My seminary friend, Tim, was once the religion page editor for the Toledo Blade newspaper. As such, he came into contact with just about every faith community in the Toledo area. Once, he shared one of his experiences with us.
“Here’s the best ‘welcome’ message in town,” he said:
We extend a special welcome to those who are single, married, divorced, gay, filthy rich, dirt poor, y no habla ingles. We extend a special welcome to those who are crying newborns, skinny as a rail, or could afford to lose a few pounds. We welcome you if you sing like Pavarotti or can’t carry a note in a bucket. You’re welcome here if you’re just browsing, just woke up, or just got out of jail. We don’t care if you’re more Catholic than the Pope, or haven’t been in church since little Joey’s baptism. We welcome our disabled worshipers who have brought their service dogs with them. We welcome Muslims, Jews, politicians, and sinners like us. We extend a special welcome to those who are over 60 but not grown up yet, and to teenagers who are growing up too fast. We welcome soccer moms, NASCAR dads, starving artists, tree-huggers, latte-sippers, vegetarians, junk-food eaters. We welcome those who are in recovery or still addicted. We welcome you if you’re having problems, or you’re down in the dumps, or you don’t like “organized religion;” we’ve been there too. If you blew all your offering money at the casino, you’re welcome here. We offer a special welcome to those who think the earth is flat, who work hard, don’t work, can’t spell, or come because grandma is in town and wanted to go to church. We welcome those who are inked, pierced, or both. We offer a special welcome to those who could use a prayer right now, had religion shoved down your throat as a kid, or got lost in traffic and wound up here by mistake. We welcome tourists, seekers, doubters, bleeding hearts . . . and you!
Talk about leaving no doubt as to how open their church’s doors are! And here, friends, is the kicker. What church do you think offers this message of welcome to all who walk through those open doors? If you guessed a Unitarian Universalist church . . . you would be wrong. The above is the welcome message of Toledo’s First Seventh-Day Adventist Church. Remarkable, no?
Each week, we open our service by telling those gathered, “Whoever you are, wherever you are on your life’s journey, you are welcome here.” I wonder, though, how many people hearing this message for the first time think to themselves, Even me? Just as I am? Maybe the laundry list of just who’s included in the “whoever, wherever” might help to answer those questions and allay those fears.
Then again, it might make the greeting message longer than the sermon.
In truth, it’s what happens after that initial welcome that truly matters. Beyond that welcome message, the Adventists have a pretty strict view of sin and salvation that might very well leave some first-timers feeling cold, oppressed, even wounded. The open door is wonderful, but not if one is left to wonder whether or not there’s a seat at the table after they enter.
The same is true for us. The “whoever, wherever” message is welcoming enough, the laundry list implicit. The answer to those questions — Even me? Just as I am? — come in those ever-important moments that follow the welcome, inside the open door. How do we make room in the sanctuary? At the table? How do we lay aside our own needs and expectations about who the person at the door should be so that we might accept them as they are?
True welcome is a continual practice. We must open our hearts as well as our doors for our invitation to be more than just words.
Speaking of welcome, our Thanksgiving service this year will focus on the ways we show care, attention, and hospitality with food. We’ll be trying something a little different with a potluck worship on November 24 titled, “Sacred Tables,” where we’ll share dishes we serve to visitors, extended family, and even strangers, with stories about how food and hospitality strengthen connections. Watch your email and our Facebook page for more details.
Rev. John Cullinan