Remembering the Christmas story today
MaineWriter: God Bless and condolences to families of Jakelin Caal age 7, who died December 8, 2018, El Paso, TX and Felipe Alonzo-Gomez, the 8-year-old migrant, who died in US custody, in New Mexico, on Christmas Eve 2018.
After having journeyed to Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph were told “no room . . . in the inn” (Luke 2:7) and soon after Jesus’s birth found themselves fleeing for their lives.
They, like many on and just outside our southern border, were refugees. Warned by an angel that Herod had commanded that all male children in Bethlehem at or below the age of two be slaughtered, Mary and Joseph, with their babe fled to Egypt.
As we hold our families close to us this Christmas, shed a tear for the families and children, fleeing the savagery of gangs in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
As we hold our families close to us this Christmas, shed a tear for the families and children, fleeing the savagery of gangs in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
No room at the inn. An echo opinion published in the Texas newspaper the Corpus Christie Caller Times.
Dear editor: As we celebrate the holidays, we surely must pause to remember the holy story about Christmas.
We must remember, Mary and Joseph, who found refuge in the stable on a cold winter’s night, where Mary gave birth to the child of God.
After having journeyed to Bethlehem, Mary and Joseph were told “no room . . . in the inn” (Luke 2:7) and soon after Jesus’s birth found themselves fleeing for their lives.
They, like many on and just outside our southern border, were refugees. Warned by an angel that Herod had commanded that all male children in Bethlehem at or below the age of two be slaughtered, Mary and Joseph, with their babe fled to Egypt.
As we hold our families close to us this Christmas, shed a tear for the families and children, fleeing the savagery of gangs in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
According to the Houston Chronicle (Nov. 24, 2018), 14,000 children have been detained in the United States, 5,600 in Texas.
In addition to these unfortunates, many families are living in camps just across the border, our government having cruelly slowed to a trickle the entry process for those wishing to apply for asylum. This is an artful trick to frustrate and exhaust the travelers, thus warning others not to come to us for sanctuary. Tear gas has been used on mothers and children and two children in the past month have died of dehydration and exposure. It is not enough to say, “Well, it is, after all, a dangerous trip. Parents should know better than to risk their children’s lives.”
The human cost of our callousness is unknowable. We must ask, “What would Jesus want us to do about the suffering on our doorstep?” Would he not say, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me?” (Matt. 25:40). We must in the weeks and months ahead insist that our government come to terms with our grievous immigration problems, and, while securing our borders, treat our “brethren” with humanity and compassion.
When the man, Jesus corrected his disciples for rebuking those who had brought their children to him for his blessing, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 19:14). Jesus blessed the children; yet we block them, confine them, and without evidence say, “they are diseased and will harm our country. They know no English, and will pull us down.” How many times have you heard the complaint, “we cannot take care of everyone.” The truth is that many of us secretly object that they are not European; they are not white.
The human cost of our callousness is unknowable. We must ask, “What would Jesus want us to do about the suffering on our doorstep?” Would he not say, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me?” (Matt. 25:40). We must in the weeks and months ahead insist that our government come to terms with our grievous immigration problems, and, while securing our borders, treat our “brethren” with humanity and compassion.
When the man, Jesus corrected his disciples for rebuking those who had brought their children to him for his blessing, “Suffer little children, and forbid them not to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 19:14). Jesus blessed the children; yet we block them, confine them, and without evidence say, “they are diseased and will harm our country. They know no English, and will pull us down.” How many times have you heard the complaint, “we cannot take care of everyone.” The truth is that many of us secretly object that they are not European; they are not white.
As we hold our families close to us this Christmas, shed a tear for the families and children, fleeing the savagery of gangs in El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.
According to the Houston Chronicle (Nov. 24, 2018), 14,000 children have been detained in the United States, 5,600 in Texas. In addition to these unfortunates, many families are living in camps just across the border, our government having cruelly slowed to a trickle the entry process for those wishing to apply for asylum. This is an artful trick to frustrate and exhaust the travelers, thus warning others not to come to us for sanctuary. Tear gas has been used on mothers and children and two children in the past month have died of dehydration and exposure. It is not enough to say, “Well, it is, after all, a dangerous trip. Parents should know better than to risk their children’s lives.”
The human cost of our callousness is unknowable. We must ask, “What would Jesus want us to do about the suffering on our doorstep?” Would he not say, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me?” (Matt. 25:40). We must in the weeks and months ahead insist that our government come to terms with our grievous immigration problems, and, while securing our borders, treat our “brethren” with humanity and compassion.
Catherine Cox, Corpus Christi
The human cost of our callousness is unknowable. We must ask, “What would Jesus want us to do about the suffering on our doorstep?” Would he not say, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me?” (Matt. 25:40). We must in the weeks and months ahead insist that our government come to terms with our grievous immigration problems, and, while securing our borders, treat our “brethren” with humanity and compassion.
Catherine Cox, Corpus Christi
posted by Juliana L'Heureux | 3:41 PM
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