Purim

Purim

Purim is a holiday celebrated by Jewish people for centuries to commemorate the defeat of Haman, who had plotted to have all the Jews massacred in the kingdom of the Xerxes, king of Persia. This sinister plot is revealed and ultimately stopped due to the boldness of Esther and her uncle Mordecai. You can read all about this in the Book of Esther in the Hebrew Bible. Continue reading

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Foreigners, Resident Aliens, Refugees, & The World To Come

Foreigners, Resident Aliens, Refugees, & The World To Come

In the world to come, some will finally arrive home because they were foreigners and resident aliens, refugees without a permanent home in this world.

Others will arrive in the world to come as foreigners, empty-handed refugees forced from their home, because their citizenship and possessions were of this world.

The good news for this latter group is that those who were refugees in this world will likely welcome refugees in the next.

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The Current Vetting Process for Refugees Seeking to Be Resettled In the United States

The Current Vetting Process for Refugees Seeking to Be Resettled In the United States

I am for screening or “vetting” of refugees seeking to be resettled in our country. I believe there should be in-depth processes which evaluate and validate who enters our nation, especially in times of great conflict and from areas of great conflict.

However, what I have found in the midst of the current national debate on this topic is that most people are unaware of what is already in place in terms of screening/vetting refugees. There is a high degree of assumption that whatever is in place it is not detailed enough. When I ask, “What do you think should be in place to make our system better?” the most common answers are usually related to “background checks” and “how do we know who these people are?” Continue reading

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