In March of 2017 I went on my first mission’s trip to Amman, Jordan. Amman is the capital city of Jordan, which is a majority Muslim nation surrounded by Syria, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Israel and Palestine. It is a country of approximately 8 million people and currently housing about 2 million refugees.
When we landed in Amman to begin that mission trip, we were meeting refugees before we even left the airport. They are normal people (shocked?). Some came to pick us up from the airport, making jokes and helping with our luggage. They spoke English. They had an education. They had jobs. Everything that no one expects of people who bear the label of ‘refugee’.
All the refugees I met were some of the best people I had ever met. It was a mix of Jordanians’, Syrians’, Iraqis’, and Palestinians’ who were all hospitable and incredibly welcoming. Example: When a group of us went to Petra and stopped for lunch, I noticed some of them were making Nutella sandwiches (the love of Nutella is evidently universal) and I commented that I also enjoyed Nutella. Without a pause, they handed me the sandwich they had just finished making. Never mind that I had my own food and hadn’t even asked; they were going to share.
Refugees invited us into their homes and always had something for us. Their living spaces differed from beautiful apartments that would blend in perfectly in the Western world, to a single bare room with only a couple cushions. Some families cooked us delicious meals (lamb is now one of my new favorite things) and some could only offer us water in a single cup that we all shared.
But all of these people were incredibly grateful that we were there. When I asked what they wanted Americans to know about refugees (I asked the same question to every family), almost all of them said the same thing: they want to go home. For many of them, though, home no longer exists, as they come from war torn Syria where bombs fall literally every day. For others their hometown might still be standing, but it’s extremely unsafe--Christians in the Middle East are often persecuted. I met a man who was tortured and a family who had their house set on fire while they were still in it.
The truth about refugees is that these people cannot or should not “just got back where they came from” or “go fight for their country to stop the problem” (all responses I’ve seen on social media). Going back to their country means death. Many of their homelands no longer have standing armies for them to join. These people would not risk their lives on dangerous boats or walk for days without food and water if the journey was not safer than the place they were fleeing. These poor people have no choice.
Terrorism is the concern behind many in the Western world. Every country needs to keep its own safe. But we must be able to help these people, somehow. They are fleeing the same terror we are afraid of. They are good people, kind people, who work hard and are educated and speak multiple languages. Many Western nations would benefit from welcoming them.
I love these people. You would too, if you would only get to know them. I encourage you to become as active as possible in helping with the refugee crisis. Go and help in Europe or the Middle East if you can. Help the refugees and foreigners who are already here who might need a hand adjusting to life in a new place.
Educate yourself. Call out blatant racism when you hear it: i.e. “Refugees are terrorists.” Fact: there are over 65 million refugees in the world. Even with my poor math skills, it should be pretty obvious that they are not all terrorists.
Pray that governments may allow the right people in. Pray for refugees of all faiths. Pray for the perpetrators of violence, that they would stop and come to know peace.
