Crazy Catholic Question #158: Radical Hospitality this Advent II

How can we, as a community, “ready our home” here at CTR during Advent and be intentional about reaching out to our visitors on Christmas Eve?

On Christmas Eve we get a massive amount of visitors to our parish – many who only come once a year to pray with us. So in last week’s bulletin I invited our community to think about how we might we concretely “welcome the stranger” to our Church home in much the same way we greet guests visiting our own homes for the first time over the holidays; such as taking extra care to make sure they know where to park; turning on the porch light and greeting them at the door, etc.

Here is a list of some of the really great responses and ideas I received from YOU on how we might “roll out the red carpet” for our visitors. If you would like to help make some of these ideas happen, please let me know (Lisa Brown at dre@ctredeemer.org):

• Set up a “porch light” of sorts with Luminarias; sand & tea light candles in a series of paper bags that guide first time visitors up to the main entrance. 
• Make a sandwich board type “WELCOME” sign with Mass times to place out at our Waldon Rd entrance a few days before Christmas. 
• Be sure our best greeters wearing their biggest smiles are at every door. 
• Remember to wear our nametags and be intentional about introducing ourselves and our family members to the new faces among us. 
• Let visitors know where they can hang their coats and where the bathrooms are located. 
• Personally invite friends and family to celebrate with us at Mass: Christmas Eve at 4PM, 6PM or 10PM (with musical preludes beginning at 9:30PM) or Christmas Day at 10AM. 
• Let visitors know when they are welcome to return by highlighting our regular weekend Mass times in a special way (I’m not sure what this might look like, but it’s a good idea!) 

BUT THIS was my FAVORITE idea by FAR! We would never dream of seating first time visitors to our home at the “kiddie table” so to speak. Rather, we would be sure they were seated in the most comfortable seat at the table; the seat with the very best view of the food, house and decorations, right? Well, our 4:00PM Mass on Christmas Eve is SUCH a heavily attended Mass that we have not one, but TWO overflows set up in both the Chapel and the Bethany Room. What if we filled the overflows with “our regulars” and let our guests enjoy the best seats in the main church? How about that for hospitality!?!?! I love it! AND think of the wonderful spirit that would take over the overflow spaces among our “regulars” if we did this nice thing for our guests! Please consider talking over this striking gesture of hospitality with your family.

One person wrote that we need to communicate through our gestures, words and actions to everyone who walks through the door – visitors and regulars alike - that “without you we are just a beautiful empty house…with you its home.” How lovely…how very lovely.

Send your Crazy Catholic Questions to Lisa Brown at dre@ctredeemer.org or read past columns at www.crazycatholicquestions.blogspot.com.