Our imperative to do so is made clear in Matthew 10:40 where Jesus tells his disciples: ”whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and, he who welcome me welcomes the Father who sent me.”
We see this connection between showing hospitality to others and the presence of the Lord as well in Hebrews 13:2 where we read, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing so some have entertained angels without knowing it.”
Welcoming the stranger, it seems, is one of our basic requirements as Christians.
Just how important it is was spelled out in a story told by a mentor of mine, theologian Henri Nouwen. It seems he was travelling to a Catholic monastery for a retreat where the Rule of Silence prevailed. Delayed along the road, he arrived very late at night and was welcomed by a monk who offered him warm tea as it was a cold and rainy night. In a lengthy and friendly chat during the shared tea, Henri finally asked the monk how it was that he broke the Rule of Silence to welcome him. The monk responded:” there is no greater duty for any Christian than to offer hospitality to the stranger.”
In our modern world, we often seem more likely to fear the strangers and build walls and policy restrictions to keep them out rather than to welcome them in. Our Canadian history has some tragic examples of that, including, just prior to World War 2, a refusal to allow Jewish folk fleeing the Nazi Regime by ship to land safely here. Forced to return to Europe, they finally got permission to land in Belgium and Holland; both countries were soon overwhelmed by the German blitzkrieg. In the end, over a third of the travellers who might have been saved died in the Nazi death camps.
More recently, however, we have seen the world nations respond much more generously to the millions of refugees from the Horn of Africa, Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria. And, for the last year, the many countries of Europe, joined by the United States and Canada, have also shown great hospitality to the Ukrainian refugees fleeing the Russian invasion of their country.
Given the many challenges of a world facing the devastations of pandemics, natural disasters, famines and war, there is no end to the opportunities we will all have to join in the international effort to make welcome with radical hospitality those in need.
For Christians, it is simply another way of responding compassionately. Returning the love and grace by which our God has and is blessing us every day. We can do no other. As Jesus said: “to the degree you welcome the stranger, you have done it unto me: (Mt 25:40). Amen.
-Ray Purdie
