What would Jesus do? On the border, most Americans don't seem to know

SAN DIEGO -- Most Americans agree there is a crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border. But we can't agree as to what kind of crisis it is.

Conservatives see a security crisis, fueled by a border that is penetrated at will by people who want to drain our resources and do us harm. Liberals call it a humanitarian crisis, caused by a hard-hearted administration that is harming America's reputation as a haven for refugees. Others look at the unwillingness to address the issue, both in Congress and at the White House, and consider this to be a political crisis that harms our civil discourse and national unity.

But a new survey by the Pew Research Center comes up with yet another diagnosis, one that is likely to resonate with many of us, depending on how we spend Sunday morning. It suggests that what we really have here is -- in some respects -- a crisis of faith.

According to the poll, when people were asked if the United States had a responsibility to accept refugees, nonbelievers and other "religiously unaffiliated" respondents were more than twice as likely as some regular churchgoers to answer "yes."

Among the "religiously unaffiliated" -- which might include anyone from atheists and agnostics to those whose faith is not clearly defined -- 65% said our nation had a duty to welcome strangers, and only 31% saw no such obligation.

But among white Evangelicals, the figures were nearly reversed -- only 25% said the United States had a responsibility to take in refugees, while 68% said "no." With mainline white Protestants, the numbers were better -- 43% said "yes," and 50% said "no."

Catholics were nearly divided right down the middle -- 50% recognized a responsibility to accept refugees, but 45% did not.

Finally, black Protestants were, by far, the most welcoming group of all, with 63% saying that "yes," there was a responsibility to take in refugees and 28% saying "no" there was not.

This survey is illuminating -- and, for the most part, embarrassing.

As a Catholic, the response from my tribe is heartbreaking. In a crisis, the Catholic Church can usually be counted on to deploy humanitarian relief, which often includes offering food, water, clothing and shelter to those in need. Priests, Bishops, Cardinals and the Pope constantly preach -- to all who will listen -- about how we must care for the poor, the sick, and the weak. And, for decades, the Catholic Church has been a constant voice in favor of immigration reform.

Yet, on a personal level, many of my fellow Catholics and I have ignored the current crisis on the U.S.-Mexico border. We've left it to our leaders to orchestrate a response. Many of us have, as individuals, done next to nothing. Worse, as the survey points out, many Catholics have lost our way; about half of us failed the course on how to treat refugees.

The Bible is clear about how we ought to treat the stranger. There is no spin, hedging, mincing of words. This isn't some nonbinding resolution that is open to interpretation. For people of faith, this is the word of God.

Look at Exodus 23:9. "Do not oppress a foreigner; you yourselves know how it feels to be foreigners, because you were foreigners in Egypt."

Or Matthew 25:35: "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in."

Or Leviticus 19:34 -- "The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God."

Or Jeremiah 22:3 -- "Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor him who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the resident alien."

Americans tend to worry about the wrong things. We hear a lot about how the number of Americans who attend church is down. But, as this survey points out, what should really concern us is not who is attending services but whether anyone is actually listening and taking to heart what is said there.

What good does it do to sit in the pews if we're not paying attention to the sermons? Why read the Bible, if we don't take seriously its commands?

There's the real crisis. And it's terrifying.

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Ruben Navarrette's email address is ruben@rubennavarrette.com. His daily podcast, "Navarrette Nation," is available through every podcast app.