Love him as yourself

Lately I've been following the Tea Party Jesus tumblelog that (from an obviously politically liberal point of view) puts the "words of Christians in the mouth of Christ" by inserting quotes from Christians into cartoons of Jesus as commentary on the non-Christ-like things that Christians sometimes say.  On the blog you can "[c]lick each picture to find out who really said it."  The last two have been related to immigration: link and link.

As pointed out today by Andrew Sullivan...

In the context of discussions about the morality of homosexual relationships, gay marriage, etc., Christians commonly cite passages from Leviticus like Lev. 18:22 and Lev. 20:13.  However, those aren't the only OT passages that may have some relevance to current topics of political discussion:

Leviticus 19:33-34 (NIV)

When an alien lives with you in your land, do not mistreat him. The alien living with you must be treated as one of your native-born. Love him as yourself, for you were aliens in Egypt.

See also:

• Leviticus 19:33
• Exodus 22:21
• Exodus 23:9
• Deuteronomy 24:17-18
• Leviticus 19:9-10
• Deuteronomy 24:19-22
• Deuteronomy 10:18-19
• Hebrews 13:2

I would not argue that the most prudent policies of our country on either of these complex issues are straightforward conclusions from these scriptures alone.  However, if you consider Leviticus to be relevant to one issue, you might want to consider whether it is relevant to the other.

Update 2010-04-30:
I'm not an advocate for illegal immigration and am not claiming that any of those verses excuse it. However, it seems clear that God has a special concern for the alien and the stranger. Therefore, I am an advocate for compassion and for being especially careful in avoiding collateral damage in any effort to address illegal immigration.