CHAPTER THREE
A SURVEY OF HOSPITALITY: FROM CHRISTIAN MONASTICISM TO POST-REFORMATION PERIOD
3.0 Introduction
This chapter is a continuation of the background survey. It is going to inform us about the various shifts that the concept of hospitality has undergone after the success of the early church.
In particular the fourth and fifth centuries, hospitality was negatively affected by Emperor Constantine's decree, which made Christianity the state religion in the Roman Empire; for nominal Christianity now replaced devoted Christianity. Similarly, devoted hospitality as exemplified by the monasteries replaced nominal hospitality that clearly contrasted Christ's hospitality as we have discussed in the previous chapter. As we move through the sixteenth century reformation, where the likes of Luther and Calvin come to the fore, the concept of hospitality, as Christ spelt it through his earthly ministry, had grown feeble and in need of re- activation and rejuvenation. The activator was found not later than in the eighteenth century in the name of Rev. John Wesley- an Anglican Minister who came to become the founder of the Methodist church as we know it to day. His new method of leading the flock towards renewed hospitality, no doubt, gave birth to the Methodist church. Thus, in attempting Christ by attempting to lead the life of love, this chapter has a lot for the African church of the twenty first century to draw some insights as we grapple with the issues of our time.
Christian monasticism is believed to have begun with St Anthony of Egypt who withdrew into Egypt desert in the 270s AD; and was followed by other monks (hermits). This movement developed mainly out of the zeal for a life of Christian perfection (see Greer 1974: 37). After the declaration of Christianity as one of the officially recognised religions in the Roman Empire by emperors Constantine and Licinus at Milan in AD.313, persecutions ended which "also meant the end of a certain quality of Christian commitment" (McBrien 1984:613). This also saw the emergency of the monk as a powerful force to reckon with. Consequently, the monk succeeded
"the martyr as the expression of unqualified witness and protest against worldliness" (Bosch 1991:202).
At the very early stage of the monastic movement, the monks lived only a solitary life in the Egyptian desert. One of the significances of this early period of monastic movement is that, the monk was engaged in the task of, 'creating his space', that is, "building a spiritual room capable of giving hospitality" (Greer 1974:37). It is no wonder, therefore, that the founding of the first hospital-the hospital of Edessa in Syria in A.D 370 which was meant for the treatment of travellers attacked by illness, as well as strangers and inhabitants affected by famine-was inspired by the hermit, St. Ephraim (Bonet-Maury 1913:804). With time, the Christian monastic movement that was originally an individual affair incorporated a community character. St.
Pachomius developed this community character when he began to organise the Egyptian anchorites into groups/communities. These communities of monks in the desert were good in many ways: They were exemplary in welcoming strangers. They associated with the poor and the maimed and invited all of them to their tables as guests, hence, raising to the occasion by practising Christ's hospitality as he set it (Matthew 25:31-46). Itis no wonder that Bishop John Chrysostom advised the Christians of his time to visit these communities of monks in the desert, and learn from them (Greer 1974: 42).
After visiting the monastic communities In Egypt and Palestine in A.D.357, and gotten impressed, St. Basil teamed up with St. Gregory Nazianzen and they founded a monastic community near Neocaesarea in Pontus. Even though monasticism had already made its way to Asia minor under Eustace of Sebaste, it is Basil, who was one of the most important figures in
the Eastern monasticism, organised it and laid down the regular foundations that speedily became predominant in the East (Greer 1974: 38). To do this, he first sought to bring solitary and communal life together. In seeking to implement this, he attempted to integrate the contemplative life of the monks with the life of the society at large (Greer 1974: 40). He therefore endeavoured to serve the purpose of attempting to "ensure that the monastic ideal will be preserved, the precepts of Christ obeyed, and the Christian life embodied perfectly as source of inspiration and hope to the world" (Greer 1974:40). In evaluating Basils' effort of integrating lives of the monks with the life of the rest of the society, one reminisces Emperor Constantine's effort of making Christianity a state religion which diluted Christianity once and for all, because by attending the church service, one was only fulfilling his state duties rather than fulfilling Devine obligations. Similarly, monastic life was diluted in a manner that it has never been the same again. Despite this 'anomaly', the monks not only welcomed Christ himself who identifies himself with strangers, the poor and the needy, but also bore witness to Christ who is host and gift.
Another outstanding figure in early Christian monasticism is St. Martin of Tours. Interestingly, Martin supported the transfer of Eastern monastic ideals to the west by establishing a monastery near Poitiers in AD 362 (McBrien 1984:618). In so doing, he maintained the tradition of practising Christ's hospitality. He is the power behind the success of the monasteries that developed in the West, afterwards, which now took the practice of Christ's hospitality seriously.
In general, monastery's operation in the Middle Ages in dispensing hospitality is characterised by the establishment of hospices or almshouses, that is, the so-called Xenodocia. As Bonet- Mauray (1913; 805) says:
These hospices rendered valuable service at a time when the roads were infested by robbers, or exposed to frost and snow, e.g. those leading through the passes of high mountains, and subject to thick fogs or snowstorms.
This explains that, the monasteries used these hospices to extend hospitality to travellers attacked by thieves, and to those who were overcome by fatigue or benumbed with cold. These hospices also served as houses of welcome to pilgrims.
In the 6th Century, St. Benedict of Nursia emerged to give a distinctive shape to western monasticism. He imposed the duty of Christ's hospitality "upon the monks in the West" (Bonet- Maury 1913: 806). He was deeply convinced that the practice of Christ's hospitality was an essential part of monastic life. This is evident in his Monastic Rule, which is generally known as: "The Rule of St. Benedict"- which greatly influenced Christian Monasticism especially the western tradition. An illustration: The first sentence of Chapter 53 of the Rule of St Benedict states:
All guests to the monastery should be welcomed like Christ, because He will say, 'I was stranger, and you took me in' (Matthew25:35).33
St Benedict strongly held that in welcoming strangers, one welcomes Christ who identifies with strangers, the poor and the needy, hence being hospitable, one gains salvation. In the same Chapter 53, St Benedict gives instructions on how hospitality in the monastery should operate in concrete terms:
When a guest is announced, the superior or brothers should greet him with charity; and they should pray together in order to be at peace. The kiss of peace should not be given until after prayer because of the deviousness of the devil.
The greeting and farewell should be offered with great humility for with bowed head and a prostrate body all shall honour in the guest the person of Christ. For it is Christ who is really being received. Guests, after reception, are to be led to prayer. Then the superior or his delegate shall sit with them. .... The abbot will wash the guest's hands and, together with the brothers, his feet. Then they shall recite, 'we have received your mercy, 0 Lord, in the midst of your temple', (Psalms 84:9). Special care should be taken of the poor and pilgrims, for Christ is truly made welcome in them; ... The kitchen of the abbot and guests should be separate from that of the community so as not to disturb the brothers, for the visitors, of whom there are always a number, come and go at irregular hours ...34
33Benedict of Nursia 1975.The Rule ofSt Benedict, translated by A.C. Meisel and M.L del Mastro (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and co., Inc.,) p .89
34 Benedict of Nursia 1975.The Rule ofSt Benedict, translated by A.C. Meisel and M.L del Mastro (Garden City, New York: Doubleday and co., Inc.,) p .89-90.
In the above instructions that St Benedict gave, we learn that he believed in the importance of prayer when welcoming a stranger. For as Winzen (1974:57) says, "In prayer man (sic) takes his stand in the presence of God"; as the spirit of God is given room to take charge of the encounter between the host and the guest. By giving prominence to prayer when dispensing hospitality, St Benedict was probably alluding to Jesus' exhortation that "where two or three meet in my name, I am there among them"(Matthew 18:20). In recommending that the kiss of peace be given to the guests, St Benedict aimed at making the guests to become "a part of the community, to share in the peace of the monastery" (Winzen 1974:59). St Benedict, in the above text, portrayed a balanced theology when he was able to recognise the fact that human life ispsychosomatic- from the two Greek words psycho (soul/mind) and soma (body). That is, human life consists of material and spiritual aspects, and since the ministry of Christ dealt with both body and soul, Christianity cannot therefore ignore or isolate any of the two aspects. Itis for that reason that he (Benedict) recommended that both the material needs and the spiritual needs of the guest should be taken care of. Winzen clearly underlined this point when he wrote:
St Benedict realised that 'religion' is not something which moves in a vacuum, that the spiritual is not separated from the material, especially since the word of God was made flesh, and the living kindness(humanitas) of our Lord and saviour has appeared to us (Winzen 1974:62).
On the whole, Christian monasticism sought to apply Christ's hospitality as much as they could.
They could have erred-especially at the very early stage of the monastic movement-where the pioneers of the movement first isolated themselves in the desert which may seem to have contrasted with Christ's hospitality which is all-embracing and not isolationist; but as time wore on, they were able to re-organise themselves better as our previous discussion has shown; and their dispensation of hospitality, now, became compatible with Christ's ideal hospitality. Itis no wonder that in most parts of Central Europe and many other parts of the world, it is these missionary monks who Christianised them. Just as these monks sought to learn from Christ, we as the church of the 21sI century need to draw more lessons from them-as we make Christ's hospitality the standard of measuring true hospitality.