Never Underestimate a Word of Welcome

Welcome. Welcoming

More years ago than I care to remember, I was settling into my seat in my high school Algebra II class when one of my classmates slipped me a note. It was an invitation to a youth revival at a local Baptist church.

I grew up an Episcopalian in a blue collar oil patch town in West Texas where Episcopalians were close to being a curiosity.  More than once over the years I found myself explaining the Anglican Via Media.

Evangelical Protestantism was the default setting for Anglos in West Texas.  In that part of the world, Anglos also tacitly included African-Americans. And while the Catholic community included plenty of Anglos, the number of Hispanic Catholics was far greater.

One consequence of all this was the vague impression among my peers that I was not really Christian.  I seemed to be neither really Protestant fowl nor Catholic fish. This meant I usually received an invitation to church or to a revival two or three times per school year. The only invite I ever accepted was to attend a movie presented by Billy Graham Ministries called The Restless Ones. (I did not respond to the emotional appeal or the altar call at the end of the movie.)

Then Came College

Like a lot of young people, college posed a challenge to my faith. The insularity of dorm life combined with a lack of transportation and the distance from the college to any church cut my attendance at Church to zero.  Our campus was outside the city limits, and the nearest church was at least 3 miles away.

Mine was a small school – just 325 students when I entered and 300 by the end of my second semester.  And there was no campus ministry office, nor did any local congregations have any noticeable outreach to students.

Being so ‘out on my own’ brought out some previously latent skepticism in my character. It wasn’t huge, but combined with the freedom to indulge in collegiate vices it was more than enough to leave me quite happy with being a lapsed Christian, at least in terms of religious practice.

But toward the end of my Junior year, a series of events left me emotionally shaken and unhappy.  As a result, I found myself being drawn toward a return to church.

The Problem Of Shame

Every time I contemplated returning to church, however, I was overcome with embarrassment, shame, and a sense of anxiety.

Returning to church meant acknowledging that my estrangement and my relaxed behavioral standards were wrong.  And like many before and since, I was apprehensive about whether or not I would be welcomed. Among other things, anxiety drove my desire to return to church.  The anxiety was a sense of being incapable of living up to even my own relaxed standards, and my fears about my state of grace.

Eventually I summoned the courage to schedule a visit with the priest of my childhood parish.  The welcome I received from him was incredibly soothing.

There was a small group of parish Charismatics who had a special Eucharist on Wednesday nights. The priest recommended I go to this Wednesday Eucharist.  I’m sure it was partly because he was sure of my being warmly welcomed, and partly because it was the first Eucharist available after my visit.

The welcome I received was indeed warm and without any trace of judgment or curiosity about my presence.  Not long afterwards I found myself reminded of some of the evangelical outreaches I experienced in high school.  In particular I was reminded of the lovely note I got from my friend in algebra class.

The common denominator was a spirit of welcome.

The Life-Giving Grace of Welcome

One typical conception of evangelization is that of invitation—finding people and inviting them into a relationship with Jesus.  The relationship often starts by attending a special event – such as the revival my school friend invited me to.  But it can also begin at a regular church service, or even a church social function.

Evangelization also sometimes carries with it an image of having to give someone a “pitch” – talking about Jesus and the faith in a way that seems to presuppose that they do not know anything about Jesus or (generic) Christianity.  But this kind of evangelism can be intrusive and annoying to the person you are trying to reach.

My memory of the evangelism that was most effective in my life has little to do with explanations or persuasion.  It has to do with people making me feel welcome.  Even if I declined the invitation when it was extended I was still being welcomed.

We can see the power of this in the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32). Returning home filled with fear and trepidation he is overwhelmed by the welcome he receives.  We imagine that his gratitude and relief will turn his tentative return to the family into a durable, unbreakable bond of security and love.

Welcoming Someone Is Letting Them Know They Are Wanted

Is there anyone who does not want to feel wanted and welcomed?  Being loved and wanted is one of the most primal and central of human needs.

Evangelization does not require a “sales pitch”.  People who are called to that special form of evangelization are gifted with ways of talking about the faith that illuminates its value to others. But it seems to me that one of the most long-lasting forms of evangelization is simply making someone feel welcomed as a valued presence. This experience can linger with someone for years.  And it may prove to be that crucial bit of incentive when they are hovering, balanced on the edge of a decision to come to Church and experience the faith directly.

A sense of being welcome, whether derived from someone’s outreach or from previous experience as a visitor can be the deciding factor in choosing to visit for a first time, and is definitely important in someone’s decision to return.

People who routinely attend Mass and church events may at times be amused (or even annoyed, sometimes) at being welcomed by a parishioner as they enter the church or as they exit.  But for the stranger, the new, the timid, the formerly alienated dipping their toe in the waters of return, feeling welcomed in those first tentative moments can be critical.  It may do a great deal to insure their return and their integration into parish life.  It may mean more than any homily or choral selections in that day’s service, or announcements of special events or meetings.

Never underestimate a word of invitation or a gesture of welcome. This simple evangelical attempt may count in more ways than you can imagine, even years after you made it.

A Prayer

Our Father in Heaven, fill us with the spirit of welcome shown by the father of the Prodigal Son, that every person we meet can feel how you desire to welcome them into the Communion of the Saints through our own spirit of acceptance and welcome. Make our congregations places that delight in welcoming others into the life of the church, and give us all the gift of accepting and cherishing those who come into our lives hoping for a glimpse of the Risen Lord.   Amen.

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