Is the Book of ruth a general Biblical instruction about dealing with immigrants?

[Crumpy]

Ruth was a Moabite woman, by birth. She married a Jewish man who himself had immigrated to Moab, when there was a famine in Israel.

So, Ruth’s husband seems to have been treated well in Moab, during a famine.

Then, much more explicitly, Ruth follows Naomi back to Bethlehem of Judea, to live with her and even to adopt her religion. She is treated well by Boaz (not sure if all immigrants esp. from Moab would have been treated so well).

Is the bible telling us graphically to accept all immigrants and treat them with open arms?

I’m not interested in the political aspects of immigration, but the moral aspects.

 

[Chaplain777]

Well I don’t know, but it seems a stretch to interpret this book in this way.

Just as interpreting the story of the Egyptians dealing with the Israelites as a graphical mandate to exterminate immigrants once their numbers become so numerous that the Egyptians feared for their safety, and that eventually the Israelites (immigrants) packed up and left. Maybe this is not a great correlation, but you can see how reading something into a story can become convoluted.

 

[Andrew1980]

I think the best way to treat immigants is the way we would treat anyone else. The holy family were even immigants to Egypt.

I encourage us to be more welcoming to our immigrant populations in my experience they have been very hard working, willing to work for far less $$ and always have a smile on their face. Personally, I have learned a lot from them.

A few years back I was living in an apartment complex and next door to me was a migrant family. They literally had 9 people living in a one bedroom apartment. They were seasonal agriculture help for a local seed company. They were some of the nicest people I have ever met and they taught me a few things about how materialistic our society has become. Truth be told, I would estimate that their family was happier and more satisfied living in that one bedroom apartment with no TV than probably 95% of our population. They really helped me re-evaluate what I value in life.

The more we refuse or shun outsiders the less opportunity we have to evaluate our own culture. I know I have a tendency to not think about things if everyone is doing it the same. Bring in an outsider and then I start thinking about making changes to my life for the better.

 

[Contarini]

Ruth was a Moabite woman, by birth. She married a Jewish man who himself had immigrated to Moab, when there was a famine in Israel.

So, Ruth’s husband seems to have been treated well in Moab, during a famine.

Then, much more explicitly, Ruth follows Naomi back to Bethlehem of Judea, to live with her and even to adopt her religion. She is treated well by Boaz (not sure if all immigrants esp. from Moab would have been treated so well).

Is the bible telling us graphically to accept all immigrants and treat them with open arms?

I’m not interested in the political aspects of immigration, but the moral aspects.

I think that it’s one piece in the puzzle–I certainly would not make some kind of “Sola Scriptura” argument that Ruth somehow compels Christians to adopt a certain approach toward immigrants. But viewed in the light of Scripture and Tradition as a whole, I think Ruth is highly significant for this issue. It’s one of many elements in the Tradition that led to the teaching found in CCC 2241.

Edwin

 

[Contarini]

Just as interpreting the story of the Egyptians dealing with the Israelites as a graphical mandate to exterminate immigrants once their numbers become so numerous that the Egyptians feared for their safety, and that eventually the Israelites (immigrants) packed up and left. Maybe this is not a great correlation

No, it isn’t at all, because the Egyptians’ attitude is clearly condemned. Exodus 1 actually has if anything even more significance for the pro-immigrant case than Ruth.

There are parts of the Torah that could be read as sanctioning the enslavement of foreign residents, for instance; and then there are Ezra and Nehemiah with their condemnation of intermarriage, though this is pretty clearly religious in nature, and though some folks think that Ruth was written to criticize such a policy.

In other words, I think one could find some bits of Scripture that, taken in isolation, would support a more restrictive attitude, but I certainly don’t think Exodus 1 is one of them.

Edwin

 

[IrishSFV]

I encourage us to be more welcoming to our immigrant populations in my experience they have been very hard working, willing to work for far less $$ and always have a smile on their face.

No thanks.