The Apologetic of Hospitality
The pagan emperor Julian and the Christian theologian Augustine both recognized that hospitality is not merely a nice habit; it’s an evidence that God uses to draw people to the gospel
Habits of hospitality make it possible to pass peace across colors and cultures. And yet, for many of us, hospitality is—in the words of one social ethicist—“a nice extra if we have the time or the resources, but we rarely view it as a spiritual obligation or as a dynamic expression of vibrant Christianity.”
It wasn’t always this way.
In the earliest decades of Christian faith, hospitality was not optional for followers of Jesus. When the apostle Peter wrote to Christians in Asia Minor, he included the command, “Be hospitable to one another without complaining” (1 Peter 4:8–10). “Share with the saints in their needs,” Paul told the Roman church, “pursue hospitality” (Romans 12:13; see also 1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8) The author of Hebrews raised the stakes even higher. According to this writer, mortal beings aren’t the only possible recipients of Christian hospitality: “Don’t neglect to show hospitality, for by doing this some have welcomed angels as guests without knowing it” (Hebrews 13:2).
The practice of hospitality seems to have been one of the reasons why ancient pagans were attracted to Christianity. In the fourth century, the emperor Julian shared this complaint about Christians with his fellow pagans: “Why don’t we notice that it is their benevolence to strangers, their care for the graves of the dead, and the supposed holiness of their lives that have done the most to increase their number?” A few decades later, in the aftermath of the sacking of Rome, Augustine of Hippo urged his North African congregation to welcome refugees from Italia with “hospitality and good works.” “If Christians simply do what Christ commands,” Augustine told his church members, “the heathen will blaspheme to their own hurt.”
What Hospitality Isn’t
Unfortunately, many of us today have confused hospitality with entertainment. And so, when we hear the word “hospitality,” we think of inviting a church member over to our house to enjoy a perfect meal that we’ve prepared after meticulously cleaning our apartment and hiding every mess behind closed doors—after which we aren’t particularly sure we even like the family we’ve invited, and we’re certainly never going to ask them again, unless they ask us to dinner at their house, in which case we’ll be obligated to reciprocate and the cycle of stress will start all over again.
What Hospitality Is
But that’s not the type of hospitality that’s described in the New Testament.
To practice New Testament hospitality is to pass the peace with others day-by-day in such a way that strangers are transformed into friends and family. Hospitality is not merely having someone over for dinner—although that may be a great place to start. Hospitality is radical welcome coupled with Christ-like generosity. Understood in this way, hospitality is not something you do as much as it is a type of person that you become. This lifestyle of generous welcome means glimpsing God’s glorious creativity in the very things that make others different from us and rejoicing in the gifts that each person brings. Such hospitality is frightening for many of us, because it means there will be people who discover not only the messiness of our homes but also the messiness in our hearts.