Psalm 62: “In you alone is my soul at rest. My help comes from you.”

The Rule of Benedict reads in chapter 53: "All guests who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ for he himself will say: I was a stranger and you welcomed me. Proper honor must be shown to all . . . ." The Rule echoes Matthew 25 where Jesus says that what will count in the final judgment is whether or not we took care of the sick, clothed the naked, visited those in prison, etc., and welcomed strangers. In so acting, Jesus says we are doing it to and for him. In those turbulent times, the guests were not necessarily Christians. Benedict specifies a bit further: "Great care and concern are to be shown in receiving poor people and pilgrims, because in them more particularly Christ is received; our very awe of the rich guarantees them special respect."

Pope Francis addressed the U.S. Congress in October 2015, speaking of those who present themselves today at the doors of the world’s wealthier countries: "Migrants are our brothers and sisters in search of a better life, far away from poverty, hunger, exploitation and the unjust distribution of the planet’s resources which are meant to be equitably shared by all." His talk brought some legislators to tears, but not to any welcoming action. A country often termed the richest in the world has been slamming the doors to migrants and immigrants. On the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall (Nov 9, 2014), Pope Francis warned that there are still too many walls. "Wherever there is a wall, there is a closed heart. We need bridges, not walls!"

The United States once understood itself as a refuge with no distinction of religion, race or place of origin for immigrants. A bronze plaque on exhibit at the Statue of Liberty (words by Emma Lazarus), calling America ‘Mother of exiles’, reminds Americans of their nobler ideals. In part it reads:

“Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

Psalm 27: “I believe I shall see the Lord’s goodness / in the land of the living.

Wait for the Lord; be strong; / be stouthearted, and wait for the Lord!”

Reply to Fr. Don at: DTalafous@csbsju.edu

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