A faith that welcomes the stranger and cares for migrants

"When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God."              

Leviticus 19:33-34 (NIV)

Hospitality is a central tenet of the Judeo-Christian faith. In Old Testament stories, God offers protection to wanderers through God’s own people, who open their doors to share compassion, food, drink and shelter.

Jesus was well aware of and practiced in these stories of his faith, and he interpreted them in new ways, giving his disciples and" followers further guidance about whom they should count as their neighbor, like the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37), and what they should do to welcome the strangers they meet (Matthew 25:35-46).

In 1940, the Methodist Committee for Overseas Relief (MCOR) was founded to mobilize Methodists to care for the growing number of refugees and displaced populations in Asia during World War II (MCOR would become the United Methodist Committee on Relief, or UMCOR, in 1968). After the war, the agency joined with other faith communities and global partners to provide humanitarian aid for Europe’s displaced and suffering war survivors.

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