God's hospitality, American ideals, and the INS

A few thoughts on immigration:
From the Bible:
Exodus 22:21, You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.
Leviticus 19:34, 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.
From the inscription inside the base of the Statue of Liberty:
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
("The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus, a descendant of Portuguese Sephardic Jewish immigrants)

In response to the higher law of God and in support of the highest ideals of our country, faithful believers in the U.S. must not support harsh, aggressive and abusive treatment of undocumented immigrants who are here to work, provide for their families, support their relatives and communities back home, and support our economy through their labor and consumption. We also must do more than just let things be. Rather than building walls, arresting people, breaking up families and raiding workplaces where people are doing their best to make a humble living, why not find a way to facilitate--in an above-board manner--the way our economy--currently through underground means--incorporates undocumented foreign labor. It is the least we can do for the good of the poor who have long lived just beyond our borders gazing across--often via the telescope of television--at our affluent lives. They have been mostly ignored by us in their mother countries except as characters in our travel photos or servants for our winter vacations. For our own good, if we want to remain the kind of country that has found many ways over the past couple of centuries to put meat on the bones of some of our highest ideals, we must find humane ways to reach out and deal with our immigrant brothers and sisters respectfully as human beings and children of God, not as menacing, criminal scapegoats.

Just as the Hebrew people were commanded not to forget their alien status in the land of Egypt, U.S. Citizens, particularly those who claim to be part of a faith tradition that uses the scripture as a locus of authority, would do well to remember that the vast majority of us are descendants of immigrants ourselves.

Be sure to check out this great Op-Ed piece in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer by Anthony P. Robinson, author and UCC Pastor: Bible Has Lots to Say on Immigration

The United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society on Immigration:
"We pledge ourselves as followers of Christ to stand with our immigrant neighbors who have come to the United States from throughout the world. We recognize immigrants as human beings made in the image of God and we prayerfully commit ourselves to support laws that affirm their dignity, preserve their families, and acknowledge the value of their presence among us." Responding With Faith on Immigration

For more on the Statue of Liberty and "The New Colossus" see the National Park Service site: http://www.nps.gov/stli/