Do The Right Thing

Exodus 22:21

Do not mistreat an alien or oppress him, for you were aliens in Egypt.

Leviticus 19:33

When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him.

Deuteronomy 10:19

And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.

Leviticus 19:34

The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt. I am the LORD your God.

Psalm 146:9 

The LORD watches over the alien /and sustains the fatherless and the widow, /but he frustrates the ways of the wicked.

Mathew 25: 31-46 

When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

He will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.

In the Huntsville Times today:

A statewide conservative Christian group is rallying behind Councilman Glenn Watson’s proposed illegal immigration ordinance with a call to pack tonight’s City Council meeting to “encourage” Watson and “intimidate” other council members into supporting it.

The plans were revealed in an e-mail circulating among members of the Conservative Christians of Alabama that Watson forwarded to local news media Wednesday afternoon.

Jim Zeigler, immediate past chairman of the organization, confirmed the e-mail was being circulated among the statewide group. “We’re making everybody aware of it even though it’s a local ordinance. Naturally, it has state and local impact,” Zeigler said. . . .

The Conservative Christians of Alabama recently backed Republican Roy Moore in his failed race for the GOP nomination for governor. The group also supports such causes as lower taxes and greater protection from eminent domain.

The e-mail asks recipients to attend tonight’s council meeting to voice their support for Watson’s ordinance. The measure would punish businesses that willfully hire illegal immigrants and landlords who knowingly rent to them.

The other city council members “need to be encouraged to get off the fence and stand up against the illegal immigration,” says the e-mail, noting that Council President Mark Russell and Councilman Bill Kling face re-election later this month. “Your presence is needed to cheer our speakers and intimidate the Huntsville City Council.”

It also encourages people living outside Huntsville to call council members and ask them to “do the right thing.”

Do the right thing indeed.

If we should deny gay people the same government benefits enjoyed by heterosexuals because the Bible says being gay is wrong; if we should not teach evolution in public schools because the Bible says God made the Earth in six day; if we shold not use stem cells for research because the Bible says God knew us before he formed us in the womb; if we should execute people because the Bible says an eye for an eye; then we ought to welcome illegal immigrants with open arms.

If you are going to argue that public policy ought to be based on the Bible, at least have the integrity to apply the whole thing, rather than just those parts that accord with your own prejudices.

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