The import of this passage is unmistakable. Our tradition demands compassion for the outcasts, for the needy, even if they are not of our own people and faith, simply because they are human beings. Perhaps the greatest insight of the Hebrew Scripture is the commandment of empathy: “When a stranger resides with you in your land, you shall not wrong him. The alien who dwells among you shall be to you as one of your citizens; you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I the Lord am your God” (Lev. 19:33).
The views expressed in this D’var Torah do not necessarily reflect the position of Leo Baeck College.