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In light of
the topic presented in today’s first reading and gospel selection,
here’s two Bible Trivia Pursuit questions. The first question is pretty
straight-forward and easy; the second is less straight-forward and
somewhat more difficult. See if you can guess the correct answers.
The first, easy
question:
Q1:
What word never appears in the Jewish scriptures?
A1:
(scroll to bottom of page for answer)
Now for the second, tougher question:
Q2:
Why doesn’t the word “hospitality” appear in the Jewish scriptures?
A2:
(scroll to
bottom of page for answer)
Even though
there’s no Hebrew word for hospitality, the word is certainly implied in
this morning’s scripture readings.
Take the first
reading from the Book of Genesis, for example.
Just because the
Hebrew language system doesn’t have any word for hospitality, this
doesn’t mean hospitality wasn’t expected of the ancient Israelites.
Quite the opposite! The story of Abraham equates the word is
“hospitality” with warmly and generously welcoming into our homes
unknown travelers—utter and complete strangers—who are journeying
toward but have not yet arrived at their final destinations.
In those really
“olden times,” an era when there were no Holiday Inns or Embassy Suites
to check into along the way to a final destination, travelers faced many
potential threats and dangers along the way. Last week, for example, we
learned how notorious gangs of thieves would hide out along the roadside
for the purpose of ambushing the unwary. As a traveler would happen by
the hideout, thieves would spring from their hiding place, beat the
traveler bloody, and rob him of his possessions. The thieves would then
travel to the city where they’d spend the booty, leaving the traveler
behind to die. The only hope a bloodied traveler had was that a “Good
Samaritan” would come along and extend hospitality to the traveler.
This week, we
learn that three lucky travelers weren’t hijacked along the way by a
gang of thieves. No, they made it to day’s end, finding themselves in a
dusty, desert village somewhere along the way toward their final
destination. But, upon arriving at this particular village, a different
challenge awaited them. That is, the three travelers had to rely upon a
goodhearted and generous local to provide for the travelers’ food and
lodging as well as for their general welfare.
In the ancient
world, travelers—like these three men who happened upon Abraham in
today’s first reading—would stop at the city’s gate or the village’s
well where they would wait for a goodhearted and generous local to
happen along who would invite the weary, tired, and dirty travelers to
the local’s home. This offer of hospitality was lavishly generous
because, upon extending an invitation to travelers enter one’s home, the
host bore responsibility not only for providing food and lodging but
also for the guest’s general welfare…just as if they were members of
Abraham’s immediate family!
We live in a very
different world, don’t we?
When
we travel along the highway to our destinations, not only are there
Holiday Inns and Embassy Suites where we pay for our food and lodging,
but we also would never think of relying upon locals to provide for our
general welfare. When we’re on the road, we know it would be foolish to
expect complete strangers—perhaps even relatives—to take care of our
needs. Just think about how we’d be received were we to show up
unannounced at a second or third cousin’s home and to announce, “I think
we’ll be spending a couple of days here before we proceed to our final
destination.” Or, to ask: “So, what are you serving for dinner tonight?
And, by the way, what room will I be staying in? I need to go freshen
up and maybe take a quick nap.” For many of us, the reception we’d
receive is likely to be quite chilly. If you don’t believe me,
rent a copy of the 1983 movie Family Vacation in which Clark
Griswold ventured with his family to Wallyworld.
It’s also the
case that we live in a world where we don’t feel any obligation
whatsoever to accept personal responsibility for strangers. Quite the
opposite! We feel put upon when strangers knock on our front doors to
interview us for a poll, to push a product or a menu for a new
restaurant, or worse yet, to share their religion and religious
beliefs. Furthermore, to keep strangers at bay, we have installed
locks, double locks, and alarm systems. Forget the food and shelter.
No, we believe strangers are intruders, aliens for whom we have
absolutely no personal responsibility. If we don’t happen to live in
one of those “gated communities” that are specifically designed to keep
strangers out, perhaps we think or we may even say when visitors show up
at our front doors, “Get outta’ here. Leave me alone!” If we act that
way with visitors who are merely passing through, how would we act with
complete strangers who just drop in for a while?
But, there’s a
little more to this story about Abraham’s hospitality. In welcoming the
three travelers into his home, Abraham later found that he actually was
welcoming God…in the disguise of travelers! And, because of Abraham’s
good-hearted and generous hospitality, God blessed Abraham with the
child of his dreams.
Then, there’s
today’s gospel selection where Martha conscientiously devotes herself to
the practice of hospitality. But, judging from the dialogue, Martha
appears to have things all wrong. Despite her laudable efforts to be
hospitable, Martha started a family dispute with her sister, Mary.
Now, that was bad
enough. But, making things worse, Martha also attempted to draw
their guest into the dispute. Not only did Martha potentially embarrass
the guest, but she also possibly offended him.
Imagine how Jesus
must have felt when Martha started to argue with her sister Mary. Jesus
was probably thinking, “I came here to relax and enjoy myself, maybe
have a little meal and nice glass of wine. Now, all of a sudden, here I
am trapped in the middle of an argument between two sisters!”
In this sense,
Martha sacrificed what hospitality required—paying attention to the
guest—for what is secondary—paying attention to what she wanted the
guest to do for her. In contrast, we are told, Mary chose what
hospitality requires. Mary focused herself intently upon the guest and
left everything else to take care of itself, as it surely would.
In his Rule,
St. Benedict devoted an entire chapter to the topic of how guests are to
be received into the monastery. In Chapter 53, which he entitled “On
the Reception of Guests,” St. Benedict wrote:
Let all guests who
arrive be received as if they are Christ, for He is going to say, “I
came as a guest, and you received Me” (Matthew 25:35). And to all let
due honor be shown….
As soon as a guest
is announced, therefore, let the Superior or the brethren meet him with
all charitable service….
In the salutation of
all guests, whether arriving or departing, let all humility be shown.
Let the head be bowed or the whole body prostrated on the ground in
adoration of Christ, who indeed is received in their persons….
Let the Abbot give
the guests water for their hands; and let both Abbot and community wash
the feet of all guests. After the washing of the feet let them say this
verse: “We have received Your mercy, O God, in the midst of Your temple”
(Psalm 47:10).
In the reception of
the poor and of pilgrims the greatest care and solicitude should be
shown, because it is especially in them that Christ is received….
There’s a lesson
in all of this, one I believe we ought to consider this morning in light
of the fact that our culture teaches us to be wary of strangers.
“Hospitality”
isn’t virtuous simply because we are friendly and solicitous towards
invited guests or provide them food and shelter. No, if we wish to be
Jesus’ disciples, hospitality is heroically virtuous when we are
friendly and solicitous toward absolute strangers whom we invite into
our homes and provide with food and shelter and care for their general
welfare as well.
Neither is
hospitality virtuous because we stretch out our hands to greet warmly
and fondly people whom we know. No, if we wish to be Jesus’ disciples,
hospitality is heroically virtuous when we stretch out our hands to
greet total strangers warmly and fondly.
According
to today’s scripture, hospitality isn’t everything we do and
accomplish. No, what make hospitality heroic is the significance of our
lives in terms of how we make ourselves a source of meaning—of
nourishment, comfort, and shelter—for others, especially complete
strangers.
Think about this...
I’ve been at
many, many wake services and funerals where relatives are invited to
speak briefly about the significance of the deceased person’s life. To
this date, I have yet to hear anyone say, “So-and-so wanted to be left
alone. Yep, he always slammed the front door on anyone after yelling at
them, ‘Leave me alone’.” Nor have I heard it said, “So-and-so used
to always argue with her sister when guests were over to the house.”
No, what I’ve
heard said at almost every one of those wake services and funerals is,
“So-and-so invited me into the house when I was down and out.” Or:
“So-and-so always listened.” Or: “So-and-so always paid careful
attention others and made them feel right at home.” Or: “Whenever I
felt down and out, So-and-so lifted my spirits and made me feel like I
was a very special person.”
Even if the
Hebrew language system didn’t have a word for hospitality, the images of
hospitality conveyed in today’s scripture readings raise the issue
concerning what we truly value. We are told that it is in providing for
others’ needs—“it’s in giving that we receive”—that hospitality becomes
heroic.
But, there’s
more.
Many of us have
dreams and hope God will bring our dreams to fulfillment. Yet, today’s
scripture teaches that we must first open our homes to complete
strangers. Strangely enough (pardon the pun), all of those dreams point
in one direction and toward one place, namely, that our lives be a
source of meaning—of nourishment, of shelter, and of positive spiritual
development—for others. As Jesus’ disciples, we become this source of
meaning by being attentive to their needs.
Hospitality,
then, doesn’t start with food and shelter but with the guest. What is
essential is to pay attention to what the guest needs and receiving the
guest into one’s house as one would receive God into one’s house.
It isn’t the food
and shelter that’s important. No, the challenge scripture presents us
with today—if our hospitality is to be heroic—is to care more about what
others need and less about what we think they should be doing for us.
The answers to today’s
Bible Trivia Pursuit questions are:
A1:
“Hospitality.”
A2:
Because there is no word in the Hebrew language system for hospitality.
The origins of the word are Greek—hospes, hospitis—meaning
“guest.” It’s the root from which the English language system derives
the word, “hospital,” which actually does accurately convey the Greek
sense of hospitality. That is, to care for the needs of other people,
especially food, lodging, and their overall well-being.
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HOMILY
