Greetings,
As one that has been involved full time with refugees, I
want to add my voice about the reaction in the US to the bombings in
Paris. My involvement in refugee
resettlement in the US began in 2006. At
that time, resettlement was just getting started again after reactions based on
fear had virtually shut down US refugee resettlement after the 9-11-01 attacks. Today, we face the same choice of making
decisions based on fear or based on faith.
I hope and pray we make choices and form our attitudes based on faith.
Some time ago I came across a statistic that says only 12%
of US evangelicals see the matter of immigration (and refugees would certainly
qualify as immigrants) as a matter of faith.
A quick look at the Bible however, does make immigration a matter of
faith. That so much of what is being
said and done is based on fear needs to change.
In the Bible, refugees and immigrants are called foreigners,
aliens and strangers. A look through the
Bible will show those terms used 100 or more times and the themes are
consistent. We are to love them, accept
them, help them, and treat them the same as we treat everyone else. The Bible says quite specifically in fact, that
the same rules apply to the foreigners that apply to us. For example, Numbers 15: 15 The community is to have the
same rules for you and for the alien living among you; this is a lasting
ordinance for the generations to come. You and the alien shall be the same
before the LORD: 16 The same laws and
regulations will apply both to you and to the alien living among you.'"
Still in the Old Testament, Moses had a “mountain top
experience” then he came down after having received the 10 commandments for the
second time. Still basking in the glow, in
Deuteronomy 10 he launches into an inspired sermon to the people and in verses
18 and 19 says, “He (God) defends the
cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and
clothing. And you are to love those who
are aliens…”
So, from the very foundation of God’s relationship with
people, we are challenged to love and accept those different than us and those coming
from other places.
The New Testament doesn’t give any reprieve. Before he could even walk, Jesus was a
refugee and likely undocumented and certainly qualifying as one of the “least
of these”. Then in Matthew 25:45 Jesus
says, “I tell you the truth, whatever
you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me”. So when we reject refugees, we reject Jesus.
Jesus also gave us examples where he ministered to those
like the Samaritan woman at the well and healed the Centurion’s servant. Then in Acts 11 when the early church is
about to divide over the question of whether Gentiles should be accepted, Peter
says in vs 17, “So if God gave them the
same the same gift as he gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who
was I to think that I could oppose God?” Ouch! Rejecting those different
than us means we oppose God.
Maybe there are those who can only think of Syrians, Iraqis
or Muslims as enemies. If so, in Matthew
5 Jesus still gives us no excuse. He
tells us we are to love our enemies which eliminates any option to fear, hate
or reject.
A month or so ago, the photo of a drowned boy washed up on a
shore spurred an outpouring of sympathy and illustrated the desperation driving
Syrians to walk across whole countries and continents. Now, there has been an attack in Paris and fear
is causing those same 100s of thousands already desperate to survive with
nowhere to go to face even further rejection and increased desperation. Many say it is rejection and desperation that
push people to become radical and violent so it is very possible our reactions
based on fear will drive more to become violent.
Jesus says that if we don’t serve “the least of these” we
reject him and Peter tells us when we reject those different than “us” we
oppose God. Since the beginning of our
relationship with God we’re told to love aliens, foreigners and strangers. The Bible is quite clear yet our tendency is
to react with fear rather than faith. I
pray we recognize refugees and immigrants as a matter of faith and respond
faithfully. We do not need to give in to
our fears and over-react as has happened in the past.
Duane
Here is a link to more information from Cooperative Baptist Fellowship:
http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?ca=989153c9-ac4d-47ae-9fe8-5f9bcc5639f9&c=2938f740-565b-11e5-94b6-d4ae52843aae&ch=2a7017b0-565b-11e5-958b-d4ae52843aae