Maxim

Welcome the stranger.

“But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt:”

— Hebrew Bible (Torah), Leviticus 19:34 (KJV) · source Verified
Judaism · Ancient (before 200 BCE)
Translation: King James Version (public domain)

Almost every tradition treats the guest and the traveller as someone to honour. Opening our door, and our table, reminds us that we too have been strangers somewhere.

Related expressions

“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”
— Epistle to the Hebrews, Hebrews 13:2 (KJV)
ChristianityClassical (200 BCE – 600 CE)relation: expressesVerifiedsourceTranslation: King James Version (public domain)
“anybody who believes in Allah and the Last Day should entertain his guest generously”
— The Prophet Muhammad (narrated by Abu Huraira), Sahih al-Bukhari 6018
IslamMedieval (600 – 1500)relation: expressesVerifiedsourceTranslation: Muhsin Khan translation, as given on sunnah.com
“Stranger, though a still poorer man should come here, it would not be right for me to insult him, for all strangers and beggars are from Jove.”
— Homer (Eumaeus the swineherd), Odyssey, Book XIV, tr. Samuel Butler
Watch on YouTube: TED-Ed: Reading Homer's Odyssey ↗TED-Ed introduces the Odyssey, where this welcome is given
Ancient Greek epic & dramaAncient (before 200 BCE)relation: expressesVerifiedsourceTranslation: public-domain translation (Samuel Butler)

Score

Moral Rank 71.6 · Evidence E = 16.02

E = ln(1+3.60) + √3.60 + 3·2.70 + 1.5·3 = 16.02

How this is scored