"Hospitality: An Essential Component of Spirituality"
Fr. George Wertin
Sunday, July 13th, 2003

“How shall we live?” asked Mechtild of Magdeburg, the 13th century mystic and writer. “How shall we live?” Her reply: “Welcoming to all.” It sounds so simple – almost banal. But to live hospitably is a genuine spiritual challenge – as we have discovered.

Hospitality is an essential component of spirituality. It belongs up there with compassion, justice and love. And it is an integral part of the teaching – and especially the life – of Jesus. It is almost clichéd to say that Jesus consorted with women (prostitutes, i.e. any woman that didn’t know and keep her subservient place), tax collectors, sinners and others who were considered impure.

When we think of hospitality we commonly think of etiquette and entertaining guests. I think of Miss Manners – and even remember Emily Post! Real hospitality isn’t about impressing guests but making guests feel accepted – at home!

Our motto at SJA is “We welcome you wherever you are on your journey.” It is a powerful and challenging statement. It is easy to say, but difficult to live. Yes, it is perhaps an unrealistic vision to embrace everyone equally. But we are not called to perfection but to growth – to widening the circle of acceptance.

Hospitality is a form of grace. By that I mean that we are all recipients of God’s hospitality as we live in this gracious universe. And hospitality implies that we share what we have received…

What is the opposite of hospitality? It is not rejection, just as hate is not the opposite of love. No, the opposite of hospitality is conditional acceptance: “I will accept you if…” “I will accept you if you change and conform to my standards.” That is why hospitality is such a threat to those in power. Power is more comfortable with people conforming to established boundaries. Power is threatened by those who would break down the barriers that divide.

John Dominic Crossan, the Biblical scholar, emphasizes the radical way that Jesus broke down barriers – not just in his teaching but in his living. Who is welcome? Everyone! Women, Samaritans, the diseased, the poor and destitute. Crossan speaks about the radical equalitarian stance of Jesus. That manifested itself in two ways: ‘open commensality,’ which is just a technical way of saying that he ate with those he wasn’t supposed to. (Sociologists tell us that if you want to understand a society, examine its patterns of eating.) In Jesus’ case it tells us he broke social taboos offending the priests and authorities. Secondly, he reached out to bring healing to those who were diseased and outcasts. He touched them.

Anthony DeMello understood so well when he said the three hardest things in the world are not physical feats or intellectual achievements. No, the three hardest things in the world are:

1. to admit you were wrong
2. to return love for hate
3. to include the excluded – that’s hospitality at its best!

Hospitality opens doors and even attitudes. It liberates us to experience wonder. In the Letter to the Hebrew (13:2) it is written: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware.” But hospitality is needed more than just with strangers. It is needed with those we see every day and even within families. After all, we can be cruelest to those with whom we share our homes.

What are the characteristics of hospitality? I can name several: respect, trust, acceptance, inclusivity, openness, generosity. Yes, hospitality opens doors and hearts.

To conclude, I simply come back to Mechtild of Magdeburg: “How shall we live? Welcoming to all.”