are boundaries set up to receive them and provide for them well? Definitely not. My refugee friend is an example in both cases. And neither are his fault.
But again I say, we should not blame the wrong people. These families are not politics. These children are not radicalized. Their children are not terror. These children are daughters, sons, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, and best friends. Sadly, they are the picture of what terror does, and how children pay the worst price of all.
ARE WE TRULY IN DANGER FROM SYRIAN REFUGEES?
These children and their families are also not refugees; at least not yet. If they were to become our refugees, would they really be a threat? It is impossible to say no. We can use the word improbable, however. Since 1975, when the word terrorism was not even used, the number of deaths in the United States at the hands of a foreign-born terrorist using a refugee visa is 3. The chances of you or I being killed at the hands of a refugee terrorist is 1 in more than 3 billion. 1 in 3 BILLION+. The table below comes from a very thorough risk analysis done by CATO just last month (September 2016). The link to the full article is here.
CONCLUSION
In reality, however, the statistics don’t matter all that much to me. As a follower of Christ, I have a missionary call. No matter where God calls me to go, whether it begins with Saint or ends with –stan, there is risk and there is danger. I love my children more than life itself, and could not bear to think what life would be like without any of them. I would never intentionally throw them in the way of harm, but my love for and commitment to Christ will always drive our decisions. Thankfully, God gives a peace that surpasses any understanding of mine. Which means that even in the midst of insecurity and instability, I can still trust and obey.
So if I strip away the illusion of control and security, and do not allow myself to be dominated by fear of the unknown, I am left with a question. What is the right thing to do?
The right thing seems clear to me. I choose compassion over suspicion. Love over fear. People over politics.
I am quite sure my feelings and opinions will have no bearing on whether or not we help the people of Syria by giving aid or refuge. I can promise you this, however — I will not do nothing. I will continue to pray for the people of Syria daily, and I will be actively seeking ways that God can use me and my church to help them strategically. Because I know this: the church has resources the state and the government cannot provide.
My yes is on the table when it comes to Syria. If God can use my resources, time, or ministry to help these families, I will give them willingly. I pray God brings them to us, and that we, as followers of Christ, can be good news and give them the Good News they so desperately need.
Here are two other excellent articles on this topic by Evangelicals:
GoTEN: https://goten.org/blog/2016/09/22/facts-about-refugees/
Russell Moore in Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2015/11/19/stop-pitting-security-and-compassion-against-each-other-in-the-syrian-refugee-crisis/
Eric|Costanzo 
This is absolutely out-of-the-ballpark good! Convicting and helpful. Thanks
Sent from my iPad
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Amen!
Thank you for your wise words Eric, I’ve been praying too. My heart breaks for the innocent Syrian people. I got to see the Syrian people in person in 1990 on a business trip. I often wonder if the people I met are still alive. I can’t imagine living in that environment.
Excellent article! You have certainly opened my mind and heart to the plight of the Syrian children. Thank you for caring.
I share your passion and concern. There are three completely separate issues. 1. Bring in folks in immediate danger (Many are in zones where we can’t get in and they cannot get out). 2. Bring in the groups that have been targeted for extermination (Which are Yazidis and Christians.). And 3. Control our borders so only those legally entitled enter. All three require either new laws or an adjustment of the interpretation of present laws. The current administration has said that we cannot select Yazidis or threatened Christians specifically for importation. The U. S. Government is only bringing in Syrian refugees certified by the U. N. The U. N offices for certification are located in the Syrian refugee camps and are controlled by Muslim refugees which may explain why only a very few Yazidis and Christians have been brought into the U. S. There may not be a logistical way to bring in the injured from Aleppo because it is under seige by the Russians and the Assad government, both of whom have been bombing hospitals as well as civilians. Both have also threatened U. S. forces if they intrude. I too am not “poltical” although I understand that almost anything said in 2016 risks being attacked by political partisans.
If you don’t mind, I am linking this to my blog post tomorrow
People are PEOPLE. Dogs are dogs. When I was a boy long before I was a soldier in Italy during WWII, we built trenches as boys and threw rocks (big and hard ones), One hit a little dog right whop between the eyes. I always thought the doggie loved God and forgave as much as the boys wanted the Lord to do.
Thank you for sharing what I can do, praying for the LORD to open my eyes for opportunities to minister.
This is amazing, the media disgusts me. Anything for some ratings, some shock headlines. Whatever keeps the fear and money rolling.