Seasons Greetings,

On a recent retreat I explored the theme of “Being a Soul friend’. One of the readings came from Reaching Out by Henri Nouwen. He writes what it means to be a “Soul Friend” in the midst of hospitality.

“Hospitality means primarily the creation of a free space where the stranger can enter and become a friend instead of an enemy. Hospitality is not to change people, but to offer them space where change can take place.”

“The paradox of hospitality is that it wants to create emptiness, not a fearful emptiness, but a friendly emptiness where strangers can enter and discover themselves as created free; free to sing their own songs, speak their own languages, dance their own dances, free also to leave and follow their own vocations. Hospitality is not a subtle invitation to adopt the life style of the host, but the gift of a chance for the guest to find their own.”

Our recent Thanksgiving gathering included families from the neighborhood and out of town guests. We opened the meal with a Liturgy entitled “Feasting with Friends.”

“In celebrating this feast we declare that evil and death, suffering and loss, sorrow and tears, will not have the final word.”

“But the joy of fellowship, and the welcome and comfort of friends new and old, and the celebration of these blessings of food and drink and conversation and laughter are the true evidences of things eternal, and are the first fruits of that great glad joy that is to come and that will be unending.”

We often included our extended family members in our neighborhood holiday gatherings.  What we discovered is that the dark side of normal family patterns of behavior dissipated and the relatives behaved more like their redeemed (true) selves when they were among our neighbors.

The conclusion for us is to continue to provide a hospitable space for those who gather to discover their true (free) selves. In this space there is a miracle that takes place where the darkness around us is consumed by the light of the feast with friends and there is a fore taste of the eternal.

May the Light in you continue to shine,

Rich and Jayne