03.11 Hospitality
The practice of welcoming the poor, the stranger and the pilgrim is a deep practice within the historic Church and monastic communities. We seek to regain the ancient spirit of hospitality as a marker of Christian love, obedience and devotion.
In Our Way of Life
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We’re committed to nurturing in each member a hospitality of presence. Sitting with another, face-to-face, in an unhurried, undistracted way is a deeply loving act. In relationships, we seek to root out the sense of hurry so prevalent in our cultures.
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Each member also examines their practice of opening their home to others. One’s commitment to hospitality requires a developing awareness of their chief motivations and desires regarding hospitality and the balance of shared and private space. These are explored through spiritual direction.
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Members intentionally pursue practices of hospitality that bring them into closer relationship with those of races and ethnicities different from their own.
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Common residential communities welcome those who come for rest and direction, regardless of social status, relationship to the Order, or ability to pay for accommodations and food.
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Because the boundaries involved in hospitality can be difficult to navigate, each residential community discerns together the particularities of how they practice hospitality in ways that are safe, respectful and radical.
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Each common residential community manages its own economy while seeking to help other residential communities who might be in need.
- What is my posture and attitude toward the stranger? Toward those of a different race or ethnicity?
- How present am I when I'm with others? What distracts me?
- How is my home a place of welcome to others? Am I interruptible?
- Where do I sense hurry in my interactions with people? Where might God be inviting me toward patience?
We want to accompany you in noticing and nurturing invitations to hospitality in your life.
Learn about our postulancy cohorts, which walk you through the common commitments of our rule of life, as a shared way of life in community.