Welcome,

What a privilege it is for me to share this reflection on Hospitality – Hospitality to the poor and the sick. Throughout this reflection we will focus on the Passion of Jesus Christ and how from that we are given Hospitality.

When we see and reflect more deeply on Jesus’ walk to Calvary, we are automatically presented with this journey of anxiety, of humiliation, of ridicule and certainly immense suffering. What is paramount is that the people around Jesus were powerless, but we see that at the same time that they are powerless they convert that emptiness into an empathy and compassion with Jesus in such a way that they too are on this journey to Calvary.

This is significant because now we not only have the crucifixion of Jesus, but also the crucifixion of those around him – those who believed in Him – those who also knew that this was necessary to fulfill what Scripture says. If we are to say then that this journey – this conversion – grows Hospitality – we can no longer say that Hospitality is solely about doing good works.

Hospitality does involve Apostolic Mission and is important, but it is only a small part of Hospitality. What do I mean? I propose to you that Hospitality is about how we present ourselves – how we inter into the lives of our brothers and sisters. That, by itself, calls us to experience each situation and thus be accepting to the suffering, the ridicule, the unpleasantness of life.

Tradition also associates Hospitality with service. With a service that alleviates pain and discomfort, with service that does good for others. As Christian men and women we are all called to perform good works. But very few are called to Hospitality. But you might say – Scripture reminds us – “when I was thirsty, you gave me to drink; when in prison you visited me; when I was naked you clothed me…” In my opinion Matthew was very much on target. However, they are Corporal Works of Mercy not the beginning or end of Hospitality.

How does one live to present themselves in the lives of others? In order to answer that let us look at Jesus’ life before carrying the cross and being nailed to the cross for our Salvation. When we see Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane we can visualize the great pain that surrounds him – the great difficulty he had within Himself. Through his divinity he knew and accepted the will of his Father and through his humanity he struggled with the possibility that his future may be altered. He questions this in what he says to his Father. What he says is significant – “Father, if it is your will – may this cup pass from me.” This alone unites us to Jesus. Each one of us within our own personal journey struggles to make sense of the world around us – to maintain a balance within our own lives.

We at times seek others to walk with us. Jesus himself constantly sought companionship with his disciples around him. Clearly they were significant in his public ministry. Throughout his public works his disciples assisted him in ministering, teaching the people, in witnessing the mysteries surrounding him.

However, in the Garden of Gethsemane there was a significant change. Jesus went from seeking companionship to now a more intimate invitation for his disciples to experience what lay before him. Throughout that night where we see Jesus praying to his Father, we also see his disciples a short distance away – at first they accompanied him in prayer – but because of fatigue they slowly drifted to sleep. And Jesus said to them “Could you not stay awake and be with me? Have I not meant more to you than words or deeds?”

Here Jesus is not saying “could you not support me?”, what he is saying is “I want you to accompany me - after all we have been through, could you not follow me?” For us this is significant.

We are called to walk on many paths – some more than others – some more difficult than others, but nonetheless, we are not men and women supporting one another – assisting one another – while that is important what is significant for us and brings authenticity to Hospitality is the self-emptying that is only rooted in Jesus Christ. It is self-emptying that allows us to enter fully into the lives of our suffering brothers and sisters. It is at that moment that our will no longer exists, but the will of the Father.

This was the Hospitality of Jesus Christ – this was the Hospitality of St. John of God.
How do we see that relevant for today? How does the Lord call us to live hospitality in an authentic way today? First we must understand that He does not call us only to be on the front lines – while he calls us into action – he also call us to prevent suffering.

In the past our traditions of living our hospitality called us to be in our hospitals to await the sick, injured and wounded, who came for care. Now we are called to be those wounded, poor victims and through that experience we seek ways to prevent continued suffering for humanity.

This is relevant when we are caring for the aged poor or those in need. It is not good enough to simply meet the needs of those we serve – to sustain their lives. We must go beyond and seek ways to prevent suffering in the aged; to prevent poverty among those we serve; to find ways that will be beneficial for the aging population well into the future.

We see St. John of God being very passionate about this. His first followers also had this vision of caring for people well into the future. It is a total grace from God that today the work and spirit of Hospitality continues. And through our own energy in seeking authentic Hospitality in its meaning and significance in life, we bring meaning to our own lives. We strengthen the intimate relationship with Jesus Christ.

We present the God of love to those whose faith is rooted in Him. But we also present Him to those who do not know Him and we invite them, though our relationship with them, to a greater invitation of what it means to be in a relationship with this God who loves them. In the society in which we live today that is difficult. So for here, Hospitality is given authenticity when we see ourselves as insignificant and allow ourselves to be the humble presence for our brothers and sisters.

In a sense this is the crucifixion experience that we live. It is at this moment that we are in solidarity with our brother, Jesus, who sacrifices his own will and was grafted to the cross. So we too are grafted to the cross of Jesus Christ. Through our self-emptying we no longer see our own will and desire for suffering humanity, but we humbly enter into this experience with our brothers and sisters.

St. Paul basically tells us in his letters to the Corinthians – it sort of sums up really what our role in the Church, what our role in society is all about – for he says, “for Christ did not send me to Baptize, but to preach the Good News.” And not to preach that in terms of normal language, but to talk a language rooted in the Crucifixion of Christ that is total experiential in a sense. It is total self-immersion with the sick and the suffering with the experiences, which we have talked about earlier. It is becoming one with our brother and sister.

What I constantly reflect on when I study the life and mission of St. John of God, I constantly wonder is it possible that John discovered a gift of Hospitality through suffering humanity because of his own suffering? Did he find solace in, a sense comfort, in the suffering of others? What is it that John did in his contemplation of the Passion, that allowed him to experience authentic Hospitality as his chief motivator that he had lived and passed on to his first brothers and that continues today?

I am convinced that St. John of God experienced the fullness of life in the midst of profound suffering. Through that suffering he experienced he was able to relate and understand more clearly the Passion of Jesus Christ. When we speak of Hospitality as a total gift we must really reflect more deeply then on what it means to be given a gift. See, for something to be a gift at all, it must be offered by someone, who has had it and received by someone, who has the capacity to be a recipient of this special charism, this special gift.

If this gift is something to be understood, to become alive, such as a plant, a tree, or a vine or even like the Son of God, then the recipient must make every effort to keep this gift alive and growing. You see the connection with the gift of Hospitality and how we are called to continue that gift, to continue to grow in that gift, but more importantly to give the experience of that gift of Hospitality to those who need it most.

It is through the wounds and words of Christ Jesus that we experience a glimpse of our own salvation. And so when we do come in contact daily with the men and women who come to us, we see Jesus Christ. We are reminded of the cross and we must not try to fix or solve any problems. We should not try to fix things the way we want, but we must enter more fully into that mystical journey of suffering. It is a challenge because we are designed in such a way that we do not like to be inconvenienced, we do not like the unpleasant feeling of what it means to have pain, to have suffering in our lives. In a society where there is a pill and therapy technique to fix everything, we must reject that suffering humanity is not the lesson. Because as men and women, we know differently, we know that this life is so short. This life that we are given here is not what it is all about, but rather that this journey that we are on together will lead us to something new, something life giving, something eternal and that is the life that has been promised to us for those believe, for those who continue to grow more deeply in this relationship, this intimate relationship, this intimate union with Christ Jesus.

Reflection Questions:

1. In reflecting more deeply on the Passion of Jesus Christ – what are those feelings that you are experiencing within your heart?
2. How am I living my life in the Spirit of being grafted to the Hospitality of Jesus Christ, the Passion and in what way or ways do I need to reflect, so that I can make my life a life of authentic Hospitality rooted in Jesus Christ?