Stranger in a strange land

Found the following quote in a book by Bernard T. Adeney titled “Strange Virtues: Ethics in a Multicultural World”.

“Strangers have no inherent right to credibility or trust. These must be earned. Legitimation is a gift from the host. Unlike a citizen, who has a right to be there no matter how obnoxious or foolish he is, a stranger/guest is dependent on his host for the right to remain. Thus the guest is always subordinate to the host. This is a moral relationship that is usually enforced politically through the necessity for visas and restrictions on foreigners. Unfortunately, it has not always been so enforced. In the past those with power came and did whatever they wished. One of the worst things a guest can do is to take away the rights of a host to be the host.“ Pg. 132.

This applies not only to our situation where we are ‘guests’ in the culture we live in, but I think it has some applications for the current immigration issue facing the United States.

A good reminder to remember our place and to always seek to be good guests, especially by letting our hosts retain the role of host.