Hospitality...like Martha Stewart?

I doubt Martha speaks Greek, but if she did she would tell you that the word hospitality is Philos (loving) + Xenos (the stranger). Today, however, the word hospitality conjures thoughts of carefully planned menus, perfectly set tables, down pillows and comforters, thirsty towels and impeccable service. Somehow the act of welcoming the stranger has been redrawn to include only the people we invite into our homes or those we pay so we can stay in their hotels.

It is true that an enticing meal and comfortable sleeping arrangements are signs of being a good host. But Christian Hospitality, as Jay Voorhees, pastor of the Antioch United Methodist Church, writes in his blog http://onlywonder.com/, is "to understand that everyone who walks through the door is Jesus Christ. ... To offer hospitality here is to celebrate when some new person is sitting in “your pew,” to ignore the mud that is being tracked in on the carpet, and to be willing to do new things so that our guests may better know the love of Christ."

What are some new things that we at St. Thomas can do so that our guests may better know the love of Christ?

For starters we can make ready our hearts for the arrival of newcomers. One simple example is of the newcomer who enters without taking a worship aid. He or she might not know that we use them rather than a missalette. Perhaps if we see someone without one, we can offer them ours and return to the Host-Greeter for a replacement. This act of kindness not only shows our willingness to meet one another where we are, but our willingness to pray together.

What else can we do?

Benedictine Hospitality

The Benedictines are known for a profound practice of hospitality which we should all strive to emulate. The simplicity of welcoming the stranger necessitates an intrinsic understanding of who the stranger truly is, and by whose grace we extend our greeting.

The Rule of St. Benedict 53:1-2, 15
Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, for he is going to say: I was a stranger and you welcomed me (Matt. 25:35). And to all let due honor be shown, especially to thouse who share our faith (Gal. 6:10) and to pilgrims. ...In the reception of the poor and pilgrims the greatest care and solicitude should be shown, because it is especially in them that Christ is received.

Learn more about the Benedictines.
The above image is a detail from a mural painted by Fra Angelico, located in the Monastery of San Marco, Florence where Fra lived between 1439 and 1445.

For Crying Out Loud

By Jack Shea

A woman, in her late forties and stylishly dressed, approached the priest as he stood outside the church after the 9:45 am Mass. “That baby screamed throughout your entire homily. Why didn’t you do something? You should have told the parents to take the child out. Didn’t that crying bother you?”

In fact, it did bother him. He lost his train of thought a couple of times, but he managed to get back on track. Preachers quickly learn to override the baby competition. This does not mean they win the battle to be heard. It just means they don’t stop, break down, and cry themselves.

But there is something profoundly disturbing about asking a crying baby to leave. Besides the embarrassment to the parents, there are deeper issues involved in this very minor moment of liturgy. Could it be that the nature of Eucharist welcomes crying babies?

There may be dozens of practical reasons why babies should be left at home, but there is one overwhelming reason why they should be present. They are one of us. Crying comes with the baby territory. (Actually, it comes with the adult territory, too; but we repair to the bathroom and do it more quietly.) People may try to quiet babies, but nobody begrudges them a good wail. When they are there, the human condition is rounded out. And their occasional or sustained outbursts remind us of a fact that liturgies often leave us in doubt about. We are alive.

Excerpted from Daybreaks, Daily Reflections for Lent and Easter, written by Jack Shea, copyright ©2008. Used with permission of Liguori Publications, Liguori, MO 63057. 1-800-325-9521. www.liguori.org

For information about this booklet of beautiful reflections, please click this link: http://www.liguori.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=10975