Presenter(s): Miriam Thielman—Spanish and Religious Studies
Faculty Mentor(s): Deborah Green
Session 4: Cultural Considerations—The Other
An increase in global immigration has resulted in humanitarian crises across the world as countries struggle to respond to the growing number of refugees and asylum seekers arriving at their borders . Religion often influences people’s beliefs, actions, and even the policy decisions for which they lobby, and the various forms of Christianity practiced in the United States frequently use the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures as their sacred instructive texts . Understanding the specific messages within the Hebrew Bible regarding immigrants is important for developing faith-informed responses to immigrants and refugees . A detailed study of relevant portions of the Hebrew Bible, coupled with analysis of biblical commentaries and scholarly criticism, suggests that the Bible underscores the imperative to care for the most vulnerable members of society, as well as to include immigrants in the community . People of faith should take this overarching message into account when considering how to respond to immigrants’ arrival in the United States .