Marking One Year Of Sanctuary
The Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale helped to lead a service on Tuesday night to commemorate his church’s effort to provide sanctuary from deportation for a range of Indonesian refugees.
Five of those refugees are currently staying in the Reformed Church of Highland Park, a New Jersey congregation whose actions on behalf of the immigrants the Christian Reformed Church has been supporting in various ways.
Kaper-Dale says last night’s service came on the one-year anniversary of the day when his congregation gathered for 24 hours of prayer and fasting, bringing their concerns for the Indonesian community before God.
“We gather tonight to thank God for being faithful to us this year and leading us into successful advocacy and justice work and non-violent confrontation,” he said in prepared remarks.
History of Indonesian’s Struggle
Since the late 1990s, several hundred Indonesian refugees have fled religious persecution in their homeland and settled in New Jersey.
As it turns out, the terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington D.C. that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001 led to authorities cracking down on refugees who came to the U.S. from Muslim-dominated countries such as Indonesia.
“We gather tonight to thank God for being faithful to us this year and leading us into successful advocacy and justice work and non-violent confrontation.” Seth Kaper-Dale.
This has meant that many Indonesian refugees have been deported and many others have become entangled in paperwork as they seek to be given an official status as an asylum-seeker in the US.
Kaper-Dale's church decided late last year to open its sanctuary for Indonesians. Government officials have allowed the immigrants to live there. But that could change.
Widespread Support
The Christian Reformed Church has been a staunch ally of the Reformed Church in America congregation as it has remained in the crosshairs of the immigration debate in the US.
For instance, the CRC’s Board of Trustees last September expressed support for the New Jersey congregation that has had Indonesian immigrants as members.
Also, members of World Renew’s Disaster Relief Services, in New Jersey to help in the clean-up after superstorm Sandy, have been visiting the church and some of them were on hand for Tuesday night’s service as a show of support.
There are other efforts as well.
The CRC’s Office of Social Justice (OSJ) is promoting an effort titled Encourage the Reformed Church in Highland Park.
In this, OSJ is asking congregations and other groups to consider sending cards of support to Indonesian refugees who have sought sanctuary in the New Jersey church.
Children are especially asked to send a card to the refugees staying in the Reformed Church of Highland Park.
Representatives of the CRC’s Office of Social Justice have also been in Washington, D.C. trying to draw attention to the immigration issue and especially about the circumstances of the Indonesians in the New Jersey church.
Looking Back, Looking Ahead
Overall, said Kaper-Dale, they have seen several victories over the last 12 months.
Of the 75 individuals who were in limbo a year ago last night, 49 received Stays of Removal, allowing them to remain at least temporarily in the US.
But the year hasn’t all been victory.
“Tonight we are also here to grieve...Even while we worked hard since December, 2011, trying to convince our government about the lovely persecuted Indonesian people it was targeting for deportation, 15 Indonesians were deported from New Jersey,” he said.
“Of those 15, many were single individuals or couples deported together, but there are three married couples that have been torn apart and there are at least two US citizens children who lost the accompaniment of their fathers for at least the next 10 years.”
On Tuesday night, Kaper-Dale thanked all of those such as the CRC who have support his church’s effort.
He also said he has come to realize that living in sanctuary is hard and exacts a toll.
“Imagine being forced to quit your job, losing your freedom of movement, losing your ability to attend worship or to go shopping or go for exercise or to take your kids to the doctor. Imagine losing your ability to be a free human being,” he said.
“And yet, by the grace of God these men remain optimistic, caring, volunteering, faithful men! They have proven, through these trying times, that they are able to do all things through Christ who strengthens them. They really have.”
