Genesis 18: 1-15
GOD appeared to Abraham at the Oaks of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance of his tent. It was the hottest part of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing. He ran from his tent to greet them and bowed before them. He said, "Master, if it please you, stop for a while with your servant. I'll get some water so you can wash your feet. Rest under this tree. I'll get some food to refresh you on your way, since your travels have brought you across my path." They said, "Certainly. Go ahead."
Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. He said, "Hurry. Get three cups of our best flour; knead it and make bread." Then Abraham ran to the cattle pen and picked out a nice plump calf and gave it to the servant who lost no time getting it ready. Then he got curds and milk, brought them with the calf that had been roasted, set the meal before the men, and stood there under the tree while they ate. The men said to him, "Where is Sarah your wife?" He said, "In the tent."
One of them said, "I'm coming back about this time next year. When I arrive, your wife Sarah will have a son." Sarah was listening at the tent opening, just behind the man. Abraham and Sarah were old by this time, very old. Sarah was far past the age for having babies. Sarah laughed within herself, "An old woman like me? Get pregnant? With this old man of a husband?" GOD said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh saying, 'Me? Have a baby? An old woman like me?' Is anything too hard for GOD? I'll be back about this time next year and Sarah will have a baby." Sarah lied. She said, "I didn't laugh," because she was afraid. But he said, "Yes you did; you laughed."
SECOND READING—Matthew 25: 34-40
“Then the [Ruler] will say to those on his right, 'Enter, you who are blessed by God! Take what's coming to you in this kingdom. It's been ready for you since the world's foundation. And here's why:
I was hungry and you fed me,
I was thirsty and you gave me a drink,
I was homeless and you gave me a room,
I was shivering and you gave me clothes,
I was sick and you stopped to visit,
I was in prison and you came to me.'
"Then those 'sheep' are going to say, “What are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the [Ruler] will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.'
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God, you created us and you rejoice in us! Teach us all that we need to know for today and keep us open to learning more tomorrow. Thank you for reaching out and touching our hearts, expanding our minds, and healing our souls. Thank you for calling us your children. Amen
God’s wide and wonderful welcome reaches out to all of us, young and old, rich and poor, member and newcomer. There’s a special place I like to go. It’s in St. Augustine at the Spanish Mission, Nombre de Dios. It’s one of my sacred places—places I go when I need to feel especially close to God. Now look at the front of your bulletin. This is a photograph of a statue of Jesus that is a relatively new addition to the gardens, cemetery, outside altar, and bayfront sanctuary. There is also one of the largest crosses you will ever see, but this new statue caught my eye the last time I was there just a few weeks ago. See the way his hands are held wide—all the way open to receive anyone who passes by. It just seemed a good way to picture God’s wide and wonderful welcome. Arms outstretched—waiting, watching, working with us to spread the good news of radical and complete acceptance.
We have spoken often in the last few weeks about entering and being in a place of God’s exceeding abundance. I understand and appreciate that this is a concept that is foreign to most of us—that we are more comfortable with zero sum economics—that notion that there is only so much to go around and that if you have it, then, more than likely, I don’t. Or a social economy where someone has to win and someone has to lose. These are the rules that we grew up with; they make sense—regardless of whether we are at the top or the bottom, we can use these ‘rules’ of life to explain where we are. But these arms wide open don’t suggest this at all. These arms wide open convey no sense of limits on God’s abundance and Jesus’ welcome into a community of faith. And so we are left with a quandary. Where do we fit in these arms wide open? And, are there those who don’t fit at all? Surely there are some boundaries, rules, guidelines, and ways to be sure.
Seems so easy to pronounce—that all are God’s children! What about us? Are we all God’s children? Are there times when we don’t feel like God’s children at all? Are there those who feel or seem pretty darn far away from those arms open wide? God’s exceeding abundance calls to us—are we ready to step up and step in? Are we ready to make room in our church, our hearts, and our minds for all those who long to step in with us? This week, it seems that I have more questions than answers. More quandary than certitude. More challenge than assurance…is it so hard to say ‘welcome’? Is it so hard to feel welcome?
Each week you look on as the invitation to the table is extended to all—no rules to obey, no hoops to jump through, no barriers—just come. All are welcome at this table. Come, taste and see how good God is. So, we say it—but…What does welcome truly mean? Who needs it? Whose job is it to offer it? What risks become ours when we say “welcome”? What is this “hospitality” of which both our scriptures speak?
Though I don’t often consult the dictionary for biblical concepts, in this case it proved interesting. The American Heritage Dictionary defines hospitality as "welcoming guests with warmth and generosity, having an open and charitable mind, receptive." I found it fascinating that the two aspects are combined in the definition—welcome, warmth, generosity AND having an open mind, receptive to those you are welcoming.
For a more specifically Christian take on the notion of hospitality, I took a look at the Rule of St. Benedict. Though written more than 1500 years ago, it was here that I found the most direct correlation to our Gospel lesson. Written as guidelines for the community of monks founded by Benedict of Nursia, the Rule says this about hospitality: "All who present themselves are to be welcomed as Christ, for the Lord himself will say: I was a stranger and you welcomed me…You must honor everyone." Is it possible that a rule for monks written so long ago is still valuable today as we celebrate the community we call Open Circle? Indeed it is. But the Benedictine Rule doesn’t end there. In a modern version, the Benedictine "Rule for a New Brother," we are told: "The community is the first place where you will make God’s kingdom incarnate…accept with gratitude the companions God gives you to go with you on the way…your task is to build up one another as members of one body…the way of Jesus leads to communion with all people."
In this community—this first place we make God’s kingdom incarnate, we are called to accept with gratitude all those that God gives us with which to make the journey. I struggle with that sometimes. If we accept with gratitude all those who travel with us, we must be willing to change, to grow, to become more than we are before we said “welcome”! Do you remember the words of our Rite of Membership? They are oh so important here. Of the new members we ask, “Will you challenge this community to be the best version of itself and to live up to the things we say we believe?” And, “Will you allow yourself to be changed, shaped and transformed by this community, living into your called identity as a beloved child of God? And, then, to those of us already members, we ask, “Will you challenge these new members to be the best versions of themselves, and to help them live up to the things they say they believe?” And, finally, “ Will you allow yourself to be changed, shaped and transformed by these new members, living into our called identity as a beloved community of God?” We say “I will” and I suspect barely think of the impact of the words. Nevertheless, this is the answer to the question of what hospitality looks like here in our community. This is true hospitality—that we both challenge each other to be the best we can be and allow ourselves to be changed by the touch of another—new friend, old friend, even the stranger who tarries with us a while.
Today is Pride Sunday for us, mostly determined by the fact that 27 of us went to St. Petersburg yesterday and walked in an anything but homogenous conglomeration of MCC’ers from 7 different churches. It got me to thinking, how is it that this rather interesting mix of folks from so many different places, ages, cultures, and backgrounds can all be transformed into a noisy, celebrating bunch who had one thing in common—the belief that God loves us just as we are and welcomes us into this wild and wonderful place of radical acceptance. Just like that, no matter what. Now some of you know that Rev. Troy Perry, founder of MCC worldwide, was the Grand Marshall of yesterday’s parade. And I want to tell you this: he has not missed the wonderful community quietly and not so quietly growing up here in this three-county area. And while I had to tell him where The Villages are, that did not diminish his special words of welcome that he quietly whispered to me prior to the parade. He said something along these lines, Nancy (meaning Rev. Elder Nancy Wilson) tells me you are raising the roof up there!” And we hugged and grinned at each other in instant recognition that the hospitality that we extend here in this place each week is born of the blessing of knowing just one thing: that we are all God’s children and we are all welcome at the table… just as Troy Perry said over 40 years ago! Come taste and see, indeed!
And, so here we are—just at the beginning of exploring what this welcome looks like in the flesh, in the gathering of folks we call ‘Open Circle”. And we will not stop here—we will wrestle with this task until we develop for ourselves a kind of welcome that will call us to be more than we currently are and encourage all those who walk through these doors to join us in the journey. Hospitality, then becomes much more than smiles and spoken word—it is the essence of worship and communion. Growing out of worship as we celebrate God’s grace and generosity, hospitality is our response to the wild and wonderful welcome we have received from God in our lives. My friends, indeed, welcome to Open Circle! Amen and Amen.
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