At the Table of Reconciliation: The Puerto Rican Diaspora and the Call to Welcome
- Mygration Christian Conference
- Apr 15
- 5 min read
by Orlando Morales Cintrón, Gorden-Conwell Theological Seminary
Talking about Puerto Rico’s relationship with the United States is complex and can be an article in its own right. I think a good description is “citizens yet foreigners.”[1] Since July 25, 1898, when the U.S. invaded P.R. due to the Spanish-American war, the island has been under the U.S. control. The island of P.R. was under the control of Spain since the 16thcentury. After Spain lost the war, the island was transferred to U.S. officially with the signing of the Treaty of Paris (Dec. 10, 1898). Still today, P.R. is a U.S. territory. Since July 25, 1952, Puerto Rico is recognized by the U.S. and the international community as “Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico”. This Commonwealth Status means that the government of P.R. has control over certain matters but ultimately, they are still a territory under the U.S. government and jurisdiction.
Puerto Rico’s history is marked by many events, but one that drastically changed the trajectory is the Jones-Shafroth Act. Approved by the Congress in 1917, Jones-Shafroth Act, means that U.S. citizenship was extended to Puerto Ricans.[2] In addition to granting U.S. citizenship, Jones-Shafroth Act, subjected all Puerto Ricans to U.S. federal laws and granted U.S. access to certain rights and protections under the Constitution. But curiously, Puerto Ricans do not have full political rights, such as voting in presidential elections or representation in the Congress. This important and significant piece of legislation is vital to comprehend Puerto Rican’s current relationship with the U.S. and how they see themselves.
Myths about citizenship and immigration
A lack of information and racial discrimination, disguised as 'we love them, but not too close to us' or 'they are welcome, as long as they work,' has sadly been expressed by Puerto Ricans in the diaspora. Puerto Rican in occasions do not comprehend the complexity of the immigration process and migrants’ experiences today. One comment that expresses a myth concerning migration is “Why they do not enter legally? The process is easy.” This myth presents the process of immigration and entrance to U.S. territory as one that is “easy” and “accessible” for all. But entering legally, or even more, becoming U.S. citizen is a rigorous, complex, and exhausting process.
In addition to the fact that in that process many migrants’ experiences abuse from part of people in positions of power who took advantage of their position. I have sadly heard some fellow Puerto Ricans express things like, “they don’t enter legally because they’re dumb or are just vagos (lazy).” These are troubling comments because they highlight the lack of understanding about the migration process. But should our privilege and position as U.S. citizens excuse us from the responsibility of being well-informed on critical issues, particularly immigration, before speaking out about them? As a Christian and Puerto Rican, my response is NO. The Scriptures compel us to love our neighbors and the foreigner as ourselves (Matt. 22:39; Lev. 19:18), especially because, like the people of God, we too were once foreigners (Lev. 19:34; Ex. 22:21). It puts a terrible stain on the testimony of the Church when people act and speak in such ways.
The work of the Spirit against hostility
We have discussed a sad reality among some Puerto Ricans who act with hostility toward their Hispanic brothers and sisters regarding migration. This type of behavior often stems from disinformation and the influence of discriminatory narratives that fuel “migratory myths”. As a Christian believer and Puerto Rican, I believe a better narrative can be offered. God calls us to be a community that reflects the nature and content of the kingdom of God among us through the reconciliation founded in Christ.[3]
Samuel Solivan’s re-reading of Acts 2 proposes a meaning that “goes beyond glossolalia (speaking in tongues) for empowerment for service and toward an appreciation of a broader setting of cultural, ethnic and linguistic affirmation of diversity.”[4] According to Pew Research, 58% of Protestants in P.R. identify as “Pentecostal”.[5] Many of these Pentecostal believers migrated to the U.S. after the devastation of hurricane Maria, the political crisis in the summer of 2019 and the pandemic in 2020. In fact, the U.S. Census Bureau reports that 123,000 Puerto Ricans permanently relocated to the U.S. after hurricane María.[6]
Through multiple personal conversations with Pentecostal pastors on the island, they recognized the impact of migration dynamics on their congregations. A key question arises: How many of these church members, now relocated in the U.S., are acting with hospitality toward their fellow Hispanic brothers and sisters? Again, a re-reading of Acts 2, like the one proposed by Solivan, invite us to view Pentecost as an invitation to affirm and appreciate cultural diversity. As the body of Christ, we are called to act with welcomeness as reflection of the diversity that the Spirit allows and create.
Let’s go together to the Table
Puerto Rican theologian in the diaspora, Wilmer Estrada Carrasquillo, proposed in his book Hacia Una Eclesiología Hispana-Latina, an ecclesiological framework for Hispanics shaped by the Trinity, family and the Lord’s Table. His Pentecostal sacramentality in this approach is particularly insightful because it shows how the Table is a place of encounter with Jesus, empowered by the Spirit, where hostilities are broken down and hospitality is fostered. In the words of Estrada-Carrasquillo, “Christ and the Holy Spirit are united in the event of the Eucharist, and at the same time, they unite the participants with each other in God and among themselves.”[7] In the Lord’s Table myths can be defeated, dividedness can be healed and Jesus is encountered and proclaimed en la fiesta con su gente.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Orlando Morales Cintrón is a Puerto Rican living in Hawaii, happily married to Génesis Isaac De Leon. He hold a Master of Science in Psychological Counseling with a focus on Family, and is currently pursuing an Master of Arts in Theological Studies at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. He serves as an Adjunct Psychology Professor at UNILIMI and was recently contracted as Adjunct Faculty at Chaminade University of Honolulu. In addition, he serve as a youth leader at IDDPMI Honolulu.
Footnotes:
[1] Juan Gonzalez, Harvest of Empire: A History of Latinos in America (Hudson Street, NY: Penguin Books, 2011), ch. 4. https://research-ebsco-com.dtl.idm.oclc.org/linkprocessor/plink?id=82dae062-3a56-3b8c-91d0-03c34c95b50b.
[2] César J. Ayala and Rafael Bernabe, Puerto Rico in the American Century: A History since 1898 (University of North Carolina Press, 2007), 57.
[3] Samuel Solivan, “The Holy Spirit – Personalization and the Affirmation of Diversity: A Pentecostal Hispanic Perspective”, Teología en Conjunto: A Collaborative Hispanic Protestant Theology, ed. José David Rodríguez and Loida I. Martell-Otero (Louisville, KY: WJK Press, 1997), 56.
[4] Solivan, 57.
[5] Pew Research Center, “Chapter 4: Pentecostalism,” Religion in Latin America: Widespread Change in Historically Catholic Region, (Nov. 13, 2014).
[6] Jason Schachter and Antonio Bruce, Estimating Puerto Rico’s Population After Hurricane Maria, United States Census, (August 19, 2020). https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2020/08/estimating-puerto-rico-population-after-hurricane-maria.html
[7] Wilmer Estrada Carrasquillo, Hacia una Eclesiología Hispana-Latina: Una respuesta a la mcdonaldización (Cleveland, TN: Centro Estudios Latinos Publicaciones, 2018), 88.
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