Welcome

Each weekend, Christ the Redeemer Parish welcomes thousands of people to celebrate the Lord’s Day. People from all over and people who are very different from one another find a common word of welcome in God’s Word. The Lord invites them to eat and drink at a Table, where, as our song goes, “All are welcomed, All are welcomed in this place.”

All of us are well aware of immigration challenges and issues in our country. The media offer its views and politicians ride the waves of opinion with various proposed solutions. Names are given to the situation such as “legal,” “illegal,” or even “alien”.

Our Judeo-Christian tradition might give us alternative vocabulary in thinking and praying about the immigration question. The readings for this weekend in the liturgy leads the list with an alternate rubric for our discourse: hospitality. The question, in another way, is how do we live the two great commandments. How do we love the Lord God with all that we are, and, at the same time, love our neighbor? We might pray how does God show himself to us in our love and service to our neighbor?

Abraham, Father in the Faith
In the first Eucharistic Prayer, we mention in our praise of God: “Abraham, our father in faith.” Today we read about the same Abraham as he welcomes three guests whom he later recognizes as messengers of God or, some would say, God himself. In hospitality he has their feet bathed, they rest under his tree, and then, he feeds them in his tent. Before leaving, the guests leave a blessing: Abraham and Sarah, up to now without child, will have a son within the year.

He will be called “Isaac,” which is derived from the Hebrew root “to laugh”. The reason for the name tells a story. First of all, Sarah laughed because she thought herself too old. She and her husband disagreed about her laughter, but Abraham laughed and rejoiced at having an heir to his blessings. A year later, the child is born and his name is Isaac, for the whole

community laughed. Simple hospitality brought laughter and celebration as the community discovered the action of God among them.

Mary and Martha
Luke’s story provides a complementary experience of hospitality. At Bethany, Jesus is welcomed to the home of Lazarus, whom Jesus will later raise from the dead, and his two sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha is busy with the details of hospitality. She is preparing the food and the table. Mary, a different type of person, chooses to sit at Jesus’ feet and listen to him. After hearing Martha’s complaint about Mary’s not helping, Jesus responds that Mary, indeed, has chosen the one thing that was important. Together, Mary and Martha discover Jesus in their home.

Distracted in Hospitality
Often, when people enter our life and our homes, we are distracted with details, some important, some not. Abraham was attentive to his guests. Sarah was distracted and she laughed or mocked the thought of a blessing. Abraham receives the blessing. Martha is too busy with detail to attend to Jesus. Mary receives the blessing of welcoming Jesus.

In the judgment scenes of the gospel, it’s about attention and distraction. Those blessed are those who fed their neighbor, gave them to drink, clothed them, consoled them, visited them in prison. Others were distracted and they have a question: when did we see you hungry, thirsty, sad, and imprisoned? The answer is in the least of our brothers and sisters.

Different Question/Answer
Different questions beyond legal and illegal might provide a different view and solution. First, the question of last’s weeks gospel about the Good Samaritan is posed: “Who is my neighbor?” A second liturgical question about our life is similar: “Who are my brothers and sisters who gather at the Lord’s Table?” Follow-up questions are good to reflect on and pray about: “Where do they live and how can I love them.” How one answers the questions shapes how one discovers God with us.

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