Tuesday after Epiphany

wrapped in swaddling
clothes...

Lectionary: 213

When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.

During the week after the Epiphany the Church observes National Migration Week. Among the many obstacles the Lord faced during his life, we remember he was a displaced person, driven from his native town of Bethlehem by the mad King Herod.

As long as there have been human beings on this earth there have been migrants. The human race evolved among the great apes in Africa and moved to Asia, Africa and the Americas over hundreds of thousands of years. If settling in one place and calling it an ancestral home seems normal, moving about in search of freedom, prosperity and security is also normal. Human beings are both restless and infinitely adaptable; we can live in almost any environment. We will live in caves, boats, dense jungles, cliff sides, or frozen tundra if they are free from tyranny and war.

Our religious faith also evolved out of migration. Whether the Lord leads his people to new place, as he led Abraham from Ur of the Chaldees, or follows them into exile (Egypt and Babylon), the Lord does not abandon his people. We could hardly call ourselves Christian if our hearts are not moved with pity for the vast crowd. They are us.

I am not familiar with the history of modern migrations. I understand that millions of people have been forced into exile since World War II and the problem is getting worse. 


The bishops' web site above speaks of several different groups: migrants who leave their homeland in search of work, safety and freedom; refugees who flee their war-ravaged homes; children who have never known a home; and slaves who are trafficked. There are subgroups in each.

History has shown that migrants infuse energy, courage and creativity into their new homes. But history, even in the United States, a nation of immigrants, also tells of inhospitality to new arrivals. Even when the federal government opened the gates wide to immigrants, as in the 19^th century, there was hostility in the churches, neighborhoods and places of business. If the original blessing is migration, the original sin is the barriers selfishness, racism and jealousy place in their movement. As my mother used to say, "We cut off our noses to spite our faces." 

Jesus knew hostility, alienation and homelessness. He met them in Egypt, Nazareth and Jerusalem. Out of the experience he developed compassion for “the vast crowd.” During this National Migration Week we pray for the same blessing in our hearts.