We Were All Strangers.

I attended what we call a Brownbag Lunch Discussion today. These lunches are very popular, even though there is not a brownbag to be seen anywhere, as we have them catered. But the topics are diverse and always of keen interest to members of the college community. Today's was entitled "What Does an Immigrant Look Like?" I was prepared for a panel discussing issues facing Americans regarding the challenges brought to bear regarding immigration. It was so much more than that, because every member of the panel, students and faculty alike, are people who emigrated to this country. Some are naturalized citizens, others aliens and still others permanent residents. Each shared a story of the challenges faced in coming to this country, and then of going through the legal hoops to be allowed to remain and become citizens. Though the details of their stories varied, the one common thread was the hostile way they felt that they were treated by the Office of U. S. Citizenship and Naturalization Services. The process of becoming a citizen is very expensive, dehumanizing and almost never-ending. As I sat there, listening to my colleagues, friends and students, it occurred to me that not one of them fulfilled the stereotypes that politicians and others like to create in the public mind. I reside in a state that, shamefully, has embraced the policy that, in order to vote, one must produce an official photo ID. This is a state that was founded as a haven for anyone who felt persecuted for being different. The Book of Faith reminds us that we were all strangers who God embraced for all time. As Holy Week approaches, it would be well for us to remember the lengths to which God was willing to go to bring us into the fold. Why is it we seem unable/unwilling to extend such hospitality to others who just want to be a part of our society? There may be many reasons, some thought of as practical, some rooted in fear and others in hatred. And yet, we were all strangers and God welcomed us. How do we escape that overwhelming grace, and how do we justify not extending it to others?