Starting the advent journey
Offer an imperfect welcome
Advent is a beautiful church season, which leads to Christmas. We are so eager for Christmas that we don’t give all the importance to advent. Two words that connects me to Christmas are welcome and hospitality. God became human by accepting (and not forcing) the human hospitality. May be advent can be a time to grow in welcome and hospitality. And who can be a good model for us?
First response is Mary; second one is Joseph. Obviously they are the best, but probably we can see a few others too. I like to look at that family who welcomed Mary and Joseph (here after MJ), not into their house or inns, but to their stable. We imagine a little bit about that host family. Probably it was a couple too; probably their children were there. We believe that they were saying truth about no place in the inn. Some (especially from some cultures) may ask the question, why they didn’t open their house, especially knowing that Mary was pregnant. I know I might be a little harsh in my analysis on this family, and it is important.
Yes, we have a family who gave a welcome to MJ, in one of the most vulnerable, yet significant moments in the life of MJ. Was there welcome or hospitality, a perfect one? Probably not. But they opened a part of their heart to MJ. They opened a part of their life to MJ. Probably, in their condition of that moment, that was the only possible option. They could only do that much. They may not be like Mary/Joseph or the good Samaritan. But they did something possible. Even if I consider (I am being judgemental here) that welcome as a partial one, their welcome leads to the safe birth of Jesus. Their partial welcome commences the beautiful story of Jesus.
Yes, probably in this advent journey, this inn keeping couple from Bethlehem, is a good model. Their responses and welcome were not as perfect as that of MJ. But even that imperfect welcome produced abundant fruits. We too may not be in a condition to offer perfect welcome and hospitality to Jesus who comes to us in various forms. But atleast, let’s offer that imperfect welcome. Even our imperfect welcome can produce wonderful fruits.
For the world, that imperfect welcome remains imperfect. But from the point of view of our life at that moment, that is the best we can offer. And we do offer it joyfully.
Please feel free to share in the reply section of “your models for Advent”, especially of those unconventional models and why they are your models…
