The Influence of Biblical Imagery on U.S. Immigration Policy

As you can probably tell from my incredibly strong accent, I (Megan) am an immigrant to the United States. As such, the US immigration system has been a rather large feature in my adult life…but I’ve never before considered the relationship between American immigration and the Bible, or more specifically, the book of Revelation.

It’s never really occurred to me that such a relationship even exists. In contrast, my guest today has written an entire - and absolutely fascinating - book on the subject, and we’re going to be diving right into it!

We’ll be exploring how Revelation has been used throughout US history to categorize, demonize, and vilify immigrants, while also painting the US as the New Jerusalem, sanctuary for God’s chosen, which must be defended at all costs.