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Churches as Sanctuaries

Ordinary Time (Second Section)Humanitarian Aid, Global Solidarity and Displacement Week 35 · Day 6

Scripture References

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Old Testament

Numbers 35:9-15

⁹ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
¹⁰ “Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘When you pass over the Jordan into the land of Canaan,
¹¹ then you shall appoint for yourselves cities to be cities of refuge for you, that the man slayer who kills any person unwittingly may flee there.

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¹² The cities shall be for your refuge from the avenger, that the man slayer not die until he stands before the congregation for judgement.
¹³ The cities which you shall give shall be for you six cities of refuge.
¹⁴ You shall give three cities beyond the Jordan, and you shall give three cities in the land of Canaan. They shall be cities of refuge.
¹⁵ These six cities shall be refuge for the children of Israel, for the stranger, and for the foreigner living amongst them, that everyone who kills any person unwittingly may flee there.

New Testament

Hebrews 13:1-3

¹ Let brotherly love continue.
² Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for in doing so, some have entertained angels without knowing it.
³ Remember those who are in bonds, as bound with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you are also in the body.

Thought for the Day

Numbers describes cities of refuge: places where someone in danger might flee and live. The provision is not an excuse to ignore justice; it is a way of restraining vengeance and protecting life while truth is sought. Refuge is a moral infrastructure.

Hebrews offers two short commands that can carry a long day’s work: let brotherly love continue; do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers; remember those in prison as though you were with them. The gospel turns “stranger” into neighbour. It makes kinship where the world sees only categories.

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Churches as sanctuaries do not replace courts or governments, but they can become places where fear is softened by welcome. A church building can be a room for advice, a meal, a child’s play, a list of phone numbers, a safe chair for someone who has nowhere else to sit. A church community can become a web of companionship. In such rooms we rehearse the Lord’s Table: one bread, many strangers made kin.

Lord, keep our hospitality from becoming sentimental and keep our caution from becoming cold. Teach us to welcome wisely and safely. Make our churches places where love continues: where strangers are treated as guests, and the displaced are treated as beloved neighbours before you.

Prayer Points

Respond

Make churches places of wise refuge: safe, welcoming, and accountable.
Give courage to welcome strangers without fear, and wisdom to do so safely and well.
Provide practical help for displaced people: housing, advice, friendship, and stability.

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Protect refugees from exploitation and isolation; knit them into communities of support.
Teach us to remember the imprisoned, the detained, and the forgotten as our neighbours.

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