Hospitality and Evangelization

The theme of hospitality continues in the Gospel for today. Hospitality was listed as an essential quality for bishops in the New Testament. “The bishop must have an impeccable character ... he must be temperate, discreet and courteous, hospitable and a good teacher.” (1 Timothy 3:2 and Titus 1:8) Why? Because hospitality, or welcoming, is not merely being warm and friendly. It is a fundamental attribute of the Christian community.
 
Welcoming defines our identity as valued members of God’s people. God has called all of us in Christ and gathered us into the body of His Son. Each member has equal dignity before God and others. “…the ministry of hospitality cannot be delegated to ushers or greeters... The call to welcome comes with baptism and extends to the entire community.”
 
Christian hospitality goes back to the practice of philoxenia, a Greek word that means to make the stranger a friend. In a world which depended on a social contract of hospitality to protect the wayfarer, the practice of welcoming the stranger was more a matter of self-protection than generosity. Everyone knew that they would need hospitality sooner or later as they traveled. It was a matter of doing unto others what you hoped would be done unto you.
 
Jesus affirms the value of hospitality and welcome, so central to Semitic culture, and gives it greater significance. In his encounter with the woman at the home of Simon the Pharisee, Jesus gives a lesson in hospitality. (Luke 7:36) Throughout the Gospels, Jesus’ example in welcoming the stranger helps open us to the word’s deepest meaning. In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus tells his disciples: “Who welcomes you welcomes me.” (Matthew 10:40) We are also told, in the last judgment scene, that whenever we give food to the hungry, visit the sick or imprisoned, we do it to Christ. (Matthew 25)
To welcome the stranger is to welcome Christ. Every person is Christ. The New Testament Letter of James highlights the practical implications of the virtue of hospitality for Christians. The author excoriates the community for discriminating between rich and poor at synagogue. (James 2) When we gather as the Body of Christ, we are to act like the Body of Christ.
 
Welcoming, then, is not a superficial affair. It touches the heart of who we are as a Christian community. For this reason the ministry of hospitality cannot be delegated to ushers or greeters, nor is it limited to bishops. The call to welcome comes with baptism and extends to the entire community. A community that communicates acceptance to every person, regardless of social status or cultural background, by the way it welcomes, has gone a long way toward becoming an evangelizing community.