Category: Pondering Peace
Biblical Perspectives on Immigration
For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords,
the great God, mighty and awesome,
who is not partial and takes no bribes,
who executes justice for the orphan and the widow,
and who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing.
You shall also love the stranger,
for you were strangers in the land of Egypt
(Deut. 10:17-19, NRSV)
I find the harsh rhetoric currently being used against immigrants and refugees to be deeply disturbing. They are being blamed for economic and criminal problems in our country for which they hold very little, if any, responsibility. Falsehoods, such as saying some eat their neighbors’ pets, have resulted in threats of violence that have upended the lives of legal refugees quietly living their lives and contributing to their communities through work. Some people have even descended to express that those crossing the border are less than human. This negative characterization and scapegoating of immigrants and refugees is totally contrary to the Christian faith tradition, and it has no resemblance to my own experience of refugees and immigrants throughout many years of ministry with them.
The Bible is filled with stories about immigrants and refugees, and their experiences of God’s salvific presence being with them. A patriarch and ancestor of ancient Israel, Jacob and his family immigrated to Egypt to escape famine and find economic security with his son Joseph. They prospered and grew in this new land until an Egyptian king arose that viewed them as a threat and expressed his version of the great replacement theory. He said, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and powerful than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase…” (Ex. 1:9-10). He then used this as justification for enslaving the ancient Israelites, treating them very harshly, and causing great suffering among them until “God heard their groaning” (Ex.3:24) and worked through Moses to bring them liberation.
Throughout the Old Testament Scriptures, the people are reminded of their experience of being mistreated immigrants and told that they must instead treat foreigners with respect and compassion. “When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with 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” (Lev. 19:33-34).
There are other stories of immigrants in the Bible. In Jesus’ lineage is a Moabite woman named Ruth (Mt. 1:5). We are told that Ruth’s future mother-in-law Naomi and family, experiencing a famine in their homeland, chose to immigrate to Moab for survival and the possibility of a better life. Sometime later, after the deaths of both Naomi’s and Ruth’s husbands, Naomi decided to return to her home in Bethlehem, accompanied by Ruth who emigrated from Moab to be with her. There they were treated compassionately by the people, and Ruth eventually married Boaz and had a son Obed, who was grandfather to King David.
Of course, the Biblical narrative tells us that Jesus himself was a refugee. Fleeing the murderous fury of King Herod, Mary and Joseph took him and escaped to Egypt. They resided in the safety of that foreign land for some time. As an adult, Jesus was exceptionally receptive to those who were looked down on as not belonging and foreigners in the land. He healed their children, marveled at their faith, and made them the heroes in his parables. He taught his followers that caring for strangers is like caring for him. “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me,…just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me” (Mt. 25:35, 40). And his early followers continued this teaching. “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without know it” (Hebrews 13:2).
My life has been blessed by the opportunity to know and work with many who were new to this country. For six years, my husband Terry and I worked in a church ministry that settled over a hundred refugees from Laos and helped them establish a church. Friendships continue with many of them. Currently at Central Seminary, we have many colleagues, students, and alumni who are immigrants or refugees from South Korea, Myanmar, Haiti, Jordan, Liberia, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Kenya, and more. Our classes and groups are greatly enriched by the diversity of life experiences and perspectives that are shared. Without exception, I have found each to be thoughtful of others, respectful, hard-working, and exhibiting deep faith in God.
Much of the negative rhetoric being expressed about immigrants and refugees is simply false. In reality, immigrants are much less likely to be criminals than native-born Americans. My observation is that they are incredibly hard workers, often doing jobs that many native-born Americans would prefer not to do. In our area, many Burmese refugees are working in slaughter houses, Laotian refugees are doing detailed repetitive work in electronics manufacturing, African immigrants are providing care for our elderly in nursing homes, and Latino immigrants are doing construction and putting on roofs – not an enviable job in the hot summer heat. Many farmers across our country are dependent on migrant workers for picking crops. Mass deportation would severely affect their agricultural livelihoods, as well as impact many other industries.
This is not to say that nothing needs to be done about immigration. In reality, our immigration system is inadequate and needs significant work to make it more just and efficient. This requires that politicians quit using it as an issue for partisan gain and work together in a bipartisan fashion to craft workable solutions that are good both for the people of our country and those who are seeking asylum and economic opportunity here. Furthermore, we need to look at the reasons people are leaving their home countries and seek solutions with them such that the economic, societal, and climate factors pushing immigration are better addressed.
Like the ancient people of Israel, it is good if we too remember that almost every one of us comes from an immigrant family. My grandfathers and my grandmothers’ parents all emigrated from Sweden and Finland in search of a better life. My people were also strangers to this land not long ago. And likely yours were as well. Rather than denigrate immigrants, we are to treat them with justice and open our hearts to them with compassion, for most have experienced significant suffering such that they were willing to leave their homelands. We are to treat them with the respect and love them. In my experience, this is not hard to do. And by doing so, we are living out the teachings of our faith.
Rev. Ruth Rosell, Ph.D.
Director of the Buttry Center for Peace and Nonviolence
Associate Professor of Pastoral Theology Emerita
Central Seminary, Shawnee, KS
The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
All Scriptural quotes are taken from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV).
Photo by Salah Darwish on Unsplash