Mrs. Grace in the Land of Immigration

Today, I was deeply moved by the tears of “Mrs. Grace” as she wept in my office. Her story is not unique, but it is the most recent among many tales of displacement from Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries. Though many knew her story long before me, it was by Divine Will that I came to witness it firsthand.

Her tears are the tears of thousands—those who left their homelands because of hardship, whether from Egypt, Iraq, Syria, or elsewhere, in search of a better life in the United States. In our “St. Abraam Ministry,” and undoubtedly in many other churches, we see the continuing struggle of these immigrants. They flee oppression in their countries only to face a different kind of hardship in the so-called land of opportunity.

To help you understand, let me share part of Mrs. Grace’s story as a reflection of many like her. She is a woman in her sixties, married with four children who remain in Egypt. She alone received a visa to come to America, hoping to work and send support back to her family.

But she was unaware that she could not legally work until being granted religious asylum—a process that takes at least six months, if approved. She also did not anticipate the cost of legal fees and rent. Even if granted work authorization, her age severely limits her opportunities.

She arrived in the U.S. with a letter of recommendation from her priest in Egypt, directed to a priest here. However, he did not welcome her personally, but sent her from the airport to stay with a parish family. After a month, she was abandoned—left on the street with her belongings, in a state of distress. She had no money and could not speak a word of English. Her tears were her only language in this foreign land.

A Good Samaritan—this time, an American woman—found her and had compassion. She managed to contact our church, and by God’s grace, we received Mrs. Grace along with her heavy burdens. From that point forward, the “St. Abraam Ministry” stepped in to help her.

I do not intend to recount every story we witness in this ministry, but I must mention that just the night before, we wept with a mother of three who had no rent money. That same day, we intervened in a domestic dispute between a young couple crushed by the weight of uncertainty and despair. These are only glimpses of the many lives burdened by suffering in the land of dreams.

With the prophet Jeremiah, I cry,

“For the hurt of the daughter of my people, I am hurt. I am mourning; astonishment has taken hold of me.

Is there no balm in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why then is there no recovery for the health of the daughter of my people?”

(Jeremiah 8:21–22)

The balm is healing, and Gilead is the Church. The physician is each one of us who, like the Good Samaritan, chooses to stretch out a healing hand to the displaced. It is time for both collective and personal action—for the sake of Mrs. Grace and for all those like her.

Fr. Abraam Sleman

St. Abraam Ministry

frsleman@copticchurch.net

#ImmigrationStories, #RefugeeSupport, #StAbraamMinistry, #FaithInAction, #TearsOfGrace, #MiddleEastImmigrants, #ChurchAsGilead, #GoodSamaritan, #ChristianCompassion, #ServeTheDisplaced, #HopeInHardship, #HealingInChrist, #FrAbraamSleman, #CopticChurch, #MinistryOfMercy