@DPCassidyTKC
My middle name is Patrick and my last name is Cassidy. I’m the descendant of immigrants from Ireland & England. The church I serve in S Florida is made up not only of native born Americans but also Hondurans, Guatemalans, Haitians, Jamaicans, Mexicans, Cubans, Brazilians, Argentinians, Columbians, Venezuelans, S Africans, Sri Lankans, Indians, Vietnamese, Thai, Iranians, Japanese, Chinese, Singaporean, several European countries, and many more. We do simultaneous translation of services in Portuguese and Spanish. We host a big ESL program and love every student, from all over the world. We’ve partnered with church planters on every continent but Antarctica. We are black, white, brown, Asian, and more. Our Session is Anglo, Haitian, Jamaican, S African, & Brazilian. Our staff is as colorful as Joseph’s coat. The Kingdom of God and the Church are not identified by race, ethnicity, or boundary. Diversity isn’t something we “aim at”, it’s something we’ve been born again into. Immigration isn’t a curse and borders don’t define the limits of humanity. Every country should have a secure border and legal immigration. This country, of all the countries in the world, should be the most welcoming of immigration, celebrating the fact that so many seek freedom and security here. That doesn’t mean we have to have an open border or an uncontrolled tide of people where security fails to identify those who would come to undermine the very system and values that would dare to make room for all who yearn to be free. But equally, it does mean there can be no narrowness of heart for those in desperate need, no blindness to the radical nature of the Gospel that makes the Church a global community without the walls and boundaries of an old order rooted in wealth, class, race, or skill; no lack of resolve to pray for all in authority; and no hesitation to embrace all who come to Christ’s Church in search of the beloved community. |
