One paragraph in the article linked below provides a few brief biblical quotations. Providing sanctuary for immigrants is deeply rooted in both the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Leviticus 19:34 states that “the foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native born.”
Likewise, Mark 12:30-31 advises us that there is no commandment greater than loving our neighbors.
Exodus 22:21 emphasizes the point further: “You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”
Then there’s Deuteronomy 10:19, “You shall love the immigrant.”
The article mentions examples from different parts of the U.S. and mentions specifically the mainstream nationwide Lutheran denomination (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America — ELCA). Here is the article:
Since the late 1960s Glen Anderson has devoted his life to working as a volunteer for peace, nonviolence, social justice, and progressive political issues. He has worked through many existing organizations and started several. Over the years he has worked especially for such wide-ranging goals as making peace with Vietnam, eliminating nuclear weapons, converting from a military economy to a peacetime economy, abolishing the death penalty, promoting nonviolence at all levels throughout society, and helping people organize and strategize for grassroots movements to solve many kinds of problems. He writes, speaks, and conducts training workshops on a wide variety of topics. Since 1987 he has produced and hosted a one-hour cable TV interview program on many kinds of issues. Since 2017 he has blogged at https://parallaxperspectives.org He lives in Lacey near Olympia WA. You can reach him at (360) 491-9093 glen@parallaxperspectives.org
