In response to an intensifying standoff between state officials and the federal government over border security, a group calling itself “God’s Army” said it would lead a convoy of up to 40,000 trucks from Virginia to the southern border this week and end with a Feb. 3 rally in Eagle Pass, Texas. With its stated goal to “Take Our Border Back,” the convoy’s organizers paint a portrait of an America besieged by dark, evil forces. God, they say, has charged Christians with halting an invasion of immigrants that is “poisoning the blood” of the country.
The convoy’s organizers paint a portrait of an America besieged by dark, evil forces.
According to a Tuesday afternoon report, things haven’t gone the way “God’s Army” planned. Wired magazine reports that there were only 20 trucks in the convoy by the time it reached Jacksonville, Florida, and it remains unclear how many, if any, people in this so-called army will even make it to the border.
But the attempt to rally an army at the border must still be taken seriously, and voters of faith should see the mobilization effort for what it is: cut-and-dry Christian nationalism. As an evangelical pastor, I know it when I see it.
When organizers of the convoy say they’re standing up against “globalists’’ who want to destroy America, they aren’t being religious; they’re being racist, not to mention antisemitic. When they say they’re acting on behalf of God, they’re saying that anyone who opposes them opposes God’s will. Despite their attempts to give their views a religious covering, it’s nothing but anti-immigrant hate they’re spewing. Christianity doesn’t teach turning away people in need because they don’t look like you or pray like you do.
People on the extreme fringe are leading the immigration agenda right now, and because they’re on the fringe, they are necessarily out of step with most Americans and out of step with the reality on the ground. Almost three years ago, a group of evangelical and Catholic faith leaders and I biked over 3,200 miles along the border. We spoke with border patrol officers, ranchers, humanitarians, faith leaders, mayors, business owners, residents and migrants, including asylum-seekers. We found that there is indeed a crisis at the border, but that crisis puts migrants, not U.S. citizens, in danger.
Despite Republican rhetoric to the contrary, the border is safe — unless you are a migrant. The only option for entering along the southern border is to cross the Rio Grande River, climb a wall, or trek through a desert. Why do people take such risks? Because they’re out of better options. Border crossing closures have increased and allotments for asylum claims have been drastically reduced.
The continuation of the “Remain in Mexico” policy requires nearly all asylum-seekers to await their adjudication in Mexico, which makes them vulnerable to drug cartels that prey on their desperation to cross the border or make them sitting ducks for kidnappings and other crimes. Meanwhile, the crisis continues to intensify in parts of Mexico and Central American countries.
Yet instead of loving and welcoming our neighbors, as good Christians ought, Christian nationalists are looking to pour fuel on the fire for political gain. Clearly, some Christian voters, the primary audience for this pernicious vision of America, need to be shown why Christian nationalism, and candidates like former President Donald Trump, are anathema to both Christian and democratic values. That’s why our group of faith leaders is also traveling to Eagle Pass and hosting our own rally on Feb. 3.
Our plan was to present an alternative to the Christian nationalism promoted by the trucker convoy and to engage with members of the self-proclaimed Army of God. My organization, Vote Common Good, has a history of doing so. Several years ago, when the Proud Boys crashed one of our events in Florida, we later invited them to a conversation in a local bar. It’s unclear if anybody from the convoy will make it to Eagle Pass, but it’s still our plan to be there, and if they show up, we’ll be there to talk. Through the lens of our shared Christian faith, we want to engage with people of all different political ideologies — even those we consider extreme. Through the lens of our shared Christian faith, and with face-to-face conversations, we want to engage with people of all different political ideologies — even those we consider extreme — and create a dialogue that provides a path back from radicalism. We want to convey the message that Christians should support a humane immigration system that seeks to help those in need, not turn them away. Ultimately, this weekend is one stop on a larger journey we’re on this year to show voters of faith around the country that there’s another way. I’m the executive director of Vote Common Good and, by our estimate, if just 3% of evangelical and Catholic voters who supported Trump previously are convinced not to do so this year, he and Christian nationalism will be defeated at the polls in November. We’re still headed to the border on the chance that there will be a standoff, but a different one than media outlets were initially predicting. The standoff we seek is one between Christians who believe God wants them to turn migrants away and those of us who believe the opposite, that God wants us all to welcome migrants with food and shelter. This divide also exists within evangelical and Catholic communities across the country. Which group’s values and vision of America wins over more voters of faith this year could make all the difference, not just on what happens at the border but on the future character of our country.
Doug Pagitt
Doug Pagitt is executive director of Vote Common Good and an evangelical pastor from Minneapolis. 
