Our son, who recently left for his first year of college, called home with a fascinating report. Following Sunday Mass at his new, admittedly much smaller, parish, he experienced something very different from the (unfortunately all-too-common) rush to the parking lot. The parishioners introduced themselves and invited him to a feast of homemade dishes in the parish hall.
 
Little did he know it, but when he set off to Mass that morning—via a carpool arranged by his new pastor—he entered into the power of Christian hospitality. And his transition to college got a whole lot easier. Hearing about his experience, we thought, how often do we walk by the newcomer with all their hopes for finding friendship and community in a new place?
 
If we’re honest, we know how easy it is to settle into our comfort zone of busyness, with scarcely a thought given to hospitality. So, in the 5^th week of the month, let’s turn our focus to Level 5 of our Trinity House, Hospitality & Service. Our son’s recent experience suggests several practical challenges.  
 
First, are our eyes open to the opportunities for hospitality and service each day? It’s humbling to consider this thought experiment: what if a college freshman was sitting just a few feet from you at Mass last week, feeling all the jitters and anxiety of the first days away from home, and you didn’t notice? These types of encounters—at the grocery store, at our kid’s sports practice, in our neighborhoods—are continually possible. But we need to be open to them, inviting the Holy Spirit to direct our thoughts and actions.
 
Second, do we take the step out of our comfort zone and into the unknowns of hospitality and service? Taking the first step towards another—with an invitation, a question, an offer—isn’t easy. That’s because in that moment, we are turning away from our agenda, our to-do list, our project. But how amazing it is to find that when we do take the first step, the Lord meets us. In our awkwardness. In our selfishness. And He has something more for us there than we would have found in our own plans.

Pope Francis draws from the world of soccer to drive this point home. Using the Spanish verb “primerear”, “to first” somebody, as in darting ahead of one’s opponent, he points us to the spiritual life. “That is the religious experience,” he said, “the astonishment of meeting someone who has been waiting for you all along. Dios te primerea. God beats you to it.” When we finally “make our move,” we find that the Lord is already there.
 
Finally, do we pattern our life after Jesus, who constantly took the first step toward those on the margins? Jesus took the first step toward the lepers, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, and the poor. If someone “audited” an average week of our life, would he notice any “convicting evidence” that we are following Jesus Christ to the margins of our daily life? Or would this auditor instead find us ensconced in comfort, control, and predictability? 

When we opened Trinity House Café + Market nearly nine years ago at the corner of Church & Market Streets, our goal was to open the doors to strangers and invite them to a “taste of heaven” found in a welcoming encounter, in a place of peace and beauty. But if we’re candid, we also had an ulterior motive: to inspire Christians to open the doors of their own home or “Trinity House” to their neighborhood.
 
Our son’s recent experience is a reminder to us all. A stranger’s hospitality lifted a young man out of anonymity and into the loving experience of the community of faith. Each of us has a powerful portal to this transformative arena of hospitality and service: our front door. All we have to do is open it and take the first step. When we do, we’ll find that God has “firsted” us yet again.