1.9.24 - Matthew 2:14-15
When was the last time you experienced radical hospitality? How did it affect your day, mood, experience of another person? What’s one piece of that moment you’d like to embody in your own life?
Joseph got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where they stayed until the death of Herod.
This particular passage does not tell us much about Jesus, Mary and Joseph’s time in Egypt.
I can only hope that those they encountered were more hospitable than modern politicians who have chartered busses and planes to further displace those seeking safety and stability.
I sincerely hope they experienced some semblance of radical hospitality.
The idea of “radical hospitality” is not new or new to our faith tradition. Traces of the concept can be found throughout the sacred text.
But in addition to inheriting the rich legacy of radical hospitality, we have also inherited a geopolitical reality that makes the act of fully living into the idea complex.
Ultimately, radical hospitality is a choice. It compels us to think and live and act in the tension between reality and possibility, what is and what could be.
It requires us to confront our fears, be vulnerable, and embrace messiness. It requires us to be curious, thoughtful and creative. And it requires a commitment to embodying the deepest depths of love.
When was the last time you experienced radical hospitality? How did it affect your day, mood, experience of another person? What’s one piece of that moment you’d like to embody in your own life?
-- Javon Bracy