Speaking of migrants: a Christian reflection on language and welcome

Photo By © Raimond Spekking / CC BY-SA 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons), CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=44032356

 Speaking of migrants: a Christian reflection on language and welcome

How we speak about people from overseas matters. For Christians, our words should reflect God’s heart for the stranger – the one who comes from afar and is to be loved as one of our own (Leviticus 19:34).

This is not the place to discuss borders, nationhood and mass migration. It's about how we speak of migrants and is more to do with churches than government policy.

I'm well aware that politically correct activists have tried to police our language and re-engineer society by changing the terminology we use. Often they are obscuring important realities, remvig fior eaxmople the norm that society is made up of covenantally-bound husbands and wives and levelling evrything to 'partners', as if the covenant of marriage wasn't significant.

However, we think using words, and it is worth taking a few minutes to think about how we speak of foreigners in our midst.

Common terms like ‘migrant’ and ‘immigrant’ are widespread but often freighted with dislike. ‘Migrant’ evokes movement without destination; and ‘immigrant’ flattens what is often a much more complex identity, thnking onlt of how these people have 'come here'. These folk carry with them a whole heritage which they don't lose at the border.

The most helpful term I've found is ‘diasporic neighbour’, aside from the inconvenience that there is no singular noun for this type of migrant –  it doesn;t work to label Ahmed the barber a ‘diasporus’. But it is a useful term. The original diaspora was the dispersion or scattering of the Jews after the Exile. They lived as natives of Babylon, Crete, Rome and so on, but still had a heartfelt attachment to their place of origin – in large part because of a theologically framed identity: think Daniel stretching out his hands three times a day to pray to Jerusalem. And the command to appear before God three times a year at the major festivals.

Some prefer ‘internationals,’ a term friendlier in tone, especially used for overseas students. Yet it glosses over the major differences between the more middle or upper class overseas students, who are really 'sojourner' on a short-term visa, as distinct from migrants who've come to settle here – and who are often more blue-collar, working in shops and other service industry jobs. Similarly, ‘SOLs’ (Speakers of Other Languages) can identify a demographic in the neighbourhood but focuses on linguistic difference – rather a functional label.

We might talk about ministry to asylum seekers, although if we're being precise asylum seekers become refugees the minute their claim is accepted. Hence the mouthful: "refugees and asylum-seekers".

Other labels like ‘Asians,’ ‘ethnic minorities,’ or ‘people from overseas’ can unintentionally flatten complex identities, defining people by their otherness. By contrast, ‘newcomers’ carries a sense of welcome and journey, though it implies a recent arrival which may not always fit.

I love the phrase ‘the nations on our doorstep’ – it captures a biblical vision of global community. Yet, again, there is no singular form: we have no way to say ‘a nationian on our doorstep’ about an individual.

The Greek word in the NT for foreigner is ‘xenos’ (ξένος) – a stranger. We all know the word xenophobia. But are we imbued with xenophilia? Actually the word in Hebrews 13:2 is that word with the two parts flipped: philoxenia. But let's not forget that hospitality to the xenos is a key hallmark of Christian faith – we may even entertain angels unawares (Hebrews 13:2).

Therefore, our language must serve empathy and love, not fear and dislike. We should choose words that honour our neighbours and avoid reducing people to problems or projects. Sometimes this will mean choosing more relational terms: neighbour, friend, newcomer, and trying to use people’s names rather than just speaking of a demographic category.

Words are seeds. They grow into attitudes, and attitudes shape our communities. As Christians, we are called to sow words of welcome that reflect the Kingdom we belong to, which is a gathering of many ethnicities, and it is happening on our doorstep in churches with those from many peoples and languages worshipping the Lord together.

God can Turn Blockblocks into Springboards: Acts 16 in time of war

 

Map: freebibleimages.org

 

As I face the disappointment of cancelled travel plans, I find myself drawn to Acts 16 and Paul’s frustrations. He wanted to go to Bithynia (roughly modern Istanbul), “but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to” (v.7). Clearly, the Holy Spirit does not always reveal to preachers where they should go in a way that guarantees smooth access. Aborted journeys can, in God’s mysterious providence, be part of his good purposes.

In the previous verse, Paul, Silas, and Timothy were “kept by the Spirit of Jesus from preaching the word in the province of Asia” (v.6). I shall quote the verses in full and then share three observations that stand out for me:

In time of war- a prayer for use in church

 A Prayer of Praise and Petition in Time of War

Holy and sovereign LORD,
Commander of the armies of heaven,
you are pure in all your ways and righteous in all your judgments.
You are not swept up into the passions of nations,
nor do you bend to the pride of rulers.
You are zealous for justice,
steadfast in mercy,
and unchanging in holiness.

We praise you that you are not a tribal god,
not a mascot for our causes,
not a banner we wave to sanctify our ambitions.
When Joshua asked, “Are you for us or for our adversaries?”
you answered, “Neither.”
You stand above every nation,
and yet you stand firmly against evil.

LORD, you hate oppression and the shedding of innocent blood.
You see the cruelty of tyrants and the suffering of the vulnerable.
You are not indifferent to violence or injustice.
You are the judge of all the earth,
and you will do what is right.

And so we pray in days of war and conflict:
Guard us from pride.
Keep us from assuming that our power equals your approval.
Forgive us when we invoke your name to sanctify our fears or justify our anger.

Teach us instead to seek your side—
to love what you love,
to oppose what you oppose,
to defend the vulnerable without self-righteousness,
to pursue justice without triumphalism.

Grant wisdom to leaders.
Restrain evil wherever it rises.
Protect the innocent from harm.
Comfort those who mourn.
And purify your church,
that we may bear witness not to one nation's glory or the virtues of 'The West'
but to your holy kingdom that has dawned in the Lord Jesus Christ's coming into the world, and his glorious sacrifice.

Commander of the LORD’s host,
make us a people who bow before you,
who remove our sandals in humility,
and who follow where you lead.

Through Jesus Christ,
the Prince of Peace and righteous Judge,
Amen.

Composed as a reflection on Joshua ch 5 and the current Iran-Israel-US war, in dialogue with ChatGPT (which is not 'AI' as such but really the workings of a machine speedily gathering and curating what humans have written in their prayers over the centuries).

Why it is Good to Sing the Psalms–and a caution about congregational readings

 

An article originally written 18th Nov 2019, in the context of international churches seeking to help birth Kurdish churches, updated slightly in 2025.

Huge amounts of effort have gone into establishing indigenous churches among the Kurds in the last quarter-century, but there has been relatively little effort made to help these fledgling believers sing the Psalms.  

Remember, friends, that the first book ever published on American soil was the Bay Psalm Book (1640; Cambridge, Massachusetts).  What does this tell us about the high value those first settlers placed on the actual singing of the Scriptures?

In an earlier period of church history, churches sang mainly Psalms, together with some Canticles (other Scripture set to music).  Hymns not directly taken from the Bible were viewed with suspicion.*

Skip on to the 21st Century and the pendulum has swung to the other extreme; we sing mainly hymns and choruses, and churches that do sing the Psalms are few and far between.

My purpose here is not to be divisive and neither am I promoting exclusive Psalmody, which I simply don't find persuasive.  I just want us to, firstly, start with that historical perspective to shake up our thinking a little, and then to consider why it is worth singing the Psalms together.

1. The Psalms are songs.  Whilst they are Scripture and the public reading of Scripture is commanded, we should be prepared to reevaluate the tradition of reading the Psalms but neglecting to sing them.  I have often heard worship-leaders read out a Psalm (praise God) and then respond by leading into the more emotional engagement of a song.  I wonder why the Psalms themselves aren't used as songs with which to engage the emotions with their huge range of feelings.  

2. Reformed churches are often accused of being afraid of emotion.  We are scorned as being the 'frozen chosen'; or 'sound, but sound asleep'.  Perhaps there is more than a little truth in those criticisms.  To dedicate five minutes of our service to sending our emotions through the divine furnace of Psalm-singing would be a good thing.  Our joys would be less worldly (Ps 4), our doubts would be allowed to find expression (see Ps 73) and our anger made more righteous and less self-pitying (Ps 94:1-7).

3. When we sing the songs of the Bible, everyone preaches.  Thus we experience liturgically more of the truth we usually assent to, that of 'every-member ministry'.  This is in line with 1 Thess 5:11- "encourage one another and build eachother up"

4. Churches that sing the Psalms fulfil better the calling to ‘teach one another’ in song. Of course, many of the better hymns do this: ‘How firm a foundation, you saints of the Lord’- that’s not addressed to God but to one another.  But hymn/song-only churches do not, in my experience, teach in their singing the varied diet of history, ethics, science, agriculture (and international relations- Psalm 2:1-2!) that Psalm-singing churches do.  I can personally testify to how Psalm 65 has helped me appreciate and encourage in small ways (eg composting) good stewardship of the land, even while–  and wait for this if you want to see how profound and well-proportioned the Psalter is –  keeping me to an eschatological perspective and an overarching emphasis on the forgiveness of sins as my central message in life.

5. Singing lodges truth in our minds in a way that reading does not.  See Deut 31:21: this song of Moses "will live unforgotten in the mouths of their offspring"

When I originally wrote this article, the context was one in which there was widespread agreement that the Psalms should have a central place in our worship – more than their proportional share of the biblical canon. But there were some brothers I noticed that would opt for congregational readings, and here I will try to gently argue for a policy of 'sing them if you can; get an individual to read if you don't have the capability to sing them':

Some Observations About Congregational Reading of the Psalms 

This, I will admit, is not such a vital point as the one just elucidated above, but in a context where we want to reflect on what will be helpful when Kurdish gatherings copy our traditions, a brief evaluation could be helpful.

Interestingly, there is no Scriptural precedent for congregational reading of Scripture.  Not to say it is wrong, but the fact that it is never commended or modeled makes me cautious about its practice.  This is, I think, because Scripture-reading needs preparation if it is to be done well.  Congregational reading of a passage or a Psalm is, by the nature of things, done without prior preparation.  There is a lowest common denominator feel; we all trudge along at the pace of the slowest and least emotionally engaged reader.  (In a Kurdish setting, congregational reading would often be awkward; many simply cannot keep up with a corporate reading and we should be careful not to assume that women from the villages or Arabic-educated people will be even vaguely competent readers in Kurdish) 

1. Therefore, songs of joy become mere recitations.  Verses with outbursts of anger (Oh that you would slay the wicked, O God! Ps 139:19) cannot be given the sudden change of speed and tone that they deserve.  (This here is not an argument for singing only; note that a well-prepared reading of Psalm 139 by one voice would allow those changes of pitch and pace)

2. There is, I concede, evidence of congregational engagement in Scripture.  

"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting!” Then all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord." 1 Chronicles 16:36 (emphasis mine)

But notice that the people are responding in brief, with some enthusiasm it seems, to a Psalm introduced by trained people [a company that we could perhaps market today as Asaph & Bros ;-)] 

3. To nuance my suggestion above a bit, I am in favour of participatory reading, especially with passages from the epistles.  Or any passage which states something and then naturally invites the congregation to 'count themselves in' by reading a section of it, for example in bold on the service sheet. Here there is good Scriptural precedent:

Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the Lord has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”  Exodus 24:7

But we could highlight the end goal in this way by quoting Paul: let’s pray that the word of Christ would dwell richly in us as we sing Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to one another.

  *Isaac Watts faced strong opposition for 'tampering with the Psalms' for that reason.  It's extraordinary to think that his hymns, which are on the whole such good Christian readings of the Psalms, were opposed back then.  Someone who wants to reply with a nuanced appraisal of my introduction is welcome to do so.  I don't have time to google around and find out to what extent the early church 'sang only Scripture'.  

** I sense that the argument above is being more widely received these days.  Note, the excellent Sing Psalms book (and free app), which I have endeavoured to make more useful to mainstream contemporary churches: www.tinyURL.com/easypsalmtunes

Praise! included all 150 Psalms in the first section of their hymnbook.

Jamie Soles has now finished writing modern tunes to a metrical Psalter used I think by the Reformed Church in Canada.  See the firstfruits of that in his Highways to Zion album. Update: see his YouTube & Substack.

Matt Searles has put out albums using familiar hymn tunes to sing metrical Psalms, as well as custom-composed tunes.

The Gettys are promoting Psalm-singing, though their output apparently will be more along the lines of songs inspired by the Psalms, or digests of certain Psalms.

Pastoral Review of Tim Dieppe's The Challenge of Islam

The Challenge of Islam: Understanding and Responding to Islam’s Increasing Influence in the UK

Tim Dieppe
Wilberforce Publications
Published February 6, 2025

224 pages

Available on Amazon 

I have found the reviews —and the commendations from leading Christian scholars on Islam— very positive. However, one evangelical expert on Islam told me he wouldn't recommend the book unless it was accompanied with more about how we should respond to Muslims. That friend got me thinking.

My view is that it is an excellent book in many ways, and I have been recommending it to others. I've met Tim once, and I asked him if people claim he is exaggerating the extent of the Islamification of Britain. He quietly responded 'no, no one says I'm exaggerating the case', and that was a memorable comment at the end of our brief conversation at a busy conference. This suggests to me that he has done his homework; and though I might quibble with a few things, his case stands. If you do feel there are exaggerations or misrepresentations, feel free to add them in the comments.

I won't summarise the contents here (this is ably done by a scholar from the Latimer Trust: see pp2-4). What this article will do is explore the impact the book had on me emotionally. I found it a very troubling book to read.

Probably the most upsetting episode mentioned in the book is the Batley Grammar School incident:

"In 2021, a teacher at Batley Grammar School [the head of Religious Education] decided to teach a lesson about blasphemy and free speech. He illustrated the lesson by showing a cartoon of Muhammad. Crowds gathered outside the school to protest, forcing the school to shut for two days in a row. The teacher was subsequently suspended and was forced to go into hiding for his own safety. He remains in hiding to this day [with his partner and four children, using an assumed name, outside of Yorkshire]. This is certainly the most effective lesson he ever taught. The whole school and the rest of the country learned that we do not have free speech when it comes to Islam. There is a de-facto Islamic blasphemy law in place."

By the way, if you don't have the book or don't have time to read it, listen to this webinar where Tim talks you through his material (mainly chapter one).

I almost want to say it's a heart-breaking read. And yet that's where I don't want to leave readers: left broken-hearted about the state of our nation. And feeling somewhat alone. That's how I felt. I knew that if I shared what I'd been discovering about the extent of Islamic takeover in Britain some people would think I was being conspiratorial or 'far right'.

Tim Dieppe's personal journey into engagement with Islam is fascinating. He is an Oxford Mathematics graduate and former investment banker. It was while researching whether he could manage a Sharia fund at his bank that he began to see what a malign influence Islam was having on the UK. Perhaps the first anecdote in his webinar is the most compelling, where HSBC bank, for whom Tim Dieppe worked, decided to sack the Islamist chairman* of their Sharia fund advisory board because he had written in defence of killing unbelievers in the UK until they pay the jizya (which is what Qu'ran 9:29 says).

Now, Tim the former financier and Maths graduate, kind of looks and speaks the part: he's not the wild-eyed prophet with a biker beard you might expect to be the one to take on Islam! Now, I'm actually thankful he is prosaic and mathematical: this no doubt has dampened the gunpowder of those who might like to write him off as a rednecked, red-state conspiracy theorist. But there is a point to consider amongst the high praise of his work: though I have no reason to doubt Tim is a committed member of a local church, he is a religious scholar and social analyst, and not a pastor. I don't want to overstate the case: in his chapter on Salman Rushdie which details the UK's move 'from fatwa to fear', he appeals to us like a preacher (with some alliteration to boot) to move "from fear to faith and freedom". But he says all this in five lines, and this simply isn't enough to pastor fearful believers through the coming storms.

In ch 1 he gives his his manifesto for responding to Islam's growth in the UK. These 'Five Pillars of Responding to Islam' are as follows:

1. Pray
2. Love
3. Confront
4. Expose
5. Resist

Those are all good points he makes. But I would say this needs supplementing with the holistic care of soul-shepherds. I now move into my usual critique of Western evangelical culture, especially in the light of the way eastern cultures by contrast think and express themselves: we are not poetic enough. We need more than propositional statements; we need poetry, preferably well-chosen Psalms well-set to music.

Let me give you an example. Tim tells us that by 2050, according to Pew research, 17% of Britain will be Muslim and he quotes from Ed Husain to point out there are no go areas for whites in the UK. But there are Psalms that help me really make sense of that shocking prospect. Psalm 60:3 says "You have shown your people desperate times; you have given us wine that makes us stagger."

Immediately, that sounds problematic. Do churches want to hear that the Christian God is the one, through bringing Islam in great power to the UK, is causing this Islamification of northern towns like Bradford, Blackburn and Dewsbury? Worse, is it right they think of this change as God making us drunk, something elsewhere denounced as a sin? Well, here is poetry. It knocks us, it shocks us —but it has the power to shape us too: into the bold envoys of Christ, like the fearless apostles in Acts. That Psalm leads us into singing with conviction the petition "Give us aid against the enemy, for human help is worthless." And then David concludes "With God we shall gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies." (With the proviso that texts like this need to read and sung with an understanding that we fight a spiritual war with the word of God, leaving the 'trampling of our enemies' to the just judgment of the Last Day: we're not talking the vigilante justice of some anti-Islam militants)

Some in UK Christian circles are clearly getting this point about the value of the Psalms. I hear of 'Psalm shouts' being held at different gatherings in the UK. Selden College, a Christian university starting up in Oxford, state that Psalm-singing is an integral part of their education of students. But we need this in our churches too: to replace some of the fizz and pop of our more superficial happy-clappy songs with solid meat for the soul.

Try Psalm 102** sung to the tune of My Song is Love Unknown. We need to express our sorrow and our loneliness and then proceed to sing triumphantly of our Saviour. When I preached on sharing the Good News with Muslims this year I led our congregation into a singing of Psalm 87 to the tune of Come Thou Fount, which I thought worked well (video clip here)— and I was moved to tears singing it.

There's a couple of other ways to process Tim's book biblically. I will try to expand on these in further posts if I have time.

a) There is a striking biblical precedent for the take-over of a country by an idolatrous religion (the north of a country, as it happens —which has an eerie likeness to the growing strength of Islam in the former mill towns of the north of England). It comes in 1 Kings 11-12. Note that these events, in which Israel turns to a counterfeit version of the worship of Yahweh and make a golden calf, happen according to the word of the LORD. Note 11:31;12:15. Now I do know that Tim Dieppe agrees that the progress of Islam is not a victory for Allah but rather the judgment of God on the apostate churches of the West. That's clear in the Q&A of the webinar linked above. But this needs to be written on our hearts through drinking deeply of the wells of God's salvation.

b) Tim's book can serve as a 'ten fearful scouts' report. Remember the ten who reported that Canaan couldn't be taken by the Israelites because there were giants there? "We looked like grasshoppers in their eyes", they tell the people. "We even saw the Nephilim there". If read in the wrong spirit, the book is a long, detailed account of Nephilim and the descendants of Anak! To be honest, that's the effect it had on me at times. Hear the key quote in full:

"The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size.  We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them" (Numbers 13:32-33)

We naturally are swayed by the ten. But we need to listen to the minority voice within the church, those who say along with Joshua and Caleb:
"If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us.  Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.’" Numbers 13:8-9

Tim trifurcates the challenge of Islam in this way in that webinar:


I think he sells his own work a little short with that trifurcation! In the book he deals with the educational challenge, the economic challenge and the political challenge, like the killing of Sir David Amess MP in 2021 by a jihadist who said in court "If you encourage someone to an act of Jihad it is a good thing". But my point is, in conclusion, that we need to face up also to the emotional challenge of Islam. That's what this article has majored on. Even the cover of the book looks 'scary', and Islam does present a very bold face, in such way that even the most faithful Christians can indeed feel 'like grasshoppers' before their large and well-attended mosques. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus if we are to run the race with perseverance, and whilst it would be churlish to be over-critical of the book on this point, it must nevertheless be said that this book says very little about Jesus Christ. That's where pastors, and indeed every Christian speaking into this area, need to provide spiritual food that will strengthen weak knees for the spiritual marathon. To borrow from Robert Murray M'Cheyne: "For every one look at Islam, take ten looks at Christ"***

*A prominent Islamic scholar called Taqi Usmani, whose career is well-documented on Wikipedia

** using Sing Psalms' metrical version, posted freely online and via their app
*** Here's the original M'Cheyne quote:

"Learn much of the Lord Jesus. For every look at yourself, take ten looks at Christ. He is altogether lovely... Live much in the smiles of God. Bask in his beams. Feel his all-seeing eye settled on you in love, and repose in his almighty arms."

Bonar, Andrew. Memoir and Remains of the Rev. Robert Murray M’Cheyne (1844). This quote appears in the "Letters" section, often in editions published in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The Quran's view of Christmas

Few Christians are aware of what the Scriptures of our Muslim friends say about Jesus' birth and childhood.

A careful study of the rival accounts is an opportunity to teach the doctrine of the full humanity of Christ. He did not speak from the cradle, and neither was he born under a palm tree. That is a shrouding of the poverty into which Christ was born...and he did that in order to make us rich eternally through his death and resurrection.

This is a very brief post. If I have time I may expand on it in the future.

Copy-Pasting Bilingual Bible verses en masse: Slaying a Time Waster

 Increasingly, we will find ourselves doing Bible studies, preparing ppt slides etc in different languages.

This eats up precious word ministry time, and typically the re-formatting needed after you've pasted the verse onto your page or slide is an additional time-chomper.

This is the best approach I've found so far:

(I can now produce a nicely-formatted doc like this in about 25 mins which is amazing and so much quicker than it was in the years BC (Before Chat GPT)

So, you have to give ChatGPT very clear instructions:

Using a free account on Bible.com, and then by using this bilingual online Bible platform, https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/113/PSA.100.NIVUK?parallel=503 please create a table for me with Sorani Kurdish (KSS) verses on the left and English (NIVUK) verses on the right:
AI should be able to paste the Sorani Kurdish verses into a table.

Ephesians 5: 25-28 

Galatians 6: 15-16 

Galatians 3: 27-28 

Matthew 27: 50-51 

Mark 7: 18-23 

1 Timothy 2: 5 

 Acts 20: 7 

1 Timothy 5: 17-18 

James 5: 16 

1 Corinthians 11: 23-29 

Revelation 21: 1-4

Strangely, this didn't work. But it did do half the grunt work following my earlier instructions:

Using this bilingual online Bible platform, https://www.bible.com/en-GB/bible/113/PSA.100.NIVUK?parallel=503 please create a table for me with English NIVUK verses on the left, and Sorani Kurdish verses on the right: Ephesians 5: 25-28 Galatians 6: 15-16 Galatians 3: 27-28 Matthew 27: 50-51 Mark 7: 18-23 1 Timothy 2: 5 Acts 20: 7 1 Timothy 5: 17-18 James 5: 16 1 Corinthians 11: 23-29 Revelation 21: 1-4

I was then able to copy-paste the nice table AI created for me and then I got Chat GPT to produce a list of links that would navigate me straight to the verses I was looking for.

By creating a free account on Bible.com, you can access parallel translations, including Sorani Kurdish alongside English. This feature allows you to view the verses side by side.​ Please give me links to verses which will allow me to copy-paste verse in the Sorani Kurdish (KSS) translation: Ephesians 5: 25-28 Galatians 6: 15-16 Galatians 3: 27-28 Matthew 27: 50-51 Mark 7: 18-23 1 Timothy 2: 5 Acts 20: 7 1 Timothy 5: 17-18 James 5: 16 1 Corinthians 11: 23-29 Revelation 21: 1-4

Then I put the data into a Google Doc, landscape, font size 14 for Kurdish and 12 for English. It's best to click on the Text Direction icon

then the Kurdish will display RTL. Landscape is best.

My finished product on Google Docs is here.

NB My spaces are odd, I admit. Mark 7: 18-23
But bear in mind that if you're using Arabic script, which goes RTL but LTR for numerals, that crucial space can get the chapter then the verse displaying correctly.