Hospitality must be radical
The practice of radical hospitality is generally considered a keystone to a church’s success. In his Oct. 6 blog posting, “The Battle is Won or Lost in Your Lobby,” Schnase reflected on a talk given by Claudia Levy at the Leadership Nexus event in Shreveport, La., in September.
“She said a preacher may preach the best sermon since the Apostle Paul … but if someone walks in your front door and is ignored, neglected, rudely treated, pounced upon in an overdone fashion, or welcomed in a mechanical and perfunctory manner, then you will likely never see the visitor return.”
Schnase responded: “I’m not suggesting every usher, greeter, staff member and volunteer must be perfect. But they must be authentic, hospitable and attentive. Directed by the right motivations, sustained by the Spirit, attentive in a caring way, we can do this right. We have to look at the guest experience through the eyes of a visitor.”
This post sparked lively discussion on the blog from people sharing their own stories of hospitality gone awry or being nonexistent.
“We have the same problem in a lot of our churches,” wrote Michael D. Pope, an administrator at Central Methodist University in Fayette, Mo., who frequently responds to Schnase’s blog postings. “We need to stop, look around and observe who is in our churches today. Who knows? Maybe Jesus is sitting in the middle of our congregation and yet somehow we miss him. How sad, but all too true.”
Pope’s response is the type of reaction Schnase is aiming for from church leaders concerned about the future of their congregations and denominations.
Radical hospitality, Schnase told participants at the evangelism conference, “is not a church growth strategy … not the bishops’ strategy. It is fundamental to our faith. Jesus said, ‘Don’t put obstacles in the way of people.’ ”
Radical hospitality challenges church members to stretch far beyond simply being friendly. The words shape broader images of welcoming and caring. They bring to mind many examples of when Jesus did the unexpected by welcoming strangers, people considered to be unclean and those out of the mainstream.
“This is hospitality that goes the second mile,” Schnase said.
Practical framework
Schnase said bishops, cabinets, pastors and church leaders must do all they can to help congregations fulfill the church's mission. The five practices offer a practical framework and a common language to help churches understand their mission and fit it into their lives in a practical way, he said.
These fundamental processes are so "critical to a congregation's mission that failure to perform them in an exemplary way results in congregational deterioration and decline," Schnase said.
By the same token, repeating and improving those practices lead congregations to health, vitality and fruitfulness.
"These words capture the core process by which God uses congregations to make disciples," Schnase writes in his book. "Congregations offer the gracious invitation, welcome, and hospitality of Christ so that people experience a sense of belonging; God shapes souls and changes minds through worship, creating a desire to grow closer to Christ; God's Spirit nurtures people and matures faith through learning in community; with increased spiritual maturity, people discern God's call to help others through mission and service; and God inspires people to give generously of themselves so that others can receive the grace they have known."
Schnase said every group and ministry in the church should engage in radical hospitality.
"Radical hospitality is about taking the second mile, going the extra step, not being pleased to just get along but offering our very best and our very highest," he said. "Our greatest strength is that we love one another, and our lives are so interweaved that we don't know that this keeps people out and is not hospitably bringing people in."
Every church thinks they are friendly and they are — "to the people already there." But radical hospitality requires looking inward and outward. "It stretches us," he said.
Worship, learning and service
The practice of passionate worship isn't routine and isn't a performance, he said. Its purpose is to connect people to God and deepen a relationship with God and one another. "It is worship that allows us to see the world through God's eyes. It is God's way of changing our hearts and minds," said Schnase.
While worship may take many forms, passionate worship must be authentic, engaging, interrelational and life-changing, he added.
As worship creates a desire for more learning and growth, Schnase said the most authentic and Wesleyan component is intentional faith development. This third practice of a fruitful congregation refers to the purposeful learning in community that helps people mature in their faith and grow in their knowledge and love of God. Such opportunities include Bible studies, Sunday school, vacation Bible school and small groups.
would not have ordinarily done if it had not been for our relationship with Christ," he said. "The stretch of Christian discipleship is to take on the practices of love that move us out of our comfort zone and take us to places we would never have been if it had not been for our desire to follow Jesus Christ."
A maturing Christian eventually reaches a point of understanding that all of life belongs to God, leading to a desire to offer oneself "fully back" to Christ. Such is the practice of extravagant generosity, according to Schnase.
"Churches that are thriving are those that unapologetically teach, preach and practice the tithe," he said, and they are not afraid to talk about it. These churches do not focus on the desire to receive more money but on the Christian's need to grow in the spiritual quality of generosity.
Unlike the church in Africa and the Philippines, which are growing exponentially, United Methodists in the United States are being "smothered by a consumerist, materialistic society." The practice of extravagant generosity puts God first and allows God to reshape the giver's life, he said.
During the convocation, participants demonstrated extravagant generosity by contributing $8,824 to Nothing But Nets, the church's anti-malaria campaign.
Schnase notes that the five practices are critical to a congregation's life because they reflect the ministry of Jesus Christ. He reminded the convocation that Jesus' ministry was radical, passionate and intentional and that Jesus also was a risk-taker.
*Green is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Linda Green, (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
