FIVE church leaders from four Scottish churches have signed an open letter to President Donald Trump asking him to revise his administration’s policies on migrants and asylum seekers.
In it, the leaders from the Church of Scotland, United Reformed Church, Scottish Catholic Church and Scottish Episcopal Church express "sadness" at the President's immigration policy, stressing that "Scotland's people know what it is to be welcomed as a stranger".
The letter reads:
Dear President Trump,
The iconic symbol of the United States of America, the Statue of Liberty proclaims “give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free”.
She has been seen by generations of Scots, including your own ancestors, who went to make a new life and in turn contributed to the life of a nation unequalled in history for its diversity and opportunity.
It is with great sadness that we have followed reports of events in recent months which have seen families ripped apart and children placed in cages. While all nations have the right to ensure their safety and control their borders this action has gone beyond what good conscience can accept.
As a nation shaped by migration, Scotland’s people have known what it is to be welcomed as the stranger – and to welcome others.
Most religions teach a form of the Golden Rule (treat others as you would wish to be treated) and the inherent value and dignity of every human being.
People of faith are aware that our common humanity transcends national, racial, cultural or linguistic barriers. Offering hospitality to strangers is a common requirement of many different faith traditions.
In recent years in Scotland faith groups have lived and worked alongside refugees and asylum seekers, often in partnership with members of other faiths and with voluntary and statutory agencies. Scottish Faiths Action for Refugees is just one example of collaboration between people of multiple faith traditions.
While our history is marked with incidences of conflict, division and sectarianism, the Scotland you are visiting is multi-cultural, multi-faith, and enriched by the contribution of all Scots, native or new.
Across our nation, communities are opening their doors to those seeking safety, most recently leading the UK in welcoming Syrian refugees. In offering protection from persecution we, in return, receive creativity, hard-work, and friendship; we are made new.
We hope that your visit, continuing the long friendship between our countries, will give you the opportunity to see and hear that life in all its fullness does not come at the exclusion of others.
At the start of your Presidency, His Holiness Pope Francis prayed for wisdom and strength as you exercise your office.
We join our prayers with his, and pray that, as you look to the God who exults the poor and lifts up the lowly, you will remember the poorest and most recently arrived in your country, who, like many Scots before them, have so much to offer to your country and the world.
Rev Dr Richard Frazer, Convener Church and Society Council, Church of Scotland
Mr John Collings, Church and Society Secretary, National Synod of Scotland, United Reformed Church
Grace Buckley, member of the National Justice and Peace Commission for Scotland, a commission of the Scottish Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
Rev’d Joan Lyon, Priest-in-Charge at St Ninian’s, Aberdeen, and an NHS chaplain for the Scottish Episcopal Church
Rev Nicholas Bowry, Curate at St Clement's Church, Aberdeen
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel