We put a lot of stock in our mission statement. Specifically, we put a lot of stock in the phrase, “with all people.” If you think about it, the rest of the words are just churchy fluff. “God’s love in Jesus Christ” is the obvious way to end it. “Live, share, and celebrate?” Those are catch-all verbs. They can mean anything we want them to mean.
What is unique about Lord of Life is that when we say “with all people,” there are truly no caveats. It isn’t “all are welcome … as long as they believe in Jesus” or “all are welcome … as long as they act a certain way.” We practice what we preach when it comes to race, economic status, people in the LGBTQ+ community, and people of different religions and beliefs.
Now that it is 2022, I’d love to think this is the low-hanging fruit. That these are the simple things that everyone is obviously doing because it is just so easy. The truth is that people are still cast out of faith communities for any of those reasons and sometimes even less. Lord of Life is at the forefront of Radical Hospitality, and there is still one more group we don’t think about when we list all the people we welcome.
Many of you have already heard the faith journey I shared during our Service of Reconciliation and Healing for Pride Month on June 8. If you haven’t yet, you can watch it here beginning at about 45:40: Service of Reconciliation and Healing. During my reflection, I shared that I had a father who threatened to kill me as I was coming to terms with my sexuality, how I didn’t feel welcome in my home church growing up, and that in my next church, I felt tentatively welcomed, but that ultimately there were still bullies there and the welcome I received didn’t extend to protection from harm. I finally found real welcome and allies at Lord of Life.
I know what you’re thinking: “John - you’ve already established that Lord of Life is cool. Why do you have to keep giving us examples?”
Well, here is where the next step in Radical Hospitality comes in. A lot of people have hurt me in the past. If we welcome all people, and one of those people who has hurt me walks in the door to church, what is the right response? This isn’t nearly as simple as welcoming the marginalized. I’m talking about welcoming abusers. People who have used prejudice to make life difficult for others. But I could just as easily be talking about felons or addicts. People who didn’t hurt me, but whom some might argue have made poor decisions for themselves and other people.
There are so many examples in the Gospels of Jesus welcoming marginalized people to the table: tax collectors, women, children, lepers, prostitutes, the list goes on and on. Most radically, at the end of Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells the thief who is being crucified next to him that he will be with him in Paradise. In the Book of Acts, instead of being angry at the captors who have beaten and imprisoned him, Paul prays to convert them to Christianity and welcome them into the church.
If we follow the examples of the Bible, we take a step beyond the hospitality we already share with all people and extend forgiveness to those who have wronged us so they can join or re-join the community. Does that mean I’m going to let myself get hurt again? No, I’m going to use the opportunity to better protect myself, and have faith that my community will stand with me. Is Radical Hospitality risk-free? No. Life with Jesus is not risk-free. Paradise is a future promise, not a current reality. We have to be part of the change to bring it around.
Yours in Christ,
John Johns