Ep. 79 A Biblical Perspective on Immigration #faith #hospitality #immigration

How does immigration intersect with divine hospitality?" This episode of Words for Change podcast invites you to explore immigration through a biblical lens. We kick off with an empowering quote from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., setting the tone for our discussion on closed borders versus divine hospitality. We address the sobering headlines: an assassination attempt on former President Trump, the arrest of Sean Diddy Combs on sex trafficking charges, and the tragic implosion of the Titan submersible. These events frame our deeper dive into Acts chapter 2, showing how scripture calls Christians to welcome strangers, even in the face of modern complexities like building walls.

Our conversation then shifts to the daunting challenges migrants endure, such as life-threatening journeys, unstable incomes, and lack of healthcare. We dismantle the myth of migrants as criminals, presenting migration as a quest for better lives and basic human rights. Drawing from biblical narratives like the Exodus and teachings from Acts and Leviticus, we illustrate that Christian hospitality means sharing resources and embracing those who cross borders. 

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Chapters

• 0:02 Immigration in the Bible
• 16:30 Biblical Perspective on Immigration
• 29:10 Support for Biblical Immigration Perspective

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

We're here on this wonderful Taco Tuesday day. We're now in the month of September, my birthday month, and boy do we have a lot to share with you today. It's going to be a wonderful day. I'm hopefully here on this September 17th yeah, it's September 17th. What a beautiful day we have in store and a wonderful episode we're going to share with you by starting out with our quote for today.

Speaker 1: 0:37

Now, our quote for today it's coming from Dr Martin Luther King Jr, and he says this injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. So that is going to help us springboard into our conversation around the topic of closed borders, closed walls Versus divine hospitality. Good morning Vietnam. Well, we have a lot going on in the news. This is not good news. It's kind of sad news, it really is. This is not good news. It's kind of sad news, it really is.

Speaker 1: 1:31

President Trump was had an apparent assassination attempt for a second time Law enforcement officials and civilians who spotted the suspect Down toward the bushes where the the individual who perpetrated the assassination attempt was seen hiding out, and we're happy that this individual was caught and that there was no loss of life. Trump blames Biden and the Harris administration for the apparent assassination attempt. Jd Vance says Democrats need to tone down the rhetoric after Trump's second assassination attempt. So lucky Luckily, the former president was not hurt. It was not harmed in this assassination attempt, so please keep him in your prayers, jesus said. You know violence accomplishes nothing. When they came in the gospels to capture Jesus by night, peter pulled out his sword. Jesus told Peter to put away your sword. Why? Because my kingdom does not come through violence, and violence doesn't solve anything. It just creates a vicious cycle. So let's continue to pray for the president's former president's safety and all who are involved in running for office, that this will be whoever wins a peaceful transfer of power and that we don't uh lean toward violence that costs their life.

Speaker 1: 3:12

Sean diddy combs was arrested in new york city uh last evening and his uh attorneys tell cnn that combs, who had been in New York City since last week, was arrested Monday in the Park Hyatt Hotel at 57th Street in Manhattan. He was taken into custody by Homeland Security investigators around 8.15 pm. Made with the with the negotiation taste with the negotiations, excuse me, tells news officials. The charges are unclear. What has happened at this time? At this time, colin's attorney, mark uh officio, I think, is his name, I think I got that correct says that we are disappointed with the decision to pursue what we believe is an unjust persecution. This is what his attorney says. Combs attorney said that the musician has been cooperating with investigation and relocated to you not to new york city last week to anticipate or in anticipation of being charged, and so he and his team was sort of preparing for this. If you don't know, sean a music Sean Diddy Combs, music icon, self-made entrepreneur, a family man, a philanthropist and spent over 30 years building an empire in the music industry was arrested on sex trafficking, at least allegedly sex trafficking activity, and so Homeland Security is probing and still in the investigation stage of this situation, which includes dramatic searches of his Los Angeles, in Miami home, and so hopefully and prayerfully that these allegations are not true, but at least for the apparent, immediate, what we see now is that they feel there is perhaps some some legitimacy to what is going on with the music mogul Sean Diddy Combs, and so those who were his victims our prayers go out to them and their families as well, as we don't want anyone to get hurt in these situations.

Speaker 1: 5:46

Also, the first images of the fatal Titanic I'm sorry Titan submersion wreckage revealed in a hearing, a tragic hearing here recently. The first images of the Titan submersible sitting on the bottom of the ocean following its catastrophic implosion last year was shared by the us coast guard on monday as investigators opened hearing into the tragedy. All five people on board of the vessel were killed, were killed last june, and it is uh in its final, uh ill-fated dive into the titanic ship, uh titan shipwreck after a desperate search mission that uh gripped the world. So in photos monday, the submersibles broken tail cone is seen on in a hazy blue four or the of the atlantic, north atlantic ocean. The tail of the cone was severed from the rest of the vessel man can you imagine that? And its uh edges was ripped apart. The wreckage was found several hundred yards from the location of of the titan after days of searching, according to investigators. So, um, man, we definitely will be praying for for that situation. We know family members died and people lost their lives here, and they claimed the lives of Stockton Rush, the founder and CEO of the Vessels. Operator businessman and his 19-year-old son, darwood. Darwood were part of the adventurers on this submersible experience that fatally ended in their death. So our prayers go out to them and their family as well.

Speaker 1: 8:00

Our scripture for today is coming from Acts, chapter 2, and it says this about welcoming strangers, elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, judea, cappadocia, pointus, asia, pamphylia, egypt and the districts of Libya and Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes. So now the question you have is how does this have to do with anything we're talking about today, starting off with that quote that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. And now, as we look at this scripture verse, how does this speak to the issue of immigration in the Bible? Now there's something that we need to talk about. So buckle your seatbelts. It's going to be a bumpy, yet fruitful ride. We're going to build the wall. We have no choice. We have no choice Build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall, build that wall.

Speaker 1: 9:50

So I want to deal with this issue of immigration in the Bible not so much from a sociopolitical perspective, but from the perspective of a historical concept or conversation around the topic of immigration in the Bible. I want to give you a perspective as a dedicated listener, an honest perspective, because I believe you deserve an honest perspective from me, and the truth of the matter is, I hope that this issue really brings to light some of the deeper questions that we have around the topic of the Bible and immigration. And the only way to really get at this issue is to really dive deep into what's really happening, instead of just listening to the clips that you just heard from at a rally, from our former president, that we've heard since many, many years back now, this whole concept of building a wall, and although I am a believer in the American way of life, as a Christian I have a different perspective, that my allegiance should not be to a political party, not necessarily, but more so to the kingdom of God and what that really looks like ethically when it's lived out in our world. So my interest lay in understanding, you know, a given, an engaging and thoughtful praxis to this topic. So the question I want to get at is how should we respond to the claims of immigrants wanting to migrate and what kind of community and what kind of Christian do we want to be? What kind of Christian do you want to be, right?

Speaker 1: 11:55

So, as we discuss this issue, I want to address the factors of migration and how these, what we like to call a push and pull theory of migration, really contributes to what causes a person to desire to migrate from one country to the next and what are some of the human factors naming the human reasons why people migrate in the first place. And so we also need to understand that there is a compelling New and Old Testament argument that gives the notions that all throughout the Bible, both Old and New Testament, hear me clearly. There are people, human, migrating from place to place on a regular basis, and I want to frame what we're talking about in the biblical text, so it's not to get off on my own theory, but what does the Bible say and what can we learn from the stories we read about migration? So there are many reasons why we like to call there different factors of why people go from one country to the next, factors that contribute to why people move as people is, you know, even from the early Puritans in the 1800s migrating West right to avoid religious persecution, and the Scandinavian immigrants in the 1800s were religious descendants who actually became the first Mormon settlers in 1846. Right, some of the other push factors that contribute to this is remember that early American settlers migrated to the West. Many were English Puritans Right, Leaving persecution Right. The same is true when we look at germany right. Germany lutherans were given the right to migrate to satisfy uh to, because they were not satisfied with the religious confession of the state and residing under a ruler professing the same religion themselves. Not to mention during the great migration that took place in Norway in 1825 by Quaker dissenters.

Speaker 1: 14:31

Other Jews around the world have been subject to political persecution by governing authorities. For instance we are all familiar with, jews in Nazi Germany were relegated to be second-class citizens under what Hitler's National Socialist Party and their well-crafted plan right was being initiated against those individuals by the Germans' political party. National Socialist Party. Germans created, or Germany socialist party. Germany Germans created, or Germany under Hitler's Germany created hostility by which Jews wanted to escape Right In the 19th century. In Poland, in 1881 and 1914, over one, over half a million Jews left Russia for the United States. Again, during 1968 and 1992, hundreds of thousands of Soviet Jews migrated to the United States and Israel due to the aggression and that of anti-Semitism.

Speaker 1: 15:35

So some other factors are economic factors, some other factors are economic factors. This is important for us to consider the economic stability, right In labor markets, supply and demand explains why many people migrate. People migrate because of the demand for labor units right, units, right. Migrant families often see see it as an investment in their future to migrate when they have no other options or when their options are limited. Social scientists contend that migration often represents an investment in individual strategies by people looking to secure a more stable future right.

Speaker 1: 16:30

So think about some of the risks that people take when they migrate. Risk factors include death, crossing borders, right, not knowing what kind of wages they will receive, health benefits, economic stability they believe happily will increase if they can cross borders. But there are a lot of risks psychological risks, physiological risks. These are things that families go through when they decide to migrate To migrate Right. So in these cases, when you have a In the United States, a direct result of the demand for labor Like being really honest here, let's have an honest conversation. When there's a direct result that demands For labor, guess what happens? People migrate Right. And so we got to be really careful about how we blame people for deciding to have a better wages and better way of life and I'm talking about this from a Christian perspective Right, some of the pulling factors of migration.

Speaker 1: 17:46

People run the risk of of, you know, being treated unfairly, right? Not having a proper licensing agreement. As a result, people who migrate will help, you know, create more complicated issues for themselves, but they take the risk anyway, right? So these are the kind of economic factors that lead to people wanting to migrate. Now, that's not an exhaustive list, but we still have to look at the reasons why people will decide to migrate in the first place. Now, if I was to take this biblical, because I think this is where this is the body of what I really want to share when I want us to think about that, there are many factors that contribute to people wanting to leave from one station to the next, right, contribute to people wanting to leave from one station to the next right, and I've given you a few examples that are evident from history, right, why people migrated from one area to the next. And so we hear people talk about building walls, and although I understand the sentiment, but what we got to understand is that people who migrate, they're not all criminals and these is just not true but people. Many of them desire to live a sustained and a flourishing life and to have their basic human rights.

Speaker 1: 19:18

Now, both in the old and in the New Testament, provide stories about faith communities using resources Watch this to welcome strangers. You will remember, right In the Bible and in our history. In the Bible and in our history, an example. For instance, john Woolman, a Quaker, abolitionist in 1700, became the voice that brought to the surface the contradiction between colonial slavery and Christianity. And what is more profound is that he believed that the gospel is to be read and experienced and, as a result, woolman became the maker of American theology, a theology and a hermeneutic presentation with the imagination that demands an ethical response to the social issues that we face, ie American slavery. But when we look at the biblical text right, there are many examples of people migrating Right. So did you know that there are many examples of people migrating in the scripture?

Speaker 1: 20:42

Reading the biblical text with this kind of ethical imagination, we can look at a few examples. God is giving us these examples that I want to share with you. In Exodus right, the Exodus narrative, he tells Moses and the Israelites watch this wandering in the wilderness is integral to providing what I consider an ethical response to this question of migration. If we, as a reader, look behind the text with imagination. What do we see In the Exodus narrative?

Speaker 1: 21:22

There are reasons why people migrated. The children of God wandered in the wilderness after leaving Exodus. It gives a vivid impression of a community seeking a place to be free from oppression and suffering slavery and victimization. Psalm 47, the Israelites experienced political oppression. Right, they were set, and this is in the scripture. Right the Israelites had. Their male children were targeted, newborn babies were targeted, thrown into the Nile Exodus 1.22, and their workload became intolerable. When the men could not keep up with the supply, they were beaten, as the narrative describes in Exodus 1.22, as well as in Exodus 5.14. So, consequently, what happened? The Israelites migrated. They resettled and moved.

Speaker 1: 22:33

And so, when we think about this issue of migration from a biblical perspective, there are people moving across borders and boundaries all throughout the Bible. Right, right. And even what did God tell the Israelites? That, as they move back and forth, that God would do what? Give them a promised land one day. Right, christian scriptures demand, the Bible demands that we welcome strangers. So not only do God's people migrate, the scripture says this.

Speaker 1: 23:08

In Acts 2, the scripture, our main scripture we started with, gives a narrative of believers gathering in house churches from all over the country and join fellowship and sharing meals and helping each other financially. Country enjoying fellowship and sharing meals and helping each other financially demonstrated how sharing resources for those who are migrating as a vital part of communal creation and that of hospitality in the ancient world right. Acts 2 says this what, how is it that we hear each other in our own language? Medes, parisians, elamite, mesopotamia, judea, cappadocia, pontus, asia, pamphylia and Egypt, libya and Cyrene, and from Rome, jews and proselytes? This is in Acts 2, 8 through 10. What are we saying? There are people coming from all across borders, migrating right borders, migrating right.

Speaker 1: 24:03

And what a Christian responds to do is not say build a wall, but God commands that we show biblical hospitality, and biblical hospitality basically says that we welcome strangers. Right. Not only did God's children who migrated from Egypt. God said when strangers come into your land this is in Leviticus you are to welcome the stranger people who are crossing borders in the ancient world. So house fatality in the ancient world welcomes outsiders and religious pilgrimage share resources, as we see in Acts, sharing the common good. So if we look at it from this, if we look at the issue of migration or immigration from this perspective, we are hard pressed to see a biblical view point that says, build a wall and don't allow people come in, but rather we see the scripture encouraging us to do what Welcome the stranger and open our borders. Okay, I'm not telling you this is what I'm saying. I'm telling you. This is what the biblical text is saying.

Speaker 1: 25:20

So, in today's terms, if we view hospitality this way, an argument can be made for more just and biblically just immigrant policy that supports migration and gives biblical examples that provide the framework for that. And I would even go as far as to say that the onus is upon the Christian, is upon the believer, to talk about this kind of framework and to provide it as a way for us to not look at only a political way, but what is the biblical way? What is the scripture encouraging us to do? Are we taking our cues from scripture or are we taking our cues from political party? So I can talk a lot more about it, but I want us to think about this as persons of faith.

Speaker 1: 26:16

It's important for us to to look at the scripture before we gather an ethical stance. Right that we have a obligation to let our faith weigh in on these kinds of issues from a biblical perspective. Right, if we use biblical imagination and we are honest enough to see how the scripture shows people migrating, to see how the scripture shows people migrating seeking a better life, moving because they want to secure a future of freedom for themselves and their loved ones, right, the Bible shows that, that it is the same thing happening in many of the cases in immigration today. So it would be hard pressed to say just build walls. And I would even go as far as to say, as I've demonstrated, that there's biblical evidence that suggests in the Christian scriptures that demand communities of faith, welcome strangers and open up their resources for them, that we understand that there are push and pull factors that people are seeking to get away from persecution or get away from not being able to take care of themselves.

Speaker 1: 27:29

I remember years ago, when I was in seminary, there was a church that had a ministry and their main goal was, as people came across the border and this is in Texas as people came across the border, the churches were there, right, helping to assist people by providing them food and clothing and even helping them to try to apply for citizenship. See, that's a different perspective and that was their ministry, because they understood that they not only had a political. They may have their political allegiances, I'm sure, but they also had a biblical mandate as well. So, when we read the biblical scripture with this kind of imagination and we understand that even Jesus himself watch this and father crossed the border to Egypt to avoid persecution from Herod who wanted to, who was seeking to get rid of the promised king of Israel, and so if you take this information and you understand it from this biblical perspective, maybe this will give you another way to think about the issue of immigration. We're not just talking about building walls, but we're talking about what our biblical stance is on these very, very social issues.

Speaker 1: 29:04

Ok, and so I want to thank you guys for listening and hopefully you got something out of this.

Speaker 1: 29:10

My prayer is that you would please subscribe, share this with someone who could benefit from this. If you know a church or pastor who is caught up on their political stance only, without looking at the biblical examples of people migrating, this may be beneficial to them. So share with them, subscribe. Please write us a review If you have questions or comments. There's a little link at the top of this description in the bio that says hey, fan mail and you can send an email that goes directly to me and I will respond to that email. Ok, you can also check us out on YouTube Words for Change podcast, if you want to see some of these recordings live, even some interviews that we're going to have coming up here in a very, very, very, very near future, and so I really, really appreciate your continued support and thank you guys for listening. Let this be beneficial to you and I pray God's blessings be with you and we'll see you soon, in a couple of weeks, on Tuesday. Have a great day.