Strangers

I’ve always admired people who have the ability to be hospitable without much effort. I’ve considered it as a virtue, which I must learn since it’s not springing from me. Away from home in a strange country this thought rises to a whole new level.

I just finished reading “A thousand splendid suns”, a novel by Khaled Hosseini. (Pause and a sigh.) What an amazing story and an eye-opener. I cried during the last pages, but not as much as the characters and real life Afghans with their suffering would deserve. The story tells about people who don’t feel entirely at home, miss it or have to flee.

The next day my thoughts were filled by Bible characters who faced somewhat similar situations. I was surprised how many of them I came up with. Adam and Eve had to flee Paradise and Kain was escaping God’s wrath. Jacob escaped his brother’s anger and later he brought his huge family to a country they did not own. Joseph found himself in the middle of strangers in Egypt and later none of the Israelites were considered as Egyptians but as strangers though hundreds of years had passed.

David had to run away from Saul and later his own son as well. Daniel and his friends were forced to leave home and later the rest of Judeans followed. Even baby Jesus and his parents were refugees in Egypt since a certain king didn’t want to see little boys in his sight.

God’s attitude towards strangers is also revealing. All through Psalms and other scriptures he tells to accept strangers and treat them well. Christians are even told they’ll be judged by how they treat these people. I know I have plenty to learn with this issue. But still I find this gravity intriguing. Maybe Jesus felt like a stranger when He walked on earth. Even His own people didn’t recognise him.