Strangers at the Door:

Abstract

Hospitality is an ancient practice employed by the people of God which extends God’s loving welcome to the stranger. In post Christian Canada, where church attendance is waning and where Christian faith is viewed with suspicion, hospitality holds promise as a boundary breaking missional activity. While there is increasing interest in hospitality as practiced within churches and communities of hospitality, household hospitality has not been studied. This practical theology research project utilizes practice led research in the examination of Christian hospitality to strangers as practiced within a private household. Hermeneutic phenomenology is the methodological approach used to study the experiences of practitioners in order to create a thick description of the practice, and to identify emerging meanings from the practice. The hospitality of Jesus and the early church as found in Luke Acts provide the theological foundations for the practice, and theoretical contributions by Relational Cultural Theory ( deepen insights as to how mutuality and authentic relationships aid in human connection and growth. The findings of the research, theological underpinnings foun d in Luke Acts, and the theoretical contribution of RCT come together in theological reflection on the practice. Hospitality was found to be a practice that reflects the gospel and the kingdom and is essential to Christian discipleship, mission, and human flourishing. Central to hospitality is the welcome of a stranger, the provision of holistic care, and the movement from disconnection to connection. Hospitality is a practice that contributes to human healing, growth, and transformation. At its core, h ospi tality is grounded in God’s self giving love which is emulated for the sake of others.