Systemic Exclusion of Migrants Rooted in Colonial Christian Nationalism: A Case for Decolonizing Faith-Based Immigration Discourse

Indigenous traditions universally frame migration as a disruption caused by colonial land theft and resource extraction, not as a moral failing of individuals. The Christian framing of Jesus as a migrant ignores how Indigenous cosmologies—such as the Maya concept of *xocomil* (shared destiny)—offer alternative frameworks for understanding displacement as a collective wound requiring communal healing. Western Christian narratives often co-opt Indigenous suffering without acknowledging the churches' role in erasing these worldviews through forced assimilation.

The Christian justification for exclusion has deep roots in the Doctrine of Discovery (1493), which declared non-Christian lands terra nullius and justified their seizure, a framework later repurposed for modern border regimes. The transatlantic slave trade was similarly framed as a 'civilizing mission,' with enslaved Africans cast as 'heathens' needing Christian salvation—a precursor to contemporary dehumanization of migrants. The 19th-century Chinese Exclusion Act in the U.S. and Australia’s White Australia Policy were explicitly justified by Christian moral panic over 'alien' cultures, revealing a consistent pattern of racialized exclusion.

In Islamic tradition, the concept of *diyafa* (hospitality) is a divine duty, with the Prophet Muhammad’s migration (*hijra*) to Medina serving as a model for sanctuary-seeking. Buddhist teachings on *karuṇā* (compassion) extend to all sentient beings, framing borders as illusions that obstruct the path to enlightenment. African Indigenous traditions, such as the Zulu principle of *ubuntu*, reject the notion of 'illegal' migration, viewing all people as interconnected members of a shared community.

Migration is overwhelmingly driven by economic inequality, climate disasters, and political violence—factors rarely addressed in theological debates. Studies show that restrictive immigration policies increase human trafficking and labor exploitation, contradicting claims that 'tight borders' enhance security. Neuroscientific research on empathy reveals that framing migrants as 'criminals' or 'invaders' triggers dehumanization circuits in the brain, while narratives of shared humanity activate prosocial regions.

Artists like Ai Weiwei’s *Law of the Journey* (2017) use visual metaphor to expose the dehumanization of migrants, while poets like Warsan Shire’s *Home* (2015) articulate the spiritual violence of displacement. Indigenous artists such as the Zapatistas’ *flores de la palabra* blend spiritual resistance with political demands for land and autonomy. Western Christian hymns like 'I Was a Stranger' are often stripped of their radical potential when divorced from liberation theology’s critique of empire.

Scenario modeling by the IPCC and IOM predicts that by 2050, climate-induced migration could displace 1.2 billion people, overwhelming current border regimes designed for 20th-century nation-states. A 'post-Westphalian' approach to migration—centered on ecological and communal rights—would require dismantling the securitization of borders and investing in global climate reparations. The rise of digital nomad visas and 'golden passport' schemes reveals how global elites already bypass traditional migration systems, exposing the classed nature of border controls.

Migrant workers—particularly Black and Indigenous women from Central America, the Caribbean, and Africa—are systematically excluded from theological and policy debates, despite bearing the brunt of exploitative labor regimes. Afro-descendant theologians like Delores Williams argue that the Exodus narrative must be reclaimed from Eurocentric readings to center Black women’s survival strategies. Indigenous leaders like Rigoberta Menchú have long framed migration as a consequence of colonial land theft, yet their voices are marginalized in favor of Western Christian moralizing.