Life Together in Christ: Indigenous Peoples, Refugees, Immigrants, Pilgrims and the Challenges of Christian Unity in a Global Context

Today, more people than ever before live in a country other than the one in which they were born, and the number of displaced people is at a record high. According to the United Nations, in 2017 the number of migrants reached 258 million, and in 2018 an unprecedented 70.8 million people around the world had been forced from home by conflict and persecution. Half of the latter are under the age of 18. Throughout Scripture the people of God have been called to love the stranger (Lev. 19:34) and to serve those in need (Matt. 25:35–40). How are different Christian communities around the globe responding to the challenges of our times? How do Christian hospitality and social justice relate to worship? How do churches’ responses to the migrant crisis inform our worship practices? How does public worship form God’s people to love and serve the most vulnerable? In this session, the panelists shared their unique experiences in a variety of contexts around the globe.