Caminantes Border Immersion 

Comunidad Limen and First Christian Church, Tucson, are joining efforts to offer learning experiences on the US-Mexico border.  We are inviting participants from Disciples and other churches from across the US and Canada to an immersion experience to inspire theological imagination and Christian practice of justice. In an environment saturated with fear-based divisive rhetoric creating a sentiment of “otherness,” we offer a counter-narrative based on radical welcome and hospitality – an open invitation to a table of abundance. “We are not about building taller walls; we build bigger tables.”

We are planning an abbreviated experience for members and friends of First Christian Church this summer and expect to receive the first immersion group later this year.

You can learn more about Caminantes at the website, Border Immersion | Comunidad Limen , but below is a little introduction with exerpts from the site.

Why an immersion experience with Caminantes?

Caminantes was born as a ministry of Comunidad Limen Christian Church from a commitment to share our migration stories to inspire collective action and social change.

Limen is the Latin root for the word ‘liminal.’ The term ‘liminal’ in English also means ‘threshold.’ The same word is found in Spanish with a subtle nuance; ‘ liminal’ is a synonym for ‘frontera.’

Richard Rohr suggests considering liminal spaces as sacred spaces. Rohr says we experience profound transformation when we allow ourselves to be drawn into the sacredness of liminality. Liminal space can be physical, emotional, or psychological in-betweenness. The people on the borderlands are constantly being drawn into the liminal spaces of faith, politics, and culture. The poet Alberto Rios says, “The border is a place of plans constantly broken and repaired and broken” again. The uncertainty of being neither here nor there leaves a person vulnerable and utterly dependent on God. The border is a sacred space where God’s grace abounds. We come here to be renewed and transformed.

Caminantes is an immigrant-led program inviting individuals and groups to visit the border region and, through a migrant’s lens, gain a firsthand understanding of the fundamental issues impacting border communities. Participants will learn about the historical root causes generating waves of forced migration from Latin America to the United States. Also, our program is designed to inspire one’s theological imagination and move participants towards a Christian praxis for justice.

Who can participate?

We invite church groups, seminarians, pastors, leaders, activists, and anyone with a passion for social justice to come and join the movement.

Caminantes Border Immersion key components:

• Daily fellowship, including meals, dialogue, and spiritual practices with migrants.

• Dismantling Doctrine of Discovery in the Borderlands.

• A Migrant’s Immigration Timeline Workshop

• Experiential Learning: Guided tours to the border, migrant trails in the desert, and visit to border communities.

• Walking Together: Towards a praxis for justice, embodying a gospel of accompaniment.