“Share with the saints who are in need. Practice hospitality.” — Romans 12:13 (BSB)
“For I was hungry and you gave Me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you took Me in… Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these My brothers, you did for Me.” — Matthew 25:35, 40 (BSB)
“When you host a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or relatives or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they may invite you in return, and you will be repaid. But when you host a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind, and you will be blessed.” — Luke 14:12–14 (BSB)
I practice hospitality by offering food, listening with compassion, welcoming the outsider, and inviting people into the rhythms of church life. I do not need great resources—only a willing spirit and a heart of grace. Hospitality includes inviting others to worship, helping those in crisis, visiting the sick, and including the lonely. In all these things, I reflect the generous heart of God who welcomed me when I was a stranger.
Canon Dr. Joel Scandrett (Trinity School for Ministry) writes, “Hospitality is a sacrament of presence. It is how we make the grace of Christ visible in ordinary places—at the table, by the hearth, in a quiet conversation.”
Bishop Julian Dobbs (Diocese of the Living Word, ACNA) explains, “Hospitality is not about entertaining. It’s about serving. The Church must be known not only for its preaching but for its welcome.”
The 1662 Book of Common Prayer reflects hospitality in the words of invitation: “Ye that do truly and earnestly repent… draw near with faith.” The sharing of the Peace before Communion and the open prayers for the needy remind the Church that fellowship is never private—it is a shared and extending grace.
J.C. Ryle wrote, “Would you serve Christ today? Open your door to the poor. Sit at table with the weary. Speak kindly to the forgotten. The Lord Jesus is never far from such places.” (Practical Religion, 1878)
Archbishop Foley Beach (ACNA) has said, “Hospitality is one of the most powerful tools for the Gospel. In a world that isolates, Christians must open their lives. Welcome in the stranger—and you welcome Christ.”
Practicing hospitality glorifies Christ because it reflects His mercy, opens the door for fellowship, and makes the love of God tangible in a broken and lonely world.
St. Basil the Great (c. 330–379 AD): “You are a steward of what God has given. The hungry belong at your table; the stranger belongs in your care. Practice hospitality, and you will lack nothing.” — Homily on Luke, 6
St. John Chrysostom (c. 347–407 AD): “You do not need gold to practice hospitality. A cup of water given with love, a kind word, a listening ear—these are treasures in the Kingdom of God.” — Homily on Hebrews, 34
St. Gregory the Great (c. 540–604 AD): “The heart that welcomes the weak, the poor, and the wandering is the dwelling place of God Himself.” — Pastoral Rule, III.14
An Anglican Catechism (Expanded) offers over 350+ Scripture-based answers to the core truths of the Christian faith. Each entry includes biblical texts, theological insight, and reflections from historic and contemporary Anglican voices. Rooted in the classical tradition, it is designed for teaching, discipleship, and spiritual formation.
An Ancient Worship Movement invites readers into the rich, historic worship of the early Church rediscovered through the Anglican tradition. This book calls believers into a deeper, Spirit-filled encounter with Christ through timeless practices.
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