Welcoming the Strangers

I recently read of a small town in southern Mexico called Niltepec. This town was nearly entirely destroyed in an earthquake last year. But a few weeks ago when thousands of Central American migrants descended upon the town on their way to the U.S. border, they were welcomed by the people of Niltepec with hot soup, medical tents, and diapers for children. The caravan at the time was estimated at least 3500 people, matching or exceeding Niltepec’s population of 3,800.

So while hateful tweets spewed from our President about a criminal invasion by the migrants, Niltepec’s mayor said “we know what it is to suffer” and apologized to the visitors for not having a dignified space to offer them due to all the damaged buildings from the earthquake. Another person from the town contrasted this warm welcome with the hostility coming from Trump. “It’s a form of struggle,” he said, “It’s a way to demonstrate that rights are universal.” It is a struggle against the power of dominant voices that would tell us that some lives are more valuable than others, or that people are poor because they don’t work hard enough, or that some countries are more violent because their people are savage or ignorant.

Part of what this story may teach us is that we, too, must struggle to resist those loud voices and to hear the truth and the hope that comes from those often silenced. Those small voices calling for mercy, for sharing space, for a vision in which everyone gets a warm bowl of soup and a dignified place to sleep.

You can hear the entire podcast of Heather’s sermon here.