There are many images circling the internet that depict the humanitarian crisis at the US/Mexico border. There are two images in particular that I can’t get out of my head. One is of a toddler and an infant who’d been found alone near the Rio Grande. The toddler’s hair was braided and her clothes were clean, the infant was in his carseat. The other image is of a father crossing a river, the water up to his chest, holding his young child on his shoulders.
The streams of comments of “how could a mother abandon her children!?” or “what kind of father risks his child’s life like this?!” fail to understand that no one chooses this because it’s the best option.
They choose it because it’s the only option.
And, they are certainly not the first parents who’ve made unimaginable choices with hope that somehow, their child will live a long life.
When I see these images, I think of Moses.
Moses’ mother broke the law to save her child. She left him “abandoned” in a basket in a river. It was not the best choice- it was her only choice.
And later on, Moses led the people of Israel into a river with the hope of a miracle that would keep the people from certain death. They had no other choice.
Why is it that so many church folks can understand the story of Moses- who they have not seen- but not the story of the people at the border? Why can Moses’ mother do this unthinkable thing and be met with compassion- but the mother who left her babies is “pure evil”?
Perhaps it’s because we’ve read the story of Moses and believe the Israelites claims were valid. Perhaps it’s because no one in the Book of Exodus needs anything from us. I honestly don’t know…
But I know the people seeking asylum (protection) in this country are human beings whom God loves. And I know what that calls me to do.