The White House invited four of the country’s top evangelical pastors to attend President Obama’s speech on July 1st calling for immigration reform. The move is a testament both to the importance the issue has come to assume in the evangelical world–including among leaders who have battled Democrats on social issues like abortion and gay marriage–and to the White House’s eagerness to enlist evangelicals to help to counter conservative opposition to the idea of a path to citizenship for illegal immigrations already in the U.S.
"I believe that immigration is the compassion and justice issue of our day." – Dr. William Hamel, president, Evangelical Free Church of America