This is a short, quickly thown together thought/blog. I do not mean to offend anyone, but I hope people will begin to think about the way the other side feels.
I do believe we should help the Syrian/Mid-Easterm refugees in some way. At the same time I do have legitimate concerns about the vetting process especially when I hear that the government wants to allow 10,000 in by the end of next year. There is no way to do proper vetting on that many in that short of time frame. In addition people can hide their true motivations if they have the discipline to do so. Because of the concerns many will call me names such as bigot, fear monger, etc. There is a difference between concerns and fear. The Bible is pulled out a lot for allowing open borders, but rarely is it mentioned that Jacob's sons went back to Canaan (yes, I know they eventually settled in Goshen, but that was due to Joseph's position more than the kind heartedness of the Egyptians.) It is rarely mentioned that when Mary and Joseph fled with Jesus to Egypt they went to another section of the Roman empire, not a totally new country for them. It could be seen today as moving from one state in a region to another state in another region of the USA.
I do believe we should help the Syrian/Mid-Easterm refugees in some way. At the same time I do have legitimate concerns about the vetting process especially when I hear that the government wants to allow 10,000 in by the end of next year. There is no way to do proper vetting on that many in that short of time frame. In addition people can hide their true motivations if they have the discipline to do so. Because of the concerns many will call me names such as bigot, fear monger, etc. There is a difference between concerns and fear. The Bible is pulled out a lot for allowing open borders, but rarely is it mentioned that Jacob's sons went back to Canaan (yes, I know they eventually settled in Goshen, but that was due to Joseph's position more than the kind heartedness of the Egyptians.) It is rarely mentioned that when Mary and Joseph fled with Jesus to Egypt they went to another section of the Roman empire, not a totally new country for them. It could be seen today as moving from one state in a region to another state in another region of the USA.
In our
congregations we have people on both sides of the issue-let them in or keep
them out-and both sides are correct.
Some may disagree with this, but one can make a biblical case for either
side. I believe our job is to help
people figure out how we can love and help regardless of what side they stand
on the issue. When we begin to throw
around terms and calling names because we do not like where they stand hurts
the cause more.
Along the same
lines have you ever noticed that the tactic used for stricter gun
control/abolition of guns is the same one that is supposedly used by those who
are against the refugees coming and settling here-FEAR.
Why is it okay to
use fear of what might happen, and what has happened for the removal of guns,
and yet when people lift up concerns about the refugees coming to America they
are letting their fear rule them?
This is an issue for clergy of all denominations. Yes, I know this is a controversial subject,
but it is one that is taking place know.
As I said earlier name calling does nothing, nor does projecting your
thoughts about what someone feels onto them help. While I have seemingly allied myself with the ones who have concerns about refugees, it needs to be pointed out that that side calls names and casts aspersions on the other side just as much. The question is how can we help regardless of
what side we are on? How can we get fear
out of the equation? How can we notice
that we often condemn the other side for their tactics, and yet use the same
ones for our own benefit? Are we willing to admit that we often do use fear? Are we willing to admit we call people names and cast aspersion upon their motivations and emotions?
Is fear a good thing? That might be a post in the future.
Is fear a good thing? That might be a post in the future.
