In moments of crisis, we can always find a way to do the impossible if we just take the first step. If we remain at a distance and try to solve the problem without getting entangled, it becomes too much and we give up. Only by placing ourselves in the impossible situation, are we driven to make the impossible possible. Think about the last time you went on vacation. You flew through that backlog of work that had been piling up because you were finally faced with a deadline that you couldn't write off.
If we want to solve the immigrant crisis, we need to act. If we in the west are concerned about our infrastructure, let's fix it as we exercise hospitality for those who have no homes. If we are concerned about our security, let us also be concerned about the security of those whose lives have already been fragmented.
No one should have to die as a result of terror attacks or government killings anywhere in the world, regardless of whether it is in Syria, North Korea, or New York. As this infograph powerfully shows, too many have already died in the Syrian conflict. We must mourn the loss of Syrian civilians as much as we would mourn the loss of civilians in our own countries.
I'm not saying we can stop the war, or that we should put boots on the ground. I have no utopian vision of the future, in which human governments put an end to global violence (although I do pray for that). But let's stop thinking of ourselves, start thinking of others, and take a risk.
Put yourselves in a refugee's shoes. If your family was on the run, what would you want the world to do? Would you be understanding if the border patrol told you, "Sorry, you can't enter. We're concerned that some from your country might be terrorists"? Once you entered a host country, would you be content to feed off the welfare system? Or would you work day and night to make a new life for your family, not stopping until you you could stand on your own two feet again?
I'm not a politician, I'm not an economist. This is not about any liberal agenda, nor is it a product of my naïveté. I know how hard the next weeks, months and years will be, and I can't offer a plan for saving the world. But I am human. And human nature tells me that compassion breeds compassion, and mercy heals hatred.
All the world and the mess that we’re making
Can’t give up and hope God will intercede
Come on back, imagine that we could get it together
Stand up for what we need to be
‘Cause crying won’t save or feed a hungry child
Can’t lay down and wait for a miracle to change things
So lift up your eyes, lift up your heart
Singing, mercy will we overcome this
Oh, one by one, could we turn it around
Maybe carry on just a little bit longer
And I’ll try to give you what you need
Me and you, and you, and you just wanna be free
But you see, all the world is just as we’ve made it
And until we got a new world I’ve got to say
That love is not a whisper or a weakness
No, love is strong, so we got to get together
Yeah, gotta get, gotta get, gotta get
‘Til there is no reason to fight