Receiving Guests

People undoubtedly have looked on me as pretty gullible over the years, welcoming seemingly random people into my life and my home (and indeed, it has perhaps been more out of gullibility than out of noble Christian principles).  Yet, I feel I fall GREATLY short of what a true Christian should do. 

Here's what St. Benedict of Nursia had to say in the Sixth Century in the Rule of Benedict, the document which to this day governs how Benedictine and Cistercian monasteries operate.  Much of it could be applied to non-monastics, as well.  I'm not sure how I would feel about making guests pray with me, or washing their feet, but the principle is simple - treat them well, as if they were your brothers or sisters. (Because they are.)

Chapter 53: On the Reception of Guests

Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, for He is going to say, "I came as a guest, and you received Me" (Matt. 25:35). And to all let due honor be shown, especially to the domestics of the faith and to pilgrims.

As soon as a guest is announced, therefore, let the Superior or the brethren meet him with all charitable service. And first of all let them pray together, and then exchange the kiss of peace. For the kiss of peace should not be offered until after the prayers have been said, on account of the devil's deceptions.

In the salutation of all guests, whether arriving or departing, let all humility be shown. Let the head be bowed or the whole body prostrated on the ground in adoration of Christ, who indeed is received in their persons.

After the guests have been received and taken to prayer, let the Superior or someone appointed by him sit with them. Let the divine law be read before the guest for his edification, and then let all kindness be shown him. The Superior shall break his fast for the sake of a guest, unless it happens to be a principal fast day which may not be violated. The brethren, however, shall observe the customary fasts. Let the Abbot give the guests water for their hands; and let both Abbot and community wash the feet of all guests. After the washing of the feet let them say this verse: "We have received Your mercy, O God, in the midst of Your temple" (Ps.47:10).

In the reception of the poor and of pilgrims the greatest care and solicitude should be shown, because it is especially in them that Christ is received; for as far as the rich are concerned, the very fear which they inspire wins respect for them.

Liturgy of the Hours (My Thoughts on the Divine Office)

My thoughts on the Liturgy of the Hours as prayed by the Catholic Church (also known as the Divine Office, and abbreviated here as LotH)...  Keep in mind that I am NOT a theologian...

At a certain level, the LotH is kinda cheesy.  First of all, its structure can seem overly complex.  If you don't have an app to guide you, it involves a large amount of flipping back and forth in one 2000-page volume of a four-volume set (different volumes for different parts of the year - the LotH is slightly different every single day).  That's why I donated my books, and use an app on my iPad/iPhone.  I let someone else do the hard part.

Second, you may notice that a bunch of it is fairly ridiculous text (from a 2019 perspective), which happens to be from the Book of Psalms.  In fact, the heart of the LotH is built all around the psalms. If you say all of the little offices that make up the LotH (Invitatory, Morning Prayer, Office of Readings, Midmorning Prayer, Midday Prayer, Midafternoon Prayer, Evening Prayer, and Night Prayer), over a four-week period you will have said essentially all 150 of the psalms.  The question I frequently had in my early days with the LotH was "Why would they choose the Psalms, some of which are bizarre, and not something more clearly relevant?"  Then one day I heard someone make a comment that led me to really appreciate having the psalms at the heart of it.

The person said "The psalms are the song/prayer of the Church".  That statement didn't do much of anything for me.  Then they explained a little further.  My version of this explanation goes like this: The Church, in its infancy, was made up primarily of a bunch of young Jews.   The Psalms date from hundreds of years before Jesus, and would have been well-known to earnest, pious Jews.  Thus these were some of the texts/prayers/songs that were closest to the heart of the early followers of Jesus.  And indeed, Jesus himself was a "good Jew".  Jesus himself would have been familiar with the Psalms!  The New Testament (as a text) wasn't a part of Jesus' daily life, because it hadn't been written yet.  But the Psalms had been.

Once I had processed all of that, I immediately had a greater appreciation for having the Psalms at the heart of the Liturgy of the Hours.  When I sing it, say it, read it, or just listen in my car, I feel I am joining my voice to that of a young James, Peter, Andrew... and even a young Jesus, with his parents Mary and Joseph.  The Church (as people) came to see Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of what was written in the Psalms. Thus in a sense the Psalms really WERE the "prayer of the Church", from its very earliest days.

The parts of the LotH that are not Psalms, those parts are easier for me to appreciate.  General prayers, short readings from the Bible, readings from the sermons/letters of various bishops, saints, etc., twice a day the Our Father, and generally one hymn per "little office".  Giving my day little infusions of these things throughout the day undoubtedly will make me a better person, eventually.

If you are reading this, and are curious to know more, let me know - I'd be happy to chat more about my own experiences.  I only rarely say ALL of the little "offices" that make up a given day's LotH, but I do my best.  I've found that my morning commute is more than enough time for Invitatory and Office of Readings, and if there is a large line at the gate, my commute is sometimes enough for Morning Prayer as well.  I do all of these by playing an audio app (the app includes written text as well, but I obviously can't do anything but listen to the audio, while driving).  Similarly, I'll do Evening Prayer on my commute home.  I always intend to do Night Prayer while lying in bed, but usually forget.  As for the three "daytime" offices, sometimes I get to listen to those at lunch.  Sometimes not.  But I keep trying, each day.