Let us not separate ourselves from our brothers in distress

This article reproduces the address delivered by Metropolitan Stephanos of Estonia at the Sixth World Congress for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, held in Rome in November 2009. Adopting both a biblical and pastoral approach, the author examines the figure of the stranger in Scripture and its significance for the contemporary Church. The central idea is that the stranger — refugee or migrant — embodies Christ himself, according to the Gospel passage on the Last Judgment, and that the welcoming or rejection of the stranger determines the eternal destiny of the believer. The theological contribution of the article lies in the Trinitarian grounding of this ethic of hospitality: created in the image of the Trinity, the human person can only find fulfillment in relationship with the other. The author thus articulates evangelical imperative and ecclesial responsibility, clearly distinguishing commitment of faith from mere philosophical or political humanism.