This week, a post on a picnic for refugees led to an explosion of comments.
The practicality of welcoming immigrants and refugees is debatable. Their arrival will change Buffalo’s culture and economy. Time will tell if the changes are for better or worse.
The odd thing, however, is that many of us have decided that “practicality” is not always the best way to make a decision, because the right thing to do isn’t always practical. And though it may or may not be wise (and that can be the subject of another post), a large portion of us have given authority to ancient writings from the Near East. We’ve even declared that these writings, the Bible, are inspired by God.
And the feeling expressed in these writings toward immigrants is clear. See for yourself:
“You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you
were aliens in the land of Egypt,” Exodus 22:21.
“The alien who resides among you shall be to you as the citizen among
you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the
land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God,” Leviticus 19:34.
Go to a Bible search and enter in “alien,” “stranger,” or “foreigner,” and you will find many more scriptures like these. It is a theme of the Hebrew Bible that got carried forward into Christian scriptures.
If you consider yourself a “child of Abraham,” you are the descendant of a resident alien, and this fact is not treated as an aside in ancient Judaism–remembering to love slaves and aliens is built into the calendar of festivals and the liturgy of said festivals (See: Passover, Shavuot).
The reason that faith-based organizations have historically been the ones to welcome new immigrants to this country is simple: it is in our DNA.
Part of the benefit of believing is connecting to an older and longer tradition that corrects our short-sightedness. I am not a literalist, but I do take scripture seriously–so I have to ask myself–what principles are these scriptures communicating?
For me, it’s not about filling empty houses (though that is nice), or that immigrants create jobs and economic stimulus (also nice) and stabilize neighborhoods that others have fled (Thank God!). Even if I believed that the presence of immigrants was a net loss, taking tax dollars and jobs, leaving me slightly poorer, that is not the issue for a person of faith.
This is the issue: I am descended (spiritually and physically) from refugees, and I have learned the stories of the refugee experience. I am commanded to remember that experience, see myself in the new resident, and love him or her accordingly.
Practical? Who’s practical when it comes to family? We are called to treat the new refugees as we would treat our grandmothers and grandfathers–because that’s who they are
Image is Abraham Journeying into the Land of Caanan, by Gustav Dore (public domain).