Raymond Barrett, LAPC, M.Div.
One man is found ill on the side of the road and another practices hospitality. For me, this sums up the Gospel reading for this Sunday, July, 11, 2010, Luke 10: 25-37. Today, we would take the man on the side of a road to a hospital, which is derived from the Latin word hospitale (guest-house, inn) from hospes (stranger, guest) and from the Greek estia (home, house, family, fireplace; εστία). Estia comes the verb estiao (to receive/welcome somebody in my house; to prepare a meal for somebody, to offer hospitality; εστιάω). The question for us is, “How do we practice hospitality?”
While at Mount Savior Monastery, in Rochester, NY, I read a short paper written by Henri Nouwen titled Hospitality. Even though I read Nouwen’s paper fifteen years ago, his thoughts on Christian hospitality has become the foundation of my understanding of Christ’s message, the purpose of life, the key to happiness and to relationships, and of my work as a counselor and life-coach.
Hospitality was Nouwen’s reflection on how he experienced the monks at Mount Savior Monastery. The monks’ daily life is designed to develop an interior openness and availability to the moment, the environment, the other, the self and the Holy Spirit. Let’s take a brief look at each of these.
The moment is where the grace and voice of God is available. We experience it only when we let go of the past and future. It is full of beauty and awe. One is not bored in the moment, but with wherever else they are. When we are in the moment we are grounded in reality versus a distorted perception of the events and environment around us.
Truly connecting with the environment is accompanied with the wisdom that we are deeply connected to all creation. God created everything, the air around us, every sound, every item, every color…, out of love. In some way, small or large, all items are interacting and connected, whether it is heat transfer or the slightest vibrations. That which connects all creation is being grounded in the Creator, who is Love. Nothing is independent, and God calls us to live in our interdependence with compassion.
Often in relationships we have trouble offering hospitality to each other thinking that we may lose ourselves or not get our way. Hospitality is deeply connected with humility, which first acknowledges the self and then is able to set it aside in order to be present to the other. This teaches us not to take things too personally, including the other person’s present perception and our own. We are able to hold things lightly in order to hear from the Holy what truly needs to be understood and attended to.
Offering hospitality to ourselves is an experience of openness, void of expectations and demands, acceptance, and love. Many of us get caught up in our emotions and get trapped into negative moods or ruminating thought patterns because we have trouble practicing hospitality. Hospitality allows us to attend to whatever needs attending to for the time that it takes. The opposite of this is to bottle up difficult emotions and thoughts which drains us of our energy and makes us sick.
Often we have difficulty being with God because of preconceived notions of what/who God is. The practice of hospitality makes space for God to be God’s self, what/whoever that may be. This takes faith that God will be present in the way that we and all of creation need. Practicing hospitality is often a healing experience for those that have been harmed by poor religion. I have found that in the moments when I am able to be open to God, God blesses me with more love than I could have ever imagined.
The keys to developing hospitality are prayer and good works. Our church is full of opportunities for to extend hospitality. I invite you to inquire on the ways you can develop this way of being in your home, community, play, prayer and work.
Raymond Barrett, LAPC, M.Div.
www.lifescanvas.com
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