There is first the problem with the certainty that the Bible says what you want it to. Before we even get to discussion of any serious topic, we have the danger of forging God's signature under our ideas. Reflections on the Second Commandment. We notice how God hates hypocrisy, taking revenge, oppressing the poor, and being arrogant, but what really seems to set Him off is false prophecy. People get killed for it in the Old Testament and it seems central to the Second Coming at the end of times. We are called to teach, but teachers are under double scrutiny. We must move with all caution when telling others that God wants them to do X. It is too easy to expand our interpretations into God's commands without noticing it.
This is behind my recent post Stuart the Just. "I only asked what time dinner was and she goes into a tempter." No you weren't only asking and she knew it. "She's just asking how her daughter's boyfriend likes his job." No, there's a world you hope to uncover by just asking. And now "It's just what the Bible says." No it's not just what's in the Bible and we know it. You quote the verse and then bend the terms.
I have been listening to this for a long time.
From the 60s and 70s. God cares about the city. Yes, he cares about the people in the city. Does that mean he doesn't care about the rural areas? (This was before there was this big move of New Yorkers to Vermont.) Do you think he doesn't care about the suburbs? No, but churches are abandoning the cities to got to the rich, soulless suburbs.
No, you care about the city. The further conclusions you draw from God's love of people in general are indirect, and suspect.
From the 70s and 80s. God cares what Christians do politically. So those monks, communes, and people too busy with ministry have got it wrong? No, you care about what Christians do politically. Jesus mentions it little. Jesus cares about the downstream effects of all our actions, yes. Don't push it. And especially, don't tell me what God's Politics are. 2nd Commandment. How do you even dare?
God cares about the family. Well, sure. Nurture and admonition of the Lord. Mary and John at the foot of the cross. Sure. But didn't God say something about remaining single if you could? So what do you mean by "cares?" About the institution?
God cares about America. Albania not so much? No, you care about America and are bringing God into it without checking.
My denomination had a 5th grade series on the Ten Commandments. The one about not stealing stressed the need for a minimum wage.
God cares about sexual sin. Yes. Your point?
God loves the Outcast, the Rejected, and the Scorned. Today we would use the word marginalised. Well, yes. Everyone else hates them, but Jesus made a point of welcoming them. Does that mean he likes them better?
It is not only annoying to me personally. Heck, a lot of things are annoying to me personally, including the belief that Shadeur Sanders is ready to be an NFL starting quarterback.
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Welcome the stranger. The Old Testament and the New both record it so it must mean something. There was a fair-dealing, welcoming sort of thing that people weren't doing; both Moses and Jesus thought it was important enough to mention. So most likely, we aren't doing it either and need to change our ways. Next up: Who does this mean and what is our welcome? There are two Hebrew words, one meaning temporary visitor and another with shades of meaning between sojourner, foreigner, stranger. Missing are the direct meanings of migrant, refugee, or settlers. This is not to say that these groups were excluded, because Joseph and his sons came to trade in desperation and stayed. What category is that? What about conquered people who stayed, or frequent traders who stayed?
Leviticus 19 just says to treat them like your own people. This verse gets quoted a lot by people who oppose the current policy of deporting illegals. (To be fair, they quote Jesus as well. We'll get to that.) My own denomination put up a FB post that uses this verse in a commanding way - and expands it to the meaning migrants.
See? See? That's what the Bible says. It doesn't differentiate between legal and illegal. Yes, Leviticus 19, that also tells us not to get tattoos or cut our hair, and to rise in the presence of older people. Oh now wait. You have to understand those verses in context...
Oh now you want context. Yes by all means, I'm in favor of context. A couple of years ago it was taking more refugees. Are you saying the the Jews were supposed to welcome the Philistines? The Assyrians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans? Biblical borders
Those were invaders. That's different. Are you sure? You were pretty certain it was all-encompassing just a couple of minutes ago. Well but the people today are more like people just coming here to live. True, true. We could call them settlers, then. Were the Natives supposed to welcome the Europeans?
Jesus and the NT emphasise the spiritual rather than physical stranger, noting that we ourselves are strangers in this world and encouraging the welcome of Gentiles and Samaritans into the new covenant people. We already know the command in Matthew 25 (sheep and goats) means something, and likely means something uncomfortable and expensive for us. But yet again, we have context. Israel was occupied territory. No group was moving in without Roman permission. The movement of of free individuals was quite free, but they were only a minority of the populace. There was an imperial backstop if 10% of the Syrians suddenly thought that living in Israel was the thing to do.
For this exercise I am not taking a position on deportations, illegals, refugees, or overall migration. I have telegraphed that my current position is to welcome legal immigrants but discourage illegals. We have resettled refugees. We still support a Sudanese church. I volunteer at a food charity that serves lots of immigrants and doesn't ask if they are legal or illegal. As discouraging illegals is difficult I don't know how many resources I want the country to devote that discouragement. I see that as moveable. I will note that my immigrant sons take about the same view. The one who then immigrated to Norway is really annoyed at the gypsies coming in on buses not wanting to work and harassing the women as soon as they get off. Illegals suck up the jobs of the disadvantaged citizens. Bernie Sanders used to rail about how too much immigration hurt black people.
It is a violation of the Second Commandment for people to take verses and expand their meaning to insist that God is opposed to our current deportation policy. If some group were insisting that the Bible commands that we take in no further immigrants I would say the same thing. Don't forge God's signature.
I know, I know. You were only saying... No you weren't You were saying much more.
2 comments:
I assume few of these people would enthusiastically welcome burglars into their home, or even second cousins who were Trump supporters.
I remember something Grim said about being willing to kill someone to prevent their doing something he'd rather die than do. I can't say I'd necessarily rather die than invade someone else's home or country in desperation and make them miserable, but it's close. I'm certainly not entitled to prey on them or kill them, even if they have stuff I want. I don't think my duty is to encourage behavior that I know would be deeply wrong if I did it.
I'd have tolerated illegal immigration for many more years if the whole exercise hadn't turned into such a travesty. I'm very sorry for the people who just wanted to slip in and find a good job and be a good neighbor. The barbarians and their despicable enablers ruined the gig for them.
Yes it's true that eisegesis will always be a thousand times more popular Ithan exegesis. I don't know what can be done about it, except to correct the bad exegesis when it occurs --- but don't expect human nature to change much.
By the way, I don't think that Matthew 25 commands "us" to do anything.I think that it is a judgment of the world (the nations) on the basis of how it has treated Christians (the Judge's brethren and his "least ones"). I see the scene as an expansion of Jesus' statement in Matthew 10 that a reward will be given to anyone who gives a drink of water to one of his "little ones".
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