Not as simple as I thought

Somebody on substack mentioned the Episcopal tradition of painting the front door red to symbolize the Holy Spirit and a place of sanctuary.

The sanctuary idea was big in the Vietnam era when some Anglican and Unitarian churches were preaching peace. Especially after Nixon won the ’68 election and tainted the war with heretical Repooflican branding. Democrat war is OK, Repooflican war is not OK. As I recall, most of us recognized that sanctuary was more of a caring intention than a legal protection. Some conflated tradition with legality like the Sovereign Citizen types, and ended up the same way.

Other online places reveal a bewildering variety of opinions among church members. Some say it’s just a trademark, some say their church painted the doors red when they paid off the mortgage. Finally found a clear and witty essay by pastor Tim Schenk.

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We learned that red doors are pretty much unheard of in England so we didn’t inherit this out of the Church’s Anglican heritage. And we also learned that the practice is not peculiar to the Episcopal Church. It seems to have started in some other churches in the United States and crept across denominational lines.

Many see the red doors as symbolic of the shedding of Christ’s blood so that all who come to him through the church will be saved. And in earlier times red doors were symbols of refuge and sanctuary for all who entered. It was understood that a soldier could not pursue an enemy that had passed through the red doors of a church. So over time the red doors came to symbolize not just physical safety but spiritual refuge as well.

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The sequence is surprising. Generally religious traditions start with Rome and spread to its direct descendants Lutheran and Anglican. Then other Protestants create their brands by specifically negating the Roman tradition. This one seems to have sailed against the wind in both ways!

Sanctuary in battle is a common theme in nearly all religious traditions east and west. It rarely works. Belligerent governments don’t follow laws of any kind.