Hospitality: A few reflections

“Welcome is one of the signs that a community is alive. To invite others to live with us is a sign that we aren't afraid, that we have a treasure of truth and of peace to share.” (Jean Vanier)

Hospitality is a central component to the way of life at Koinonia., and, in retrospect, was a greater aspect of Mission Year than I had realized. As we've studied and lived out hospitality, I've been reflecting on hospitality in the context of both Mission Year and Koinonia.

I believe that recognizing common humanity in one another is the essence of hospitality:

“Besides sharing food and drink with someone, which is central to almost every act of hospitality, the most important part of welcome is giving a person our full attention...It means we view individuals as human beings rather than as embodied needs or interruptions.” (Christine Pohl, “Hospitality, a practice and a way of life”)

In Mission Year, it didn't occur to us until the end of the year to encourage people to bring food to our community dinners, although they often did. Offering a place for people to contribute creates a space for relationships to develop. My favorite evenings were when our neighbors taught us how to make something. It wasn't about us serving them; it was about all of us coming together to share fellowship and food as equals. I've seen how seeking to serve others can ironically cultivate pride. If my service stems from privilege – cultural, financial, social, etc. - it is crippled. The greatest service we can do for others places us both on equal ground, which I think begins to get to the heart of humility; recognizing and responding to the image of God we see in others. Sometimes it takes humility to offer service, and sometimes it takes humility to receive service from others.

Koinonia takes hospitality seriously. The Dining Hall is appropriately located at the center of campus, and care is taken to prepare delicious, hearty meals, good for the body and soul, for anyone and everyone on campus that day. And Sunday night potlucks offer a chance for people to literally bring their own contribution to the table. These are my favorite moments because there is something deeply spiritual about coming together to have our physical needs met. Plus, at each meal we read Scripture and pray together. At Koinonia, hospitality also means giving people a place to stay, which we could not do during Mission Year. And visitors are encouraged to step into our daily rhythm of life and prayer, and to work alongside us, which is also beautiful. More often than not, visitors jump at opportunities to contribute and participate, which allows us to get to know each other on a deeper level.

Hospitality as a way of life: Faithfulness“Because hospitality is a way of life, it must be cultivated over a lifetime. We do not become good at hospitality in an instant; we learn it in small increments of daily faithfulness.” (Christine Pohl)

In retrospect, I see how much hospitality during Mission Year challenged and grew me. The size of our campus and the number of communities we were invested in meant BIG community dinners for our Mission Year team. There were times when I reached my social capacity and had to bow out for the night. It was often my favorite night of the week, but I could only handle it for so long. Hospitality doesn't have to take the form of huge community dinners and gatherings, but the image of the Kingdom was so evident during those times: people of all backgrounds, ages, and faiths coming together to share food, music, and soccer at our very own home! I treasure those memories. I deeply value that hospitality was something established in our schedule; a habit we practiced every week; not just on Saturday nights but in our daily interactions with people as well, especially kids. And now I value that hospitality is at the heart of daily life at Koinonia. I believe cultivating hospitality over a lifetime means developing an attitude of welcome toward people, whether that's in the context of a literal home or simply in everyday interactions; “creating space for someone to feel seen and heard and loved,” as Shauna Niequist puts it.

To be continued :)

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