We are warned this Sunday against turning our backs on those who suffer, as in the gospel parable where the rich man suffers a tormented afterlife because in life he turned his back on the suffering of tormented Lazarus who languished at his door. Abraham lets the rich man know that “between us and you a great chasm is established to prevent anyone from crossing.”

"We will give him a family and he will be our brother."

The U.S. public has seldom approved of welcoming large numbers of refugees. A look back at U.S. public opinion from previous decades shows that Americans have consistently opposed admitting large numbers of foreigners fleeing war and oppression, regardless of official government policy.