I am now the proud owner of three different coloured passports, OK two of them have expired. Thank goodness my last one expired, my photo makes me look like a corpse! When you cannot wear glasses and you are staring straight ahead terrified you might blink as the camera flashes. There was a great deal of debate in the media when we left the EU and the new blue passports came in.
Whatever the colour of your passport, it allows travel outside your native country. This and the book I am reading, (The beekeeper of Aleppo) got me to thinking about people who have to leave their country of origin, sometimes, as we have seen in recent weeks in Afghanistan, without passports or documentation and at very short notice.
Our immigration system allows asylum seekers from countries where people suffer persecution and threat of violence. But what about those areas of the world suffering famine due to failed harvests and drought, or loss of homes through earthquake or flooding? These areas are also likely to suffer warfare and persecution as more and more people are chasing fewer and fewer resources.
Climate change and it’s effects are predicted to cause the largest mass migration in history.
Those who are wandering will also be wondering, who will help us?
Are we, the privileged few ready to help the vulnerable and needed many?
Prayer: Merciful Father, when we see images on our screens of migrants in flimsy boats we see desperate people who may have spent many years as a wandering people. You made us all in your own image and when we fail to help one of these, we fail to help you. Help us and our politicians work to end inequalities rather than widening divisions. AMEN