An Immersive Immigration Discipleship Experience
Love Mercy Do Justice–an Evangelical Covenant Church initiative offering immersive experiences like Sankofa, Journey to Mosaic, and Weaving Justice and Peace—will offer a new immersive summer immigration discipleship experience, which North Park Theological Seminary (NPTS) students can complete as a credit-bearing course. Each NPTS degree program requires a cultural diversity elective, which students can fulfill through these experiences.
Held from June 6–9 in San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico, this four-day immersion will root the immigration conversation in Scripture, going beyond media narratives to witness the realities at the southern border firsthand. It will humanize the immigration debate by shifting from political divides to theological reflection on welcoming the stranger.
Participants will leave equipped to serve as everyday peacemakers in their communities, viewing conflict as an opportunity for transformation. Learn more on the registration page.
In 2024, two NPTS faculty members participated in a similar experience, A Migrant’s Journey: Scripture’s Call to Welcome the Stranger, made possible through sponsorship from the seminary’s Lilly Endowment Inc. Pathways for Tomorrow grant. Armida Belmonte Stephens and Sophia Magallanes-Tsang shared their reflections during a recent Chapel service, offering powerful insights from their time at the border.
Magallanes-Tsang said, “During this border experience on Sunday morning, I was asked to bless the elements of the Eucharist and distribute them. There’s a church on the border, with one side in San Diego and the other in Tijuana, and I was invited to participate in its service.
“After the Eucharist, we went to the fence to pray for those crossing. During that time, I sensed the Holy Spirit prompting me to pray that those crossing would encounter the presence of God in Jesus Christ—like the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night.
“I was taken aback. It was the first time, as an academic, that I could commune with my brothers and sisters on the other side of the border and connect this experience to my theological framework and work here. I thank the Lord for the immersion experience.”
One of NPTS’s new students—and a staff member with Love Mercy Do Justice—Eneida Reyes, co-led the trip, bringing her unique perspective and leadership to the experience.