Entertaining Angels Unaware: Welcoming the Immigrant Other

Washington, D.C.  - In response to reports that President Biden intends to increase the Fiscal Year 2021 Refugee Admissions Ceiling, or presidential determination, from the historic low of 15,000 to a robust 62,500 refugees CWS director of policy and advocacy Meredith Owen issued the following statement: “We welcome the proposed refugee admissions goal of 62,500 for FY 2021 as an important step toward returning the resettlement program to historic norms. It shows this administration’s serious commitment to rebuilding a robust program, and we look forward to working in partnership with them. “Hope has been restored to refugee families who have been waiting for years for safety–including refugees who were approved to travel and rejoin family in the U.S. before the program was slashed to all time lows. We can’t wait to finally welcome them home.” This follows an executive order  and announcement yesterday signaling the Biden Administration’s intent to restore and rebuild the

  Compassion. It’s what we’re all about. For 80 years , Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) has been a champion for refugees and migrants from around the globe. We compassionately serve the most vulnerable as they rebuild their lives in America.  At a time of unprecedented crisis, these newcomers need our help more than ever. Learn more about our work and how you can make a difference today. GIVE NOW!

LIRS has welcomed more than 500,000 refugees and migrants For 80 years, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service has been a champion for refugees and migrants from around the globe. Our legacy of compassionate service has made a difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of people who have found safety and hope in America’s communities.   See their website

Biden signs order to ramp up refugee admissions and plans to allocate 125,000 spots next fiscal year By Camilo Montoya-Galvez February 5, 2021 / 7:15 AM / CBS News      Excerpt Matthew Soerens, the director of church mobilization at World Relief, one of those resettlement agencies, said his group closed eight offices during the Trump administration. He said resettling 125,000 refugees during the remainder of fiscal year 2021 would likely be impossible, given the current infrastructure. "We're really eager to rebuild and excited for the opportunity," Soerens told CBS News. "But we're also doing this as quickly as we can with limited resources. It's not going to be something that's going to be rebuilt overnight." Resettlement agencies receive refugees when they arrive to the U.S. and help them with housing, finding employment, enrolling their children in schools and other matters to facilitate their integrat

Here is the video introduction for Chapter 2  Chapter Two Text: We have a war going on about perception, how we see things.   Some argue that only one media network is trustworthy, while others argue a different one is the only one.   Some argue we don’t know the truth, since everything we see has been edited or filmed in a way to convince us of one thing or another. We often say: “Seeing is believing,” but what if we can’t trust what we see? Much of what we see depends on what we are prepared to see and what we expect to see. News media makes money by gaining viewers.   Often the most extreme image is used over and over again to catch our attention and to try to convince us to do something else or at least to watch some show. The National Geographic channel had a series called the “Evolution of Evil.” At one time the commercial for this series ran just about every commercial break.   In that short commercial break, we saw Hitler, Stalin, Osama bin Laden and Kim Jong-Un.   We saw the

 For a taste of Chapter one see this link:  Chapter one Text: Chapter 1 Welcoming Strangers … or Terrorists? My name is Phil Gottschalk and I have written a book called Entertaining Angels Unaware: Welcoming the Immigrant Other. I am making a series of videos to highlight the chapters of my book. This video is about Chapter one Welcoming Strangers... or Terrorists? One summer when I was in college I worked in a print shop in Madison, WIsconsin.   Every lunch time the whole crew would gather around the radio and listen to the inimitable Paul Harvey read “The Rest of the News.” Paul Harvey had a very distinctive voice and style as he read the news.   I’m not sure what made it “the Rest of the News,” but he had a way of reading the advertisements in the same way he read the stories and without any pause between them.   He would also say, “Page 2” as he started the next page. I don’t know whether Chapter one of my book is “the Rest of the News,” but it was a chapter I didn’t want to write.