When they flee to one of these cities, they are to stand in the entrance of the city gate and state their case before the elders of that city. Then the elders are to admit the fugitive into their city and provide a place to live among them. – Joshua 20:4

Today's Scripture Reading (February 24, 2022): Joshua 20

Gary Portnoy wrote the song as a possible theme song for a sitcom set in a Boston bar. There were several versions of the song. The longest version, which was released as a single, wasn't written until after the song was already accepted as the sitcom's theme. But before the song could be accepted as a theme song, the lyrics, written to reflect the Boston roots, had to be broadened. The original lyrics were;

Singin' the blues when the Red Sox lose,

it's a crisis in your life.

On the run 'cause all your girlfriends

wanna be your wife.

And the laundry ticket's in the wash.

The broadened lyrics became;

Makin' your way in the world today

takes everything you've got.

Takin' a break from all your worries

sure would help a lot.

Wouldn't you like to get away?

But, maybe, it was the chorus that made us feel so good.

            Sometimes you want to go

            Where everybody knows your name

            And they're always glad you came.

The song described Cheers, this Boston Bar, as a safe place for all of us. The viewers came to love the inhabitants who regularly pulled up a stool and shared their lives with the audience over the show's run. Where else in the world would an intermittently employed accountant with marriage troubles be welcomed with all of the customers at the bar calling out his name; Norm (played by George Wendt). Or a perpetually single mail carrier, who seems to know the answer to every question but still lives with his mother, be valued, respected, and heard (Cliff, played by John Ratzenberger). One of my favorite "Cliff" lines was when he explained to the bar that the original purpose for a tie was to keep food off your shirt, to which Bartender Coach Ernie Pantusso (Nicholas Colasanto) replies, "You mean their thinking about changing that?"

Whenever I think about a "safe place," one of the first places that comes to mind is this fictional Boston Bar, a place where everybody knows your name, and they are always glad you came.

I also believe that that description should reflect the Christian Church. We should be a safe place, where everybody knows your name, and they are always glad you came. Too often, it has become a place of judgment, a place where we are tested to see if we are worthy of being known. And that is only to our shame.

As Israel began its life in Canaan, they were instructed to set up "Cities of Refuge." Maybe these cities weren't places "where everybody knows your name," but they were safe places where you could go when you were in trouble. It was a place where people could explain their circumstances before the elders and then be accepted on their own merits. Perhaps most importantly, the moment when the person arrives at the "City of Refuge" was not a time for judgment; it was simply a time and place where a person in trouble could be safe. Judgment would come, but not now.

It is a lesson that we need to learn. The Church is not a place of judgment; it is a place of love and acceptance. Judgment will come, but not now. Because, at least in this world, judgment can never be given unless safety is also available. As long as people don't feel safe within our walls, judgment cannot be present.

The Church needs to fulfill its role as a "City of Refuge" for anyone who would like to come. We need to become a place "where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came."

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Joshua 21