I was first introduced to the concept of Safe Spaces a decade ago in academia. I had already announced my retirement and was within ninety days of the effective date. I must have missed a memo or something because after returning to campus following a few days of absence, I noticed several office doors in my hallway had a device or discreet emblem or token designating the office as a “Safe Space.” Mine did not. To paraphrase the Bard, the absence of this credential was glaring. It made me wonder whether my office with cookie crumbs scattered across my desk and a mysterious, persistent odor present suggesting tuna fish for the last three months somehow made my office deemed “unsafe” for students. I asked one of my colleagues who did not have this credential on his door what this meant and understood from him that I–and he–had not yet taken (yet another) class on sensitivity training. So, until then, I would not get this acknowledgment. I was flabbergasted! And the day was not going well on top of that. I had just knocked over a mailbox pulling out of my driveway driving to class, swerved to miss three students turning into the parking lot, tripped on the steps coming into the building and had not yet had my coffee. Why would a student possibly be unsafe with me?
My apologies for a humorous beginning to highlight an increasingly serious topic. . .
WHAT ARE SAFE SPACES?
The Oxford Dictionary defines Safe Space as follows:
“A place or environment in which a person or category of people can feel confident that they will not be exposed to discrimination, criticism, harassment, or any other emotional or physical harm.”
The current edition of Title IX notes that while it does not specifically mention Safe Spaces, Title IX:
“does require schools to take action to address gender-based discrimination, including sexual harassment, which effectively necessitates creating a safe environment for all students, including the ability to access support systems and report incidents, essentially contributing to the concept of safe spaces within an educational setting; recent updates to Title IX further emphasize the need to protect students based on gender identity, which can include creating designated safe spaces for transgender individuals.”
Title IX will almost certainly be edited quickly to remove these protections and then what happens to these previously protected minorities depends on the institution. However, public institutions are keenly aware that their continued funding by the federal government may be at risk if they provide special accommodations for at risk students. So, long after these signs are mandated to be removed from faculty offices, students will still need sensitive faculty members to advise them and still stay “under the radar.”
SAFE SPACES
Safe spaces, in fact, have always been important in society for millennia before the GLBTQ movement repurposed the concept earlier in this century. The altar in the Old Testament temple was a safe space for people hunted down by the authorities (such as Adonijah and Joab.) Someone who could grasp the horns of the altar could claim sanctuary. Notre Dame cathedral was similarly a safe space for Esmeralda. During World War II, Anne Frank and her family sought deliverance in a safe space in Amsterdam. Julian Assange who founded WikiLeaks took refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for seven years to evade arrest. Today, we have safe spaces for children as evidenced by yellow signs on Walmart stores, churches and fire stations among other places. These are places for young people, but sometimes he or she who offers a safe space pays a penalty as well.
Today in America, we have new populations who may very well need a safe place. They include undocumented immigrants. Certainly, there is no reason to tolerate violent gang members and their ilk. But migrants who are refugees or who simply want a better life for their children? What about them, or the Dreamers? What of trans people or women seeking abortions and perhaps those health care providers who counsel or assist them? And who is next? Gays and lesbians? Already hate crimes are rising across the country.
Now, ordinary Americans have no requirement to care for persecuted populations or those threatened with ostracism like I’ve mentioned. Hopefully, the sheer fact that they are human will rouse their compassion, but I cannot be certain. Christians, on the other hand, do have a requirement from their God to take pity and have mercy on strangers and people they might not ordinarily associate with. So, I want to start with a Bible verse that makes this case and then transition into a few historical narratives courtesy of Homer. We’ll see that the notion of a safe space is actually related to hospitality.
The verse comes from Hebrews in the New Testament. We don’t know who wrote Hebrews, but it accepted as Biblical by Christians whether Orthodox, Roman or Protestants. The verse is in chapter13, verse 2:
“Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”
The word for “hospitality” is φιλοξενίας. It is a feminine Greek noun made from φίλος (philos, meaning “friend” or “loving”) and ξένος (xenos, meaning “stranger” or “foreigner” according to Strong’s Lexicon. It only appears one other time in the New Testament (in Romans 12:13.) When I researched this word, I was disappointed to see that many commentators restricted this noun to transactions among and between fellow Christians. But there appears to be no such restriction in the grammar of 13:2 and the parable of the Good Samaritan in the Gospels should indicate that children in the Kingdom of God must make themselves available to all people, whether they share their faith or not. Even our enemies! So, preaching to a person who is undocumented or trans or seeking an abortion and who is fearful or in need and who comes to you for help is not the time to judge. God who will judge them will also judge you my brother or sister. You responsibility at the moment is to love them and to treat them as you might a divine messenger. Because they might well be according to the author of Hebrews.
HOSPITALITY IN HISTORY
The word φιλοξενίας from Hebrews 13:2 is used by Homer several times in the Iliad or the Odyssey. We can see that the importance of personal hospitality transcended political quarrels, whether people came from the same part of the world and so on. The people back then had stories about their gods testing mortals by posing as poor men
During the Trojan War, the Greek warrior Diomedes and the Lycian warrior Glaucus who fought on behalf of Troy met on the battlefield. Instead of fighting each other, they realize that their ancestors had practiced xenia (a form of φιλοξενία), forming a bond of guest-friendship. Out of respect, they exchange armor and refuse to fight against each other (Apple AI.)
ODYSSEUS
After the war when Odysseus is headed (more or less) home to Ithaca is shipwrecked on the island of the Phaeacians, he and his shipmates are welcomed by King Alcinous, and then hosted by the royal family. They provide him with food, entertainment, and a safe passage back home, exemplifying ideal φιλοξενία (Apple AI.)
TELEMACHUS, SON OF ODYSSEUS
When Telemachus, the son of Odysseus, arrives in Sparta searching for news about his father, King Menelaus and Queen Helen welcome him generously. They offer him a feast, gifts, and assistance, fulfilling their duties of φιλοξενία (Apple AI.)
BAUCIS AND PHILEMON
Then, there is the story of Baucis and Philemon (Apple AI):
“The story of The story of Baucis and Philemon is a poignant tale from Greek mythology that encapsulates themes of hospitality, love, and divine reward. Here’s an overview of the story: Baucis and Philemon are an elderly couple living in a humble cottage in Phrygia, a region of ancient Anatolia. They are known for their kindness and hospitality.
One day, Zeus, the king of the gods, and Hermes, the messenger god, disguised themselves as weary travelers. They traveled to the region to test the hospitality of the people. The gods visited many homes, but most of the inhabitants were indifferent or outright rude, refusing to offer them food or shelter. The couple’s home was the only one that welcomed them.
Baucis and Philemon, though poor, offered the travelers the best they had. They shared a modest meal, which included a cabbage and some beans, and went all out to prepare it with utmost care. Despite their limited means, they treated their guests with great respect and kindness. As they prepared their meal, the gods revealed their true identities. They expressed their gratitude for the couple’s hospitality and decided to reward them for their virtue. Zeus instructed Baucis and Philemon to leave their home and climb a nearby hill. As they did, he unleashed a great flood that destroyed the rest of the region. After the floodwaters receded, Zeus transformed Baucis and Philemon’s humble dwelling into a magnificent temple. The couple were then granted a wish: they requested that they would die together rather than suffer the pain of one losing the other. In their old age, they were transformed into two intertwined trees, an oak and a linden, standing side by side.“
A fascist or communist regime begins persecution against a targeted group by denouncing them in propaganda speeches. There may refer to the Free Press as the Enemy of the People and members of the group being persecuted as less than human. Nor is it unusual to blame the ills of the society on their presence.
Roundups and raids begin. At this point, the Leader encourages citizens to report suspected members of the persecuted group. Constitutional safeguards are pushed aside in the hunt and ordinary citizens with a religious obligation or a sense of decency start to protest and provide humanitarian assistance (including Safe Spaces) to the targeted individuals.
Over time, severe punishments are promised to anyone bona fide citizen who interferes with the mass arrests of the hunted individuals. As an example, consider this poster courtesy of the Holocaust Encyclopedia:
“The poster reminds the city’s non-Jewish inhabitants that since October 15, 1941, the punishment for any Jew who leaves their “assigned residential district” (ghetto) is death. That same punishment also applied to anyone who provides them with shelter, food, or any other type of support. It directs the population to immediately report such Jews to the nearest police station. The poster offers amnesty from punishment to anyone who has temporarily given Jews support if they report it to the police by September 9, 1942.”
IS THIS HYSTERIA OR WHAT?
Some would say things are not that bad. They might say “We knew what we were getting last November and Americans are fine with that.” Others are saying “Let Trump be Trump.” But if anyone does not see what is going on before their very eyes, then they need a reality check. I cannot predict the future, and I won’t engage in false prophecies as many do today. I do see trends in the direction our country is going and they are very disturbing, because there is a historical precedent for them.
Like Lutherans in Germany in the thirties, you may have to make a choice if our new Administration compels you to act in an unconscionable manner. God’s word about how He cares for immigrants is clear. I cannot suggest how you should respond to a hypothetical. But it is not too soon to ponder.
See also my posts on this topic below:
The Maga-Evangelical and the Dog-Eating Haitian
How I Came to Love and Illegal Immigrant
You Can’t Ignore the Border Crisis
