Christmas & Refugees

I received this very nice piece in mail from quartz.com, thought i did share with all. Its really good read, its written by Annalisa Merelli. 

One of the key reason why I like this piece is how beautiful it explains the Role of Luck that we all have. Imagine you being born in border town of North Korea, I have never visited nor met anybody who has visited that place. But going by whats written by media, that place pretty much lacks freedom. Imagine just 1 kilometer down the road from your home is country called South Korea and see how your future changes. Closer to home, imagine being born in Pakistan now compare that to being born in India. Some part of your success is because of role of luck, I am not saying we all stop doing what we are doing and waiting for luck to play out or assuming if its in my luck I will get it, why to work for it. All I am saying is, lets just appreciate Luck we have.

Below is the piece by Annalisa Merelli

“Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me,” Jesus says in Matthew’s gospel. “Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.” This is at the very core of Christian values: love your neighbor as yourself—and as your god.

And yet Westerners are, by and large, keeping refugees at bay, bargaining their quotas down, as if the world’s 2.2 billion Christians had never been taught the story of Joseph and Mary being refused accommodation because they were poor strangers.

Perhaps instead we can show mercy for mothers breastfeeding their children on a cold beach, for men who nearly drown trying to swim to shore, for children who have no choice but to follow their parents in chasing a future—any future, anywhere.

These people are the real-life versions of the icons that Christians have come to associate with the passion of god as a human. Let us recognize them as such. Let us acknowledge, once and for all, that being a refugee—of war, poverty, or discrimination—is a sheer function of luck, and we did nothing to deserve our better fate. Whenever and wherever humanity is suffering, we are involved, and the responsibility to offer refuge is ours until the least of us have shelter.—Annalisa Merelli