A good friend is by her job description in charge of helping to ensure that Bloomington, IN is a "Safe and Civil" city. The city wants to make its citizens feel they are welcomed, valued and respected. Good job, Bloomington!
The denomination I serve wants its churches to be places with "Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors". Good job, United Methodism!
Probably not many of us could readily and clearly define in total words like "safe," "civil" or "open," but like the Supreme Court Justice said some time ago when attempting to rule on what constituted pornography, " I know it when I see it." We know what makes us feel safe. We know what it means to be civil and to be treated with civility. We know when we or others are being more open than closed. We've all been places where we knew from the get-go that we were welcomed; that our presence was more than tolerated, it was valued; that folks respected us for who we are. Those are good feelings. We've felt just the opposite, too. We know when hearts, minds and doors are open to us and when they are closed to us.
We know the positives and the negatives of these words and these feelings because we have displayed them in our behavior.
Well, I am soon moving to a city that wants to be known as safe and civil. I will take advantage of that, Bloomington. And I will return the favor, as best I can, as often as I can.
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