Tag: love

The Immigrant

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality BlogLeave a comment

“The same law applies both to the native-born and to the foreigner residing among you.” (Exodus 12:49)

“Pursue hospitality to strangers.” (Romans 12:13)

“The respect for the stranger and the sanctification of the name of the Eternal are strangely equivalent.” Emmanuel Levinas

For the past decade or more, I’ve been asked many times about “God’s design” for marriage, gender roles, and a whole host of societal questions. There is one question, however, that I have never been asked: What is God’s design concerning immigration?

I reframe the question a bit differently with a few clarifying questions:

  • When it comes to immigration and immigrants, what is God’s intention for a rightly ordered society?
  • How does God feel about the immigrant?
  • Is there a biblical framework for approaching the subject of immigration?

Indeed, there is. In fact, there are several words for the immigrant in the Old Testament. There are references to both Jewish and foreign immigration; “strangers” who are foreign immigrants living in the land of Israel; and foreign workers (migrants) who sojourn in and through the land.

Most English translations of Holy Scripture use the words “alien,” “stranger,” or “foreigner” when speaking of immigration. When it comes to the foreigner who settles in Israel, the general rule and stance toward that immigrant is to welcome the stranger among you; and treat them as equals in approaching to the law.

The ancient Hebrew people were foreigners in the land of Egypt for 400 years. God’s judgment on Pharaoh and the Egyptians brought the opportunity for  justice amongst the Israelites. The Jews were delivered from their bondage and oppression.

Because of their redemption out of Egypt, the Israelites formed an identity that included ethical treatment to foreigners who came and resided among them.

Since the Israelites had been immigrants to Egypt, they were to welcome the immigrant among themselves and treat foreigners with respect, since all of them together were under the law.

It was important for the Jewish people to take a stance of empathy toward the immigrant. They knew firsthand what it felt like to suffer in a foreign land. Therefore they were to see life through the eyes of the other – the migrant, the refugee, and the asylum seeker – who resided next to them.

Early in the Bible, Abraham was commanded by God to leave his country and immigrate to a foreign land:

The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1, NIV).

Because God loves the immigrant, so too, we are to love them, as well:

For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. (Deuteronomy 10:17-19, NIV)

Furthermore, because the Lord is a just God, we are to provide justice not only for our own people, but also for the foreign immigrant among us:

“Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.” (Exodus 22:21, NIV)

Do not deprive the foreigner or the fatherless of justice… Remember that you were slaves in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there. That is why I command you to do this. (Deuteronomy 24:17-18, NIV)

Holy Scripture is replete with admonitions and commands to protect the foreign immigrant and be mindful about their well-being. They, like us, are humans created in the image of God, and therefore, deserve to be honored as fellow image-bearers by treating them justly.

The New Testament upholds and extends basic concern and consciousness to the foreigner:

Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. (Hebrews 13:2, NRSV)

In the Gospels, let’s be mindful that the Lord Jesus himself was an immigrant – a refugee fleeing to Egypt from oppression in his homeland. (Matthew 2:13-15)

Jesus existentially knew what it was like to be a foreigner. And so, in keeping with his Jewish upbringing, he respected the alien and stranger around him. In order to demonstrate his concern and commitment toward the stranger, he told several parables.

The following parable of Jesus describes what a rightly ordered society looks like when it comes to the foreigner among us:

When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all his angels, he will sit on his royal throne. The people of all nations will be brought before him, and he will separate them, as shepherds separate their sheep from their goats.

He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, “My father has blessed you! Come and receive the kingdom that was prepared for you before the world was created. When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me.”

Then the ones who pleased the Lord will ask, “When did we give you something to eat or drink? When did we welcome you as a stranger or give you clothes to wear or visit you while you were sick or in jail?”

The king will answer, “Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me.”

Then the king will say to those on his left, “Get away from me! You are under God’s curse. Go into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels! I was hungry, but you did not give me anything to eat, and I was thirsty, but you did not give me anything to drink. I was a stranger, but you did not welcome me, and I was naked, but you did not give me any clothes to wear. I was sick and in jail, but you did not take care of me.”

Then the people will ask, “Lord, when did we fail to help you when you were hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in jail?”

The king will say to them, “Whenever you failed to help any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you failed to do it for me.”

Then Jesus said, “Those people will be punished forever. But the ones who pleased God will have eternal life.” (Matthew 25:31-46, CEV)

According to Jesus, the current Trump administration – especially the Department of Homeland Security under Kristi Noem – has been pursuing a policy that is in direct opposition to basic biblical ethics and morality.

What’s more, believers who support such a policy are demonstrating, at the least, ignorance concerning the Scriptures; and, at worst, a concern about following President Trump rather than following the Lord Jesus.

Someday, the Trump administration will have to give an account of their attitudes, words, and actions toward the immigrant foreigner in America to the God who loves the alien and the stranger.

In the end, grace and love always wins.

The God of Holy Scripture has already communicated a positive stance toward the immigrants among us.

God has said that immigrants are not monsters from sh** countries. They are humans who were brave enough to make dangerous journeys to the United States in order to support themselves and their families with the hope of liberation from oppression; and the freedom to provide for themselves and to support their new country.

A well-ordered society with a biblically ethical design includes caring for all residents, not just some. The immigrant – no matter where they are from – has landed among us by the providence of God.

So, let’s not make it any worse for them here than where they’ve come from. Instead, let us be helpful to the foreign immigrant among us. It’s what Jesus has already said he would do.

An Open Letter of Encouragement To the Residents of Minneapolis (and Minnesota)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Pastor Tim's Ponderings1 Comment

I am, like you, a resident of Minnesota, specifically of the greater Twin Cities area. I have children, grandchildren, and relatives in the city of Minneapolis. So, I am regularly and often in the city’s neighborhoods. I am existentially involved in what is presently happening to the city with the presence of thousands of Immigrant and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) agents.

I am not someone who is observing from afar. I see you, up close and personal. And I want you to know that I understand and feel your abject fear, but most of all, your incredibly deep sadness at what is happening to you and your neighbors.

Yesterday, when at a healthcare appointment, with tears in my eyes, I bemoaned that, because of my health, I am unable to be with the protesters, providing spiritual care and emotional encouragement as a retired hospital chaplain and church pastor.

Hence, the writing of this letter. It’s my way of doing something, anything, to help in a time of trouble, in which there seems to be no law but the law of forced power and the might of militarized against the un-militarized.

Yet, my most potent form of help, I believe, are my abiding prayers lifted to God on your behalf and for your wellbeing. I know you are suffering, and I suffer with you. Please think of me as someone who is helping to carry your ridiculously heavy load of grief, confusion, and wondering.

I am with you in feeling like your neighborhoods are back in some COVID-style isolation. Communities have become ghost towns with people afraid to go outside for fear of being treated like “garbage” from a “garbage country,” even though many of you are United States citizens born and raised in Minnesota.

I see what the rest of the country and the world may not see: In the face of real oppression and abuse – designed to break your spirits – so many of you have risen to love your neighbors as yourselves.

Churches, faith communities, non-profit organizations, and individuals are providing meals and running errands for those fearful of going outside to likely face people dressed more like terrorists than fellow citizens.

Even you who help are getting stopped by I.C.E. agents and, in many cases, are detained for hours at a time. But you keep going out, nonetheless, because you are determined to do what is needed to achieve justice and mercy.

I see and applaud your efforts at helping each other. I know that you, including me, are a traumatized people, and for good reason. Please keep up your resilience and maintain your perseverance. It shall be rewarded.

Moreover, I also applaud those concerned citizens from neighboring states who have come with their fresh anger, righteous zeal, and words of encouragement, in order to protest with peace and non-violence. My thanks and gratitude to them for interrupting their own lives to be with us.

My friends, don’t give in to the massive gaslighting project that is directed toward you by the current federal government administration. They, along with their militarized lackeys, are trying their best for you to adopt their twisted view of reality.

No matter which way the Director of Homeland Security wants to spin it, a water balloon and a sub sandwich are not threats to body armor and helmets. But the clubs, tear gas, lack of respect, and very real bullets of I.C.E. agents are vital threats against us.

They may be armed with things which can harm the body, but you have spiritual weapons that they neither understand nor can see because of their spiritual blindness.

They’re trying to make you think that there’s something wrong with you when there isn’t. They want to force the view that sheer power is what’s important. But all along you remember, know, and are practicing that the way of love and compassion has more power than any sort of hate and lack of mercy.

In the future, you will be remembered for your steadfastness in showing grace to the weak and powerless, the immigrant and the alien among  you.

No matter who you are – whether white, black, brown, citizen or immigrant, rich or poor – you are all, in my Christian belief, created in the image and likeness of God. Therefore each one of you has inherent worth, and ought to be treated with respect and dignity befitting your status as human beings.

Please also know that I am on my knees in prayer for you each day. I often intercede for you with many of the biblical psalms, because they are prayers meant for us to use as our own. Today I offer Psalm 140. As I pray, I use nouns and pronouns which refer to you and me, as I believe the original psalmist wanted us to do…

Psalm 140

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

Rescue Minneapolis, Lord, from evildoers;
    protect them from the violent,
who devise evil plans in their hearts
    and stir up war every day.
They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent’s;
    the poison of vipers is on their lips.

Keep the residents of Minneapolis, St. Paul, and all of Minnesota safe, Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
    protect us from the violent,
    who devise ways to trip our feet.
The arrogant have hidden a snare for us;
    they have spread out the cords of their net
    and have set traps for us along our path.

I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
    Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy.
Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer,
    you shield our heads in the day of battle.
Do not grant the wicked their desires, Lord;
    do not let their plans succeed.

Those who surround us proudly rear their heads;
    may the mischief of their lips engulf them.
May burning coals fall on them;
    may they be thrown into the fire,
    into miry pits, never to rise.
May slanderers not be established in the land;
    may disaster hunt down the violent.

I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor
    and upholds the cause of the needy.
Surely the righteous will praise your name,
    and the upright will live in your presence.

May the grace of God, the love of Jesus, and the encouragement of the Spirit be with you all, now and forever. Amen.

Rev. Tim Ehrhardt, MDiv, MA, BCC

Justice Remembered (Exodus 12:1-13, 21-28)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
Passover Seder, by Melita Kraus

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household. If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. 

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 

They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs. You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn with fire. 

This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand, and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the Passover of the Lord. I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from human to animal, and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live: when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague shall destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt….

Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go, select lambs for your families, and slaughter the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood in the basin.

None of you shall go outside the door of your house until morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike down the Egyptians; when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over that door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down. 

You shall observe this as a perpetual ordinance for you and your children. When you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this observance. And when your children ask you, ‘What does this observance mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, for he passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt when he struck down the Egyptians but spared our houses.’ ” And the people bowed down and worshiped.

The Israelites went and did just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron; so they did. (New Revised Standard Version)

The Exodus, by Yoram Raanan

Today’s story of Passover is the highlight of Jewish history concerning both God’s judgment and God’s justice. It is a continual reminder that God is concerned with the divine Name; with his people; and with providing them what they need.

The Lord’s tenth and final plague against the Egyptians was the ultimate judgment of taking their firstborn children. At the same time, the Lord extended great justice to the Israelites by removing the oppressive obstacles which hindered them from having their basic human needs met.

Both God’s judgment and God’s justice were to be annually remembered through rituals established by God. These remembrance rituals of Passover are meant to be brought perpetually to Jewish minds, so that they will maintain a high view of Gods’ Name, and also never be a nation who acts like the Egyptians.

Passover and Exodus constituted a new beginning and new life for Israel. Slaughtering the Passover lamb was the start of liberation for the people; along with the eating of unleavened bread. Both the blood of the lamb, and the absence of leaven, together communicated freedom to the Israelites from God.

Even today, nearly four millennia later, Passover is still celebrated amongst the Jewish community as a great festival of freedom. The primary ritual in this celebration is the seder, an evening meal which involves eating several symbolic foods.

The purpose of coming together to eat special foods is to relive the experience of the Exodus from Egypt. It is a time of passing down the people’s communal memory, as well as reflecting upon God’s divine redemption for them.

The Passover rituals are the root of Christianity’s celebration of communion at the Table. For Christians, the final seder meal of Jesus and his disciples at the Last Supper in the Upper Room is remembered and relived, so that believers may contemplate the Cross of Christ as the ultimate divine redemption.

Table fellowship for both religions – Judaism and Christianity – has a central place in ritual remembrance. God is acknowledged and praised as the great Liberator from oppression. Justice is memorialized. Past events are remembered in order to live justly and rightly in the present.

Deliverance of people from both physical and spiritual slavery is a grand theme throughout all of Holy Scripture. People of freedom are never to let themselves again be placed in bondage. The New Testament puts the matter this way:

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1, NRSV)

The yearning for freedom from oppression and injustice lies within the breast of every human on this earth. It’s why people will go out of their way to use whatever means they have of standing against abusive powers.

It is more than ironic that there are people today who espouse themselves as Christian, yet are hell-bent on using whatever means they have to oppress and abuse others into submission. Such persons are not demonstrating care for the Name of God, especially not the Name of Jesus Christ. Instead, they have another agenda – one that has nothing to do with liberation and freedom.

This is one big reason why we need rituals. Rituals keep us remembering the things we need to remember, and help us forget the things we need to forget.

Earthly power is not the summum bonum of life. Rather, real power is Love. Again, quoting the Apostle Paul from the Book of Galatians:

For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters, only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become enslaved to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. (Galatians 5:13-15, NRSV)

Indeed, all that really counts for us in this life is “faith expressing itself through love.” (Galatians 5:6)

Remembering true freedom, and it’s real cost, through established rituals, is perhaps the best way of ensuring that the oppression and injustice of empires like Egypt and Rome do not happen in our present day.

Therefore, if we lose connection with important and seminal events of the past without ritual remembrance, we are setting ourselves up for terrible injustice to occur.

We are better than that. Redemption and remembrance can help show us the way.

Great God of all justice, righteousness, and redemption: Continue to break the yoke of Pharaoh in our time, and forever shatter the bonds of human oppression.. Hasten the Day when we shall all be free, at the coming of your Son, our Lord, Jesus Christ, who with you and the Holy Spirit are one God, now and forever. Amen.

Waiting Patiently For God (Psalm 40:1-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

I waited patiently for the Lord;
    he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
    out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
    making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
    a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
    and put their trust in the Lord.

Happy are those who make
    the Lord their trust,
who do not turn to the proud,
    to those who go astray after false gods.
You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you.
Were I to proclaim and tell of them,
    they would be more than can be counted.

Sacrifice and offering you do not desire,
    but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering
    you have not required.
Then I said, “Here I am;
    in the scroll of the book it is written of me.
I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is within my heart.”

I have told the glad news of deliverance
    in the great congregation;
see, I have not restrained my lips,
    as you know, O Lord.
I have not hidden your saving help within my heart;
    I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    from the great congregation.

Do not, O Lord, withhold
    your mercy from me;
let your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    keep me safe forever. (New Revised Standard Version)

Some of the greatest gifts any of us could ever receive are God’s steadfast love, faithfulness, and mercy. These are no problem for the Lord to bestow, because they are all a part of God’s very character.

Since, according to Holy Scripture, people are created in the image and likeness of God, every single one of us contains a divine reflection of faith, love, and mercy inside our very souls.

So, why aren’t these gifts and character virtues more evident in humanity?

Why does it seem to so many that love, faith, and mercy are in short supply today?

I believe today’s psalm gives us a clue to the answer. Virtuous character only really arises out of us through the practices of patience and gratitude. Another way of looking at this is: Our waiting and our thanksgiving help us become aware and in-touch with love, faith, and mercy.

Waiting Patiently

The Psalter is replete with encouragements to wait. The ability to be patient is connected to our character’s integrity.

May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
    for I wait for you. (Psalm 25:21, NRSV)

Our patience is an expression of our trust and reliance upon God.

Wait for the Lord;
    be strong, and let your heart take courage;
    wait for the Lord! (Psalm 27:14, NRSV)

Throughout the psalms, faithful and patient waiting leads to God’s deliverance.

Wait for the Lord and keep to his way,
    and he will exalt you to inherit the land;
    you will look on the destruction of the wicked. (Psalm 37:34, NRSV)

We can wait because we have the hope that God is good for promises given.

And now, O Lord, what do I wait for?
    My hope is in you. (Psalm 39:7, NRSV)

It would be great if love and mercy were always right there, embedded clearly within every human community, family, group of people, and nation. But, as you well know, virtuous character is not always there for us.

This is why there are times in life in which we must wait for others’ love and faithfulness. We can do that through active patience, that is, by purposely loving others and being committed to them despite their unloving and uncommitted behaviors.

I’m not saying this is easy. In fact, it is downright hard. Yet, our persevering patience, expressed in mercy, will eventually win the day. What’s more, the Lord Jesus made it plain that we are to love others whether they are nice to us, or mean to us. (Matthew 5:43-48)

Giving Praise and Thanks

When God gives us deliverance from whatever or whomever is oppressing us, a new song arises in our hearts. The song declares and testifies to God’s goodness toward us. A song provides witness to our experience of God’s steadfast love, faithfulness, and divine mercy. Through singing, we show others the path toward deliverance.

O sing to the Lord a new song;
    sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Sing to the Lord; bless his name;
    tell of his salvation from day to day.
Declare his glory among the nations,
    his marvelous works among all the peoples. (Psalm 96:1-3, NRSV)

I admit that there are many times I don’t feel like singing. Yet, even using my voice to sing a lament is a way of expressing thanks to God for being present with me in my grief, and for what God will do in my life.

For he will hide me in his shelter
    in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
    he will set me high on a rock.

Now my head is lifted up
    above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
    sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
    be gracious to me and answer me! (Psalm 27:5-7, NRSV)

Monetary sacrificial giving and offering is needed, yet this is not so much what God truly desires from us. God delights in our delight to do God’s will. So then, our sacrifice can look more like the exhortation of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2, NIV)

Petitioning God For Mercy

In today’s psalm, the psalmist makes a shift from offering thanks to asking God for mercy. Mercy in the form of God’s steadfast love and faithfulness is what the psalmist needed. And it is likely what you and I need, as well.

Any sort of deliverance we experience in this mortal life seems to have a temporary element to it. There is really no final deliverance until Jesus returns to judge the living and the dead. In the meantime, we need a lot of mercy.

I don’t know if you have ever had that feeling of deliverance from a slimy pit, and having your feet set on firm solid ground. Thankfully, I have.

My own deliverance(s) were never experienced because of any superior character on my part. No, deliverance is realized through asking. And asking requires some humility which admits need, and knows how much we cannot simply save ourselves from trouble.

But we must brace ourselves for the reality that we might do a lot asking over a seemingly long period of time. It’s one thing to ask; it’s another to keep asking day in and day out, week after week, month after month, even year after year, or decade after decade.

Yet this is the nature of patient waiting. There is no deliverance apart from perseverance in prayer. I’m not talking about a vain repetition of trying to get God’s attention – that’s because you and I already have it. I’m talking about the reality that we ourselves are not in control of anything except ourselves. And even our own self-control doesn’t often go so well.

A song of thanksgiving to God always understands that there will be ongoing trouble in this old world; and a continual need for deliverance.

I humbly ask that you join me in getting on your knees every day and asking for deliverance from the injustice and unrighteousness of our current world and national troubles. They are legion.

It isn’t easy watching friends live in fear, and neighbors becoming victims of oppression and abuse. But here we are, all of us in need of seeing God’s kingdom come to earth and God’s will be done on this planet, as it is always done in God’s heaven.

Soli Deo Gloria

May it be so, to the glory of God.