Eviction (part 2 of 6): If 60 is the new 40, and orange is the new black, who is the new Jeremiah?

by Diana Lipton

Last week, following years of dedicated work by the Israel Land Fund, a three-generation Palestinian family was evicted from its East Jerusalem home of more than 50 years. Other evictions should follow soon; several families in the neighborhood have already been served with documents.  

You shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt (Exodus 22:21)

The basis of our obligations towards strangers – which in the Bible means ‘others’ who live among us with limited rights and obligations – lies in our own former status as strangers. This has immense moral and ethical significance, but I want focus on its significance as a reading strategy.

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