# data[].attributes.body
Hospitality is central to our faith and discipleship because the God of the Universe chose to welcome us in Christ. We see accounts in the old testament of radical hospitality being offered to ordinary people. prophets and even angels! In my context as a chaplain, I see ministry of welcome of welcome as a way of inviting people into the experience of God's unconditional love for them. It is about being generous with my presence and also other practical things like food and drink. To welcome another human being is to welcome Jesus Christ. I preached a sermon last Sunday on Matthew 10:40-42 and it was fascinating to read about Jesus speaking about the value of offering a cup of cold water to some and the reward that that comes with it. For me, part of what I need to do in my formation journey is to to keep reflection on how much I am growing in this area of hospitality. I have been given much and so much is required of me and that in itself is a blessing.

# data[].attributes.body
Cherry P.190 described a meal he shared with a friend of Muslim faith and suggests this can challenge in a positive way our own doctrine. What is key when we meet in multi faith is the engagement, discussions of faith, listening, when to speak, when to challenge and when to receive challenge, when to serve and when to be served.  Hospitality is best when it is shared and sometimes people like to prepare a meal/supper to serve which gives them a feeling of grace and therefore acceptance should be reciprocal for their love and efforts.  We had a lady who started coming to our church of European background, her speaking English was good but written translation was more difficult and understanding our humour gave more laughter explaining in interactions. We welcomed the lady and she grew in the church picking up English with determination to read some parts of scripture in English. She wanted to feel she could do something to show her gratitude for her welcome and cooked a meal for a small group.  Because this had meant a lot to her it was accepting and allowing to be served which deepened the trusting relationship.  We did not know what to expect with the meal as it was going to be from her traditional culture. And what was special was seeing the joy it gave, and conversation helped learning more about each other.  In scripture John 21:12-13 “come and eat breakfast”, come and see and further in John “Feed My Lambs” and “Tend My Sheep”. Hospitality in discipleship is not just the food it’s the gathering, following, talking.

Kindness is a part of discipleship but is kindness alone enough? What is its meaning, just been kind, doing something nice, a gesture or is it encompassing love, fruit of the spirit, own beliefs and values in a way of being, within. Like hospitality it can start at home sitting for a family meal, setting example.  Christine Pohl talks about Christian tradition of hospitality and recovering this.  She describes a “deep human longing to belong, willingness, being valued” and God’s grace and reflecting Gods graciousness”.

Other examples of hospitality were visiting a green space in London, an area of derivation, poverty and mental health, a project was supported to grow food as a resource for community to share meals.  Meals were made from what could be grown and volunteers would make meals for people to give access to food and social space.  It showed resourcefulness of people and not judging, all welcome to receive or to contribute in any way.

At Queens we leave our phones and bags when we go in for lunch to encourage conversation at tables.  Tables large enough to encourage groups to have time together and these memories will hold in our hearts from the time we have had and conversations, the ups and downs. We also shared an evening meal in the early days of getting to know each other, we arranged a bring and share and were fortunate to have a retreat room.  It was a dark winters evening, candles lit and a coal fire for warmth. It was very special and we talked about our faith journeys.  Something I will never forget so what we do when we share as Christians leaves a lasting effect on us.

Whilst hospitality is all around us and an important part of life, pubs, high streets, theme parks and should be encouraged. Christian hospitality is deeper biblically and theologically. More significant at the heart is gathering, strengthening faith and blessing.

I could give lots of examples of shared humble Christmas dinners, lent lunches, sharing across benefice. Hospitality is part of discipleship; it can open the church up to community.  Church can know a lot of what’s going on in community, but community may not know what’s going on in church. Familiarity needs to go wider, or it does not grow. Shifting focus from doing to being, scripture calls us on that journey, its beyond welcoming.

# data[].attributes.body
Cherry P.190 described a meal he shared with a friend of Muslim faith and suggests this can challenge in a positive way our own doctrine. What is key when we meet in multi faith is the engagement, discussions of faith, listening, when to speak, when to challenge and when to receive challenge when to serve and when to be served.  Hospitality is best when it is shared and sometimes people like to prepare a meal/supper to serve which gives them a feeling of grace and therefore acceptance should be reciprocal for their love and efforts.  We had a lady who started coming to our church of European background, her speaking English was good but written translation was more difficult and understanding our humour gave more laughter explaining in interactions. We welcomed the lady and she grew in the church picking up English with determination to read some parts of scripture in English. She waned to feel she could do something to show her gratitude for her welcome and cooked a meal for a small group.  Because this had meant a lot to her it was accepting and allowing to be served which deepened the trusting relationship.  We did not know what to expect with the meal as it was going to be from her traditional culture. And what was special was seeing the joy it gave, and conversation helped learning more about each other.  In scripture John 21:12-13 “come and eat breakfast”, come and see and further in John “Feed My Lambs” and “Tend My Sheep”. Hospitality in discipleship is not just the food it’s the gathering, following, talking.

Kindness is a part of discipleship but is kindness alone enough? What is its meaning, just been kind, doing something nice, a gesture or is it encompassing love, fruit of the spirit, own beliefs and values in a way of being, within. Like hospitality it can start at home sitting for a family meal, setting example.  Christine Pohl talks about Christian tradition of hospitality and recovering this.  She describes a “deep human longing to belong, willingness, being valued” and God’s grace and reflecting Gods graciousness”.

Other examples of hospitality were visiting a green space in London, an area of derivation, poverty and mental health, a project was supported to grow food as a resource for community to share meals.  Meals were made from what could be grown and volunteers would make meals for people to give access to food and social space.  It showed resourcefulness of people and not judging, all welcome to receive or to contribute in any way.

At Queens we leave our phones and bags when we go in for lunch to encourage conversation at tables.  Tables large enough to encourage groups to have time together and these memories will hold in our hearts from the time we have had and conversations, the ups and downs. We also shared an evening meal in the early days of getting to know each other, we arranged a bring and share and were fortunate to have a retreat room.  It was a dark winters evening, candles lit and a coal fire for warmth. It was very special and we talked about our faith journeys.  Something I will never forget so what we do when we share as Christians leaves a lasting effect on us.

Whilst hospitality is all around us and an important part of life, pubs, high streets, theme parks and should be encouraged. Christian hospitality is deeper biblically and theologically. More significant at the heart is gathering, strengthening faith and blessing.

I could give lots of examples of shared humble Christmas dinners, lent lunches, sharing across benefice. Hospitality is part of discipleship; it can open the church up to community.  Church can know a lot of what’s going on in community, but community may not know what’s going on in church. Familiarity needs to go wider, or it does not grow. Shifting focus from doing to being, scripture calls us on that journey, its beyond welcoming.

# data[].attributes.headline
Discipleship and Hospitality by Angela Bernard

# data[].attributes.subject
Discipleship and Hospitality by Angela Bernard

# data[].attributes.body
From A short history of Christian hospitality, I have learned that Hospitality, once a central Christian moral practice, gradually declined in the Western Church, especially by the eighteenth century.

Although care for strangers continued, it was no longer described or understood as hospitality, and the term became associated mainly with entertaining friends or commercial services like inns and hotels.

Hospitality, Service, Proclamation encourages reflection on how Christians should relate to people of other faiths. It asks readers to consider the attitudes, challenges, and examples found when God’s people interact with those of different beliefs. The story of Book of Ruth challenges Christians to rethink how they view people inside and outside their faith community. I have learned that faithfulness to God can sometimes be found in unexpected people, while those who should know better may fail to live according to God’s commands, that Christian discipleship is about engaging positively with others rather than judging. In my current parish, our sister church includes many worshippers attending who are from outside the UK. During the Service we use an online translation service, as English is not their first language, and the Church provides free meals after Sunday services for anyone, regardless of religious belief or church attendance. Christians are called by Jesus to love all people, including those of different faiths.

As seen in the story of Ruth, the call to hospitality and discipleship challenges Christians to rethink how they view people inside and outside their faith community.

# data[].attributes.body
It is clear throughout Scripture that hospitality is not only a fundamental part of Christian discipleship but a commandment from God. However, the core reading for this week’s unit, has made it a lot clearer as to how far reaching that hospitality should extend.  It is not just about welcoming others into our homes or churches, breaking bread with them and being generous with our time although that, of course is part of it. It’s about welcoming people into our lives, receiving them into our hearts and opening our minds to embrace new ideas, cultures and traditions. It’s going out of our way to meet others wherever they are, which often involves leaving our comfort zone and always requires putting their needs before our own. It’s about modelling Jesus’ love and grace to everyone we encounter by creating spaces for God’s grace to run freely through us.

Christian hospitality is often uncomfortable, sometimes painful and always requires sacrifice.  Abraham, for example, rushed out to greet his guests in the hottest part of the day when he was probably still in pain from being circumcised as a sign of God's covenant (Gen 18:1-2). Sadly, though, sacrifice is one of the main barriers to hospitality, but Peter admonishes us ‘to be hospitable without complaint’ (1 Pet. 4:9) and that includes ‘inner’ grumbling because, as the writer of Proverbs says ‘“Better is a dish of vegetables where love is, than a fattened ox and hatred with it.” (Prov. 15:17).

Hospitality is about giving the best of ourselves willingly and freely and from a place of pure love just as Jesus did throughout His life and on the cross.

Abraham gave his guests the best of himself and everything he possessed with a good heart and, as a result, the guests (God incarnate) became the hosts by giving Abraham the amazing news that he and Sarah would have a son (Gen 18: 10). In fact, I believe that God blesses all those who offer generous hospitality, Christian or otherwise, and uses it as an opportunity for transformation. When Paul and his companions were shipwrecked on the island of Malta, the islanders welcomed them openly and the chief official, Publius, invited them into his home and showed them generous hospitality for three days. The hospitality from the islanders enabled Paul to become their host through his acts of healing and the opportunities that were created to share the Good News (Acts 28: 1-10).

My link church is one of the most hospitable places I know. Hardly a day goes past when there isn’t a coffee morning, a fellowship lunch, a drop-in centre or some other welcoming event. This offers those who attend a safe space and enables them to join in with God’s work without, necessarily, joining in with a scheduled service. However, there are so many people who are unable to get to these events because they work, are housebound or for many other reasons, so they are excluded.  I envisage the next stage on our journey, therefore, will be to extend our hospitality further afield

# data[].attributes.headline
Gary Williams - #5 Discipleship & Hospitality 

# data[].attributes.subject
Gary Williams - #5 Discipleship & Hospitality 

# data[].attributes.body
What I have learned about the meaning and place of hospitality as a mark of Christian discipleship is first and foremost anchored not primarily in the historic practices that developed out of the post Apostolic Church, although this is interesting and instructive, but in the Scriptures, both the Old and New Testament.

First and foremost it must be noted that for the Christian disciple, hospitality is a mandated and tangible outworking of the Gospel.

In the Old Testament, hospitality is rooted in the character of God and the history of Israel as a "sojourning" people.

Abraham is the primary example of OT hospitality. In Genesis 18, he welcomes three strangers, offering them water, rest, and a "sumptuous feast". This teaches that hospitality transforms the stranger into a guest, often resulting in an encounter with God for both.

Later in their history God commanded Israel to love the "alien" or resident stranger as themselves, explicitly grounding this in their own history: "for you were aliens in the land of Egypt" (Leviticus 19:33-34).

Isaiah 58:6-7 even defines true fasting not as ritual but as "sharing your bread with the hungry" and "bringing the homeless poor into your house".

All this rests in the recognition of the Image of God in every person and that because of this each one is worthy of respect and hospitality.

In the New Testament Jesus practiced what could be described as radical hospitality by eating with tax collectors and outcasts and in so doing breaking the strict social and religious barriers of His time.

In the New Testament Church hospitality was a non-negotiable requirement for leaders (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8).

The NT letters also frequently command all believers to "seek to show hospitality" (Romans 12:13) and to do so "without grumbling" (1 Peter 4:9).

What connections could I imagine in my own context as a result?

For me as a conservative evangelical Christian disciple, hospitality has two main contextual benefits:

It can be used for missional / evangelistic purposes in that it provides a prepared ground for the sowing of the Gospel. By opening our homes and lives, we create a space where God’s love can be seen and shared with the outsider.

Also, practicing hospitality can have a sanctifying effect making us more Christ-like in that it takes us out of the self-centeredness of our own lives.

# data[].attributes.body
1. Watch the video above for a Guide to using Padlet.

2. Post your response to the discussion topic by clicking the plus button below. You can add links, files, record yourself (video and audio), change the colour of your post etc. Do what you want to express yourself!!