1/24/2024 0 Comments Dulles expo center afghanBut how can families make a choice when there is no real frame of reference? There is no angel coming in a dream to say: Flee to Egypt … or Portland … or Wichita. Afghanistan is the same size as Texas.Īs we talked, I suggested that the family might find Oregon a good place to go because it could be just a day's drive to the Bay Area where their family settled. As I talked with them, I discovered how challenging it is for these newcomers to adjust to the size of our country. They had no idea what to choose because the only people they know in our country are in the San Francisco Bay Area. These places are already crowded and housing scarce.Ī family who was told by one of the relocation staff to pick a destination other than California as their first choice. Each Afghan family can ask for a certain placement, but one of the challenges is that the places in the United States that they have heard of are where they have relatives and friends. Local Catholic Charities, Lutheran Family Services, local Afghan Americans and myriad others are scrambling to find housing and support for these families. It is the biggest, quickest relocation of families ever. Gradually, families are being settled all over the United States. We are called to ponder the reality of creating a safe haven for those who are fleeing. The family immediately went into hiding to try to protect their child and were desperately trying to get exit visas to the United States. They offered their protection in exchange for their 14-year-old daughter for their local Taliban leader. One man recounted that his family still in Afghanistan had been approached by the Taliban. Some of the men had fled alone and were trying desperately to get their families out of impossible situations. Some had some knowledge of English, but most did not. Some of the children had a lot of experience with education, but others did not. We had thousands of Holy Families seeking safety so that the divine might be able to inhabit their lives with peace. We had at least 60 pregnant women in the camp. This, I am told, is true of the other bases as well. Forty-three percent of our guests were children under 13. These families had fled with the clothes on their backs and a few things that they could carry. We had between 4,000 and 5,000 "guests" who were being processed for settlement in the United States. In October, I got to work at one of the military bases welcoming Afghan families. It is easy to see a parallel with the actions of Herod.īut for us in the United States, we are called to ponder the reality of creating a safe haven for those who are fleeing. Violence and political turmoil abound in this country, as the Taliban in their insecurity seek revenge and dominance. These families are fleeing a regime that wants to harm anyone who supported the NATO allies in building a new Afghanistan. Meditating on the political intrigue led me think of today's reality as the United States struggles to provide a safe haven for thousands of Afghans and their families. The young family flees political violence and finds shelter in a foreign land. Then Joseph is warned in a dream to take Mary and the baby and flee into Egypt because of the political danger of an insecure Herod. The Magi are warned in a dream not to return to Herod, but to return by another route. Herod's insecurity causes him to seek to destroy this child. The Magi stir up the political fear of the ruler Herod. Matthew follows this with one verse about the birth of Jesus and then launches into the political story of the Magi coming to do homage to this child in a stable. He is told, "Do not be afraid." This is followed by the confirmation that Jesus is "Emmanuel," which is "God with us." We glimpse Joseph struggling to accept Mary and Jesus as his own. This leads directly to a Gospel of struggle. Matthew starts with the genealogy of Jesus to give him political credentials being of the royal house of David. It is a story to be considered anew today. As I ponder the first chapter of Matthew, I see that this is a political story in a dangerous time. It is nourishment for cold winter's night.īut this year, I believe that we should spend our time reading the more challenging account in the Gospel of Matthew. We know the heart-warming story from the Annunciation to the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem, followed by the birth of Jesus in a stable but visited by angels and shepherds. In the Christmas season we tend to focus on the account of Jesus' birth as found in the Gospel of Luke.
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