If you cannot relieve, do not grieve, the poor. Give them soft words, if
nothing else. Abstain from either sour looks or harsh words. Let them
be glad to come, even though they should go empty away. Put yourselves
in the place of every poor man; and deal with him as you would
God should deal with you.
One great reason why the rich in general have so little sympathy for the
poor is because they so seldom visit them. Hence it is that [according to
the common observation] one part of the world does not know what
the other suffers. Many of them do not know, because they do not care
to know: they keep out of the way ofknowing it- and then plead their
voluntary ignorance as an excuse for their hardness of heart.
I see us quickly developing into, not a society
of bad people, but a society with people out of touch with the
suffering ofthe vast majority of the world’s population today -including
the poor within our own country.” He continued, “The distance that
wealthy people are now able to put between them and the poor makes
them less likely to appreciate the need for hospitality.” In his community,
members deliberately structure settings and produce newsletters that help
people connect more closely with the humanness of persons in need.
The emphasis on rights is partly an attempt to move away from a
charity model that reinforces “the donor’s distance and the recipients’ dependency.”
Individual rights provide an important framework for concerns
about justice, equality, protection, and provision. The cost of our
emphasis on rights, however, includes a devaluation of personal care and
social connection.
Today, equality, inclusion, and minimal provision are viewed as
rights, but serious concerns remain. Inclusion mandated by law and provision
gathered through taxes cannot guarantee that people will experience
the lunds of human connections and rootedness that give us a safe
and meaning-filled place in the world. On the other hand, modern experience
suggests strongly that there are few safe places when laws and governments
do not protect fundamental human rights.
The role of host is empowering because it is an acknowledgment that one
has rightful access to a place of meaning and value, and that one has the authority
to welcome other persons into it. The host role afirms that what you
have and what you offer are valuable. An important transformation occurs
when people without power or status have the opportunity to be more than
guests, when they, too, can be hosts. It is a time when their contributions
can be recognized and when they are not defined first by their need.
We see a wonderful example of this in the story of Zacchaeus’ encounter
with Jesus (Luke 19:l-10). Jesus calls out to Zacchaeus the tax
collector and informs him, “1 must stay at your house today.” Jesus
chooses Zacchaeus from the crowd to be his host and Zacchaeus, welcoming
him joyfully, is transformed.
Especially when working with refugees who come from cultures in
which offering hospitality remains a fundamental moral practice, it is
crucial to recognize and value their expressions of hospitality. Going to
their homes, sharing in their food, learning hospitality practices from
them is a crucial recognition of the gifts they bring and the cultures they
represent.
Many of us are situated so centrally that we have to make conscious decisions
to experience marginality in our lives. I am reminded of a friend
who has directed a home for homeless people for the past fifteen years.
Evcry year he takes several days to live on the street, far from home, so
that he will understand something of what it means to be marginal,
treated as if he were invisible. He is determined to experience some of the
disconnection and loneliness of the street. His brief sojourns as a horneless
person have a profound impact on the humane way in which he runs
the home and on the sensitivity with which he befriends the guests.
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