‘Protecting asylum seekers is a biblical responsibility’: Washington pastor speaks at vigil for Noem v. Al Otro Lado

The following remarks were given by Jenn Hosler of the pastoral team at Washington (D.C.) City Church of the Brethren during an interfaith vigil in support of the plaintiffs in the Supreme Court case Noem v. Al Otro Lado. The Church of the Brethren joined the amicus brief for the case (see the Newsline report at www.brethren.org/news/2026/church-supports-asylum-seekers):

My name is Jennifer Hosler, and I’m a pastor at Washington City Church of the Brethren, just a few blocks from here. We’re Christians who believe following Jesus means being a peacemaker, standing against war, and walking in a way of service, welcome, and love. Protecting and welcoming asylum seekers is one way that we live out our faith. Luke 4 records Jesus’ very first sermon. In it, Jesus said he had come “to bring good news to the poor,” “to proclaim release to the prisoners,” and “to set free those who are oppressed.”

In Matthew 25, Jesus taught his disciples that true faith is expressed through compassion, mercy, and care. He said that faithfulness looks like welcoming foreigners, feeding the hungry, giving the thirsty something to drink, clothing those without clothes, and visiting prisoners. Not only that, Jesus said that when we do those things, we are doing them to Jesus himself. Protecting asylum seekers is a biblical responsibility for Christians.

*View this video of the interfaith vigil in support of the plaintiffs in the Supreme Court case Noem v. Al Otro Lado at www.youtube.com/live/9ExIDcdqBIk*

As a Christian within the Church of the Brethren tradition, the right to claim asylum is also central to my denominational identity, since our own Christian story is one where we had to seek safety from religious persecution and political oppression. In the early 1700s, our Brethren church members faced persecution in Germany for their opposition to war and for their belief in adult baptism. Brethren church members were forced to leave Europe in search of a safe haven. Before the United States became the United States of America, this land became a place of safety for my religious ancestors. Since then, Church of the Brethren congregations have welcomed immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers. In the 1980s and 1990s, Brethren in Miami welcomed Haitians who arrived by boat in Florida, fleeing political repression. Just three years ago, my own congregation here on Capitol Hill welcomed Venezuelan migrants bused to DC from the Texas border, as part of an interfaith effort with Migrant Solidarity Mutual Aid.

Throughout the Bible, it’s clear that every human being is made in the image of God, worthy of dignity and love. This includes asylum seekers—foreigners seeking safe haven in a land that is not their own. International law says that seeking asylum is a human right. The call to welcome asylum seekers is core to the Christian faith. I’m grateful the Church of the Brethren could join an interfaith amicus brief filed on behalf of the plaintiffs in Al Otro Lado. We stand together as people of faith committed to preserving the right to claim asylum at our borders and ports of entry.

#MissionAndMinistryBoard #StrategicPlan #RacialJustice #LoveOurNeighbors #Discipleship #NewTestamentGiving

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