Lady Liberty

Back on November 2, 1883, poet Jewish American Author, Emma Lazarus, was commissioned to write a poem to help raise funds for the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. She wrote a poem entitled “The New Colossus” (in reference to the famous Colossus of Rhodes, 280 BCE). She decided to write a sonnet commemorating the plight of immigrants.

The statue (about which she wrote) was proclaimed to be the "eighth wonder of the world." Set atop its pedestal in 1886, it was the tallest structure in New York City—and the tallest statue in the world. A beacon of welcome and hope in the gateway of New York Harbor. Here is her poem:

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

The “Mother of Exiles” (whom we call “Statue of Liberty” or “Lady Liberty”) declares a bold message to the whole world: "Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!" America, the nation we call home, as it turns out, is said to be the “Golden Door” (a gateway to opportunity and new life). To be fair and accurate, not everyone came through the “golden Door” in America. Our history is marred with many forms of injustice to original indigenous peoples, Africans, Chinese, Japanese and even Europeans like the Irish and Italians. And yet here we stand, 247 years later in 2023, alive in the experiment of democracy.

The nobility and beauty of this poem, and the chartering language of our declaration of independence and constitution, continue to inspire the hope and aspiration of a better and “more perfect union.” Think about it: we have declared our nation to be a sanctuary for “The tired, poor, wretched refuse, homeless, and tempest-tost.” Not exactly everyone’s favorite group of people. But come to think of it, Jesus once spoke about such people in need:

“Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” Matthew 25:45

Time to roll out the red carpet again (and again) for the rest of our lives!

Happy Freedom in Jesus! Pastor David 5020202020Recent