Fr Bob writes: I have just been reading a moving account someone sent to me of a Polish woman and her husband who protected a Jewish family during the Second World War, thereby running dangerous risks as Poland was occupied by the Nazis at that time.
The readings for this Sunday, at least the first reading and the gospel , speak about hospitality and shelter being provided to those in need, and the blessings that accrue from these acts of kindness. The human person, unlike many other lower forms of life, cannot live long without food and shelter. Biblical hospitality is rooted in these basic needs. To wish another well in the most fundamental fashion is to offer food and lodging. Neither is a superfluity; without either, the guest would not survive.
We certainly practise these acts of hospitality, but one often wonders if we capture the significance of them. To invite someone to spend the night or to come to dinner carries a sense of the sacred, a very basic wishing well of which the one who invites and the one invited should be conscious. Awareness enriches what we do . Moreover, to extend this spirit to an emissary of Christ is to facilitate the spread of the gospel, to be consciously missionary, to be a partner in the guest’s work. We might well meditate a bit on the next invitation we receive – and on the next one we extend.
Happy Canada Day to all our parishioners!!