Our first reading today reminded me of an experience of hospitality I had last summer.

My husband, Paul and I made our way to a town in Spain called Manresa to find the cave where in the 1500’s St. Ignatius lived for 10 months and began what would be his life changing spiritual experience.

Arriving there by street car, we began our quest for the cave and we quickly learned that Manresa was hillier than we had anticipated and that we had not come prepared for the intense heat and humidity.

We arrived at the church which is built above the cave at about 1 p.m. in the afternoon. The church was closed and would not re-open until 4 p.m. This is by no means a tourist attraction. We were the only ones around. It was at that point I realized that my face was beet red and would soon need some water.

We had begun our search for water when I spotted a lady with a bag from MacDonald's, I asked her, in my best Spanish, “Dónde está Macdonalds?”. She pointed up the hill. I know the look on my face was one of Oh not another hill. At that point a much older man walking by and having overheard my conversation, stopped to chat with us. Paul spoke to him and told me that he offered us water and some food at his house. Because I am weary of strangers I politely said no. He continued to talk to Paul for a bit and then we said our goodbyes. Paul and I then proceeded down the cobblestone street where we found a café.

While enjoying some water and Madelines we talked about the kind gentleman who reached out to us and how it was MY fear of strangers that prevented us from enjoying his hospitality. How many of us have told our kids never to speak to strangers?

I was a stranger in a strange land, in Ignatius land. This is the man who had said “presume the best in everyone” and where I presumed the worst.

Today's first reading, the words of St. Ignatius, and the experience of last summer have taught me that if I trust what God puts in my life then I will be more open to new experiences and new people.

Trust the process and Trust in yourself

The readings today are so wonderfully human. Even prophets need to eat and sleep! Since a “woman of influence” (a rarity in the Middle East in those days) and her husband offer Elisha hospitality regularly, she proposes that they set up a room on the roof for his use. (If you’ve been to Mexico and stayed with a family, you know that this is often the most comfortable place to sleep, since the evening breeze cools you wonderfully.) Elisha for his part, wants to do something to show his gratitude. Gehazi, his servant, knows this couple’s story and suggests that their having a child would be a wonderful gift! So Elisha calls her and promises her a son.

The second part of the gospel underlines the importance of hospitality, which we may think unrelated to our living Christian lives. Such a simple act, yet so profound in making someone feel welcomed or ignored. Have you ever been speaking to someone when another person interrupts, without excusing him/herself, then talks only to the other, ignoring you? Isn’t it a strange, hurtful feeling? If we believe that everyone is made in the image and likeness of God, indeed is a child of God, how can we treat anyone disrespectfully? I’ll be very daring here and propose that our hospitality should be most evident in church and after church. If I’m sitting at the end of a pew, wouldn’t it be more hospitable if I moved over, instead of having the person(s) crawl over me? Of course, some people need to be at the end of the pew for health reasons or because of a little one with whom they may need to exit quickly. But couldn’t the rest of us move over? Sometimes, after all of us have received the Eucharist together, that unity isn’t visible in the courtesy (hospitality) we show each other in the parking lot.