Some words on hospitality

There He was, homeless. Would a church take Him in today -- feed Him, clothe Him, offer Him a bed?  I hope I ask myself that question on the last day of my life.  I once prayed and prayed to God that He never, ever let me forget to ask that question.  -  Dorothy Day, reflecting on Matthew 25

be meek, sympathize with the suffering, bear the weak; and on this occasion of the concourse of so many strangers, and needy, and suffering people, let your hospitality and your good works abound. - Augustine

Therefore, whatever man you meet who needs your aid, you have no reason to refuse to help him.  Say, "He is a stranger"; but the Lord has given him a mark that ought to be familiar to you, by virtue of the fact that he forbids you to despise your own flesh (Isa. 58:7).  Say, "He is contemptible and worthless"; but the Lord shows him to be one to whom he has deigned to give the beauty of his image.  Say that you owe nothing for any service of his; but God, as it were, has put him in his own place in order that you may recognize towards him the many and great benefits with which God has bound you to himself.  Say that he does not deserve even your least effort for his sake; but the image of God, which recommends him to you, is worthy of your giving yourself and all your possessions. - John Calvin

How is it something that has been so important in Scripture, in the early church, and among foundational figures of the Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant churches is so rarely spoken about or put into practice today? How often do we welcome strangers into our homes, invite them to our parties, give them food and rest in our churches, visit them (strangers, remember) when they are sick or in prison? Why isn't this a constant practice in our lives, rather than a maybe-once-in-a-season-if-we-have-the-time practice? And what will have to change for this to become real in our lives?


Those quotes and those that follow come from Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition, by Christine Pohl. I highly recommend it to everyone, because I think that it is a practice that we are all called to, and if we listen to Pohl's challenge and act upon it I do not think we could help but be drawn closer to God.

When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all of the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.  And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on His right hand, "Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me....Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me." - Matthew 25:31-36, 40

God Himself is in our home, is being fed at our house, is lying down and resting - Martin Luther

[Some ask] "what does it avail to feed or clothe men's bodies, if they are just dropping into everlasting fire."...whether they will finally be lost or saved, you are expressly commanded to feed the hungry, and clothe the naked.  If you can, and do not, whatever becomes of them, you shall go away into everlasting fire. - John Wesley

Then He also said to him who invited Him.  "When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid.  But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind.  And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just." - Luke 14:12-14

I know that many wealthy and devout persons by reason of their weak stomachs carry on this work of mercy by the agency of others, and show mercy with the purse, not with the hand.  I do not blame nor do I by any means construe their lack of fortitude as lack of faith.  But while I excuse their weakness, I extol to the skies the ardent zeal that perfect courage possesses. - Jerome

The stranger who dwells among you shall be to you as one born among you, and you shall love him as yourself; for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. - Leviticus 19:34

The stranger requires much attendance, much encouragement, and with all this it is difficult for him not to feel abashed; for so delicate is his position that whilst he receives the favor, he is ashamed.  That shame we ought to remove by the most attentive service, and to show by words and actions, that we do not think we are conferring a favor, but receiving one, that we are obliging less than we are obliged. - John Chrysostom

Why do we not observe that it is their benevolence to strangers, their care for the graves of the dead and the pretended holiness of their lives that have done most to increase [Christianity]?.... For it is disgraceful that, when no Jew ever has to beg, and the impious Galileans [Christians] support not only their own poor but ours as well, all men see that our people lack aid from us.  Teach those of the Hellenic faith to contribute to public service of this sort. - Emperor Julian

Mistakes there were, there are, there will be....The biggest mistake, sometimes, is to play things very safe in this life and end up being moral failures. - Dorothy Day on Catholic Worker hospitality