*the church should help anyone who asks for help. But the scripture is very specific that we should treat “strangers” or aliens with the same consideration as a citizen. *
The Law of Moses (Exodus 22:20) does say “You shall not molest or oppress an alien, for you were once aliens in the land of Egypt.” How were the Israelites treated in Egypt? They were enslaved, forced to perform hard labor, denied the right to practice their faith, and their male children were killed (on the grounds that they were a threat to “national security”; see Exodus 1).
In Old Testament times, kings had the power to treat ANY “illegal” alien as a potential enemy combatant or spy, and could kill, imprison, or enslave them on the spot. God, through Moses, commanded the Israelites to be more humane and allow aliens who were willing to live in peace with the Israelites to stay in the country. Those who did NOT live in peace with the Israelites, or attempted to corrupt or subvert the Jews’ way of life, were treated differently, which I will explain in a moment.
Other provisions of Old Testament law make a clear distinction between aliens and citizens. For example, there were limits on how long an Israelite citizen could be kept in slavery or servitude to pay off a debt, but a non-Israelite could remain a slave for life, and his/her master was not obligated to free them. Moreover, Israelites were forbidden or at least strongly discouraged from marrying foreigners who continued to practice their pagan religions. In the Book of Ezra, written after the Babylonian exile, the men of Israel are commanded to divorce their foreign wives because so many of them had been led into pagan practices by their wives.
Also, Old Testament law technically excluded citizens of certain hostile nations like Moab and Ammon from ever becoming “members of the assembly” or Israelite citizens (Deuteronomy 23). The Book of Ruth, however, recounts the story of a Moabite woman who did convert, married an Israelite and became the great-grandmother of King David (and through him, an ancestor of Jesus Christ). Some scholars believe Ruth may have been written in the fourth century B.C. as a protest or counterpoint to Ezra’s policy mentioned above – to remind people that not all aliens were evil or hostile.
In the New Testament, Jesus does show unusual (for that time) tolerance and respect for non-Jews such as the Samaritan woman at the well, the Roman centurion and his servant, and the Syro-Phoenician woman whose daughter was possessed. But he did still recognize that there were distinctions between Jews and non-Jews, and that Jews (citizens) possessed certain privileges that Gentiles did not. He told the Phoenician woman “it is not right to take the children’s food and give it to the dogs” (Mark 7:24), but he did, in the end, reward her persistent faith by granting her request to heal her daughter.
So what does this mean to us today?
As far as the Church is concerned, Catholic individuals and organizations are free to use their OWN money and resources to aid anyone in need without demanding that they prove their citizenship status or any other kind of qualification first. These would include food pantries, Christmas gift collections for needy children, collections of maternity or baby items for crisis pregnancy centers, etc. Also, Catholic churches can welcome anyone to attend Mass or receive the sacraments for themselves or their children; national residency status is not relevant to one’s “eligibility” to practice the Catholic faith.
But with regard to GOVERNMENT funded programs or rights/privileges such as obtaining driver’s licenses, work permits, Medicaid, etc., the government has every right to set eligibility requirements for these, and to restrict them to people who meet those qualifications, including citizenship or legal alien residency. If these requirements were strictly enforced, and it became exceptionally difficult or impossible for illegal aliens to find work, travel, get non-emergency medical treatment, etc. that alone would discourage many illegal immigrants from coming to the U.S. and encourage many who are already here to leave.
