Hispanic Evangelicals Declare Day of Prayer for Immigration Reform
A Hispanic Christian group representing 15 million Hispanic evangelicals is marking Sunday as the National Day of Prayer for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.
The National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, a sister organization of the National Association of Evangelicals, is urging Christians and faith communities to join in prayer for the immigration reform legislation in the Senate.
"Prayer is the greatest weapon to bring about change," Dr. Jesse Miranda, president of the Advisory Board for the Hispanic evangelical body, said in a statement.
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The Rev. Felix Posos, board chairman of the NHCLC, highlighted that unless there is immediate intervention by the White House among Republican Senators and House Leadership, then 12 million people will hide deeper in the shadows, anti-Latino and immigrant animosity will increase, and the nation's borders will continue to be vulnerable.
Under the comprehensive immigration reform bill before the Senate, 12 million illegal immigrants will be given a pathway to citizenship, border security will be increase, and new laws banning employers from hiring illegal workers will be enforced. The bill was drawn up by a bipartisan group of senators and White House negotiators after months of intense negotiations.
Supporters of the bill call it the "Grand Bargain" and warn that if the bill is not passed within the next few weeks, then the issue will not likely be re-discussed until after the presidential campaign next year when things have settled down again.
The NHCLC is mobilizing about 18,000 churches to contact members of Congress and pass Comprehensive Immigration reform legislation to protect the borders, protect all families and to protect American values.
"Immigration Reform is not just a political or moral issue, it is above all a spiritual issue," Miranda stated.
Last year, the NHCLC organized the first National Prayer Day for Immigration Reform.
