Perspectief 2017-36

Perspectief 6 Werk van jonge theologen threatening situations, be they social, economic or environmental, and regardless of whether they cross national borders. As will be discussed in more detail in chapter two, the Lutheran churches do not profess one single social teaching or, by extension, a clear-cut definition of ‘refugee’. We therefore turn to Lutheran organisations aiding and resettling refugees. In the United States Lutheran churches and organisations aimed at ministry towards immigrants and refugees are united in the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service. This overarching organisation subscribes to the description of the United Nations but adds to the list those people “for whom escaping to another country is the only means of survival” 13 . In our research we will understand the word ‘refugee’ to mean people who are escaping life-threatening circumstances, regardless of whether they cross borders or not. 4. Relevance Our study of the Roman Catholic and Lutheran perspectives on the refugee crisis can be considered relevant on three different levels, i.e. the academic, societal and ecclesial level. Today the Western world is confronted with unprecedented numbers of people seeking refuge, with one out of every 122 humans displaced from home 14 . People are experiencing a tension between compassion with the strangers knocking on the doors of their countries on the one hand, and the economic, cultural, social, political and demographical protection of their own people on the other. This study aims at examining the variety of Christian responses to an unparalleled crisis. While it is currently absent in the general academic migration discourse for its perceived lack of attention towards migration 15 , theology would stand out as the discipline par excellence to keep academic debates focused on the humanity of migrant peoples. More than any other discipline, theology tends to recognise 13 Lutheran World Federation (undated) Welcoming the Stranger: Affirmations for Faith Leaders accessed June 1, 2016 at https://www.lutheranworld.org/sites/default/files/Welcoming_the_Stranger.pdf. 14 Gaynor, T. (2015) 2015 likely to break records for forced displacement – study accessed June 1, 2016 at http://www.unhcr.org/5672c2576.html. 15 Groody, D. (2009) Crossing the Divide: Foundations of a Theology of Migration Theological Studies 70, p. 640.