When states support problematic interpretations of Islam - and when leaders purposefully conflate Islamic law as being the word of God - it leads to a broader misunderstanding of what sharia is at its core.

For all talk about sharia and the fear associated with it, few people - both who identify as Muslim and do not - seem to know what it really is.

The concept of sharia has been around as long as Islam has. So how has it become such a scary word for some Americans in recent years?

Dawn MacKeen's grandfather, Stepan Miskjian, survived the Armenian genocide – a story that hinged on the hospitality of an Arab Muslim family. Today, a grandson of that Syrian family is himself seeking refuge.

Listener Mark Klar of Richmond, Ky., shares this memory of a time he felt like a stranger. Here's an excerpt of his story of encountering a Bedouin in the Sinai desert, as a 22-year-old traveler.

Scholar Linda Rabben explains how in recent years, hundreds of houses of worship have declared themselves sanctuaries for undocumented immigrants, defying the law and turning their basements into bedrooms.

For Jews, who the Torah says wandered through the desert for 40 years, the concept of "the stranger" strikes a deep chord. But Rabbi Jack Moline reminds us that whoever we are, we are all wandering in the wilderness.

Several years ago, Salah and his wife, Najah, fled Syria with their four youngest children and the clothes on their backs. Enter John and Gretchen, a retired couple working to help them settle into their new home.

As the Supreme Court gears up to tackle President Trump's travel ban, we're revisiting our award-winning show on how people of faith approach the "stranger."

A new faith movement is picking up a bit of the slack as Cuba's social welfare system comes under strain: the fast-growing Evangelical Christian tradition.