We see graphic images of families fleeing war-torn countries. For many on-lookers viewing such scenes, there is a strong desire to help. But the latest figure of a quarter billion refugees world-wide is daunting. How can an individual who desires to end the suffering make a difference? My colleague, Bill Scott, writing for the April 28, 2017 edition of SpokaneFAVS, shares some inspiring stories of refugees who found ways to live and even thrive despite their desperate status. He reports that a spiritual understanding of man was the beginning of a practical answer to their plight. Read on and be inspired. Here’s Bill:
The current refugee crisis has stirred concern and controversy all over the world. “A quarter billion people,” The Christian Science Monitor noted last year, “have either fled disasters or migrated to escape poverty.” How should our nation respond? What can we do as individuals to help – as churches, temples, cities and towns, businesses, civic organizations? Can anything be done, practically and realistically, to meet this enormous need?
These questions have prompted many people of faith – and many people of conscience who don’t embrace a religious faith – to ponder their responsibilities to fellow human beings in need.
As a Christian Scientist, I’ve wrestled with these concerns as both the humanitarian crisis and the political controversies have deepened. My church doesn’t tell its members what to think or do on these matters. We make our own decisions as individuals, based on our highest sense of what’s right, and what prayer and spiritual leading inspire us to do.
Many Christian Scientists have participated in aid efforts over the years, both as volunteers and professionals. One church friend here in Washington, for example, worked in the Middle East for some years for a non-profit organization that supported refugees and longer term economic development.
The Christian Science Monitor reports on the troubles of the world and often takes strong positions in its editorials….But the human needs are bottomless and often far beyond our ability to meet them with even the most dedicated human efforts. This isn’t cause for inaction, but it forces us to ask, What more can we do?…