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Sanctuary
North Miami Beach, FL May 14, 2002
A.H. Schectman
THINKING ALLOWED
Essays on Issues, Ideas and Reflections on the Times. Published now and
then. Opinions pro or con are welcome.
SANCTUARY
In my last essay I looked at the issue of sanctuary for the
terrorists who had holed up in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. The
Israeli Army surrounding the Church compound had sought these terrorists and
they chose to find refuge in a Christian holy place rather than a Mosque -
there are many more of those than churches in a Palestinian town.
According to my Random House, Webster's College dictionary,
"sanctuary" is derived from the Hebrew notion that the Tabernacle holding
the tablets of the 10 commandments was a holy place, a sacred place which
provided refuge and immunity from arrest. This place was in Jerusalem and by
extension included churches everywhere. You will notice I have not quoted
any of this. There are 6 dictionary notes about a place where protection
may be found including areas where animals are safe.
My favorite place was under the bed. When I was little and got
into scrapes I would dive under the bed but soon discovered that if the
anger level and frustration, particularly my mother - a broom would be poked
at me to drive me out to face the music.
Sanctuary as a refuge is a court of last resort resorted to as a
hedge against moral outrage that would escalate to a killing urge. The
refugee goes there and hopes that the anger will cool down and a more
rational time will come so he will be heard and the punishment will be less
drastic.
The United States and its predecessor, Continental America, has
been a sanctuary for refugees from all over the world. The "refuse" and
"tempest" tossed from distant shores found sanctuary and new lives here. A
song popular in the mid 1800s was titled: "What Was Your Name in the
States?"
There are many calls to limit the numbers who want to come here.
Actually there is quite a lot of empty space in this continental country.
However, there is little space left in the desirable portions and the cities
have merged into megalopolises with problems most of us would like to avoid.
What has become sanctuary for needy people has become prison for others.
Carol's Evaluation: 5 out of 10. "Such tired news."
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