We were dining at a Chinese restaurant last year when our hostess joyously mentioned she had attended her first Thanksgiving dinner after living in the U.S.A. for over 18 years. Parents of her daughter’s friend had extended the invitation for the traditional turkey and all the trimmings. I was happy she was thrilled to experience this American tradition. But it struck me as sad that it had taken years for her to get an invitation. Besides the word “Thanks-giving” during this season, one word keeps popping into my thoughts: “hospitality.”
I recently attended a workshop for sensitizing social workers in their interactions with the poor. “Hospitality” was bounced around a lot. Greeting a “client” with a handshake, offering a cup of coffee, using facial openness like eye contact and smiles, and seeing problem-solving as a collaborative effort–all suggestions came under “hospitality.” Of course, these are small gestures for big problems, but they certainly have meaning for most people. The 40 social workers seemed empowered.
When Sachem Massasoit and his 90 Indian men ate with William Bradford and some 50 Pilgrims I am sure hospitality was in play. Massasoit’s men brought five deer for the feast, which lasted three days. We know Pilgrim men went “fowling,” so there would be enough meat. Birds, including turkey, were roasted and stuffed with onions and herbs. The feast probably included corn porridge, berry sauce, squash, fish, and nuts. Those four Pilgrim women, who survived that first winter (and the indentured servants, children), must have been bone weary with very soiled aprons! I digress, but what a picture.
It’s interesting to read about the epistemology of the word hospitality. You can go down a long road of discovery, but I don’t want to bore you. Let’s just stick to a few interesting tidbits. Thanks to Online Etymology Dictionary, we find hospitality:
–is rooted in the 14th century word hospital as the “act of being hospitable,” from Old French ospitalité “hospitality; hospital (the caring of a stranger)”;
–from Latin hospitalitem (nominative hospitalitas) “friendliness to guests,” from hospes (genitive hospitis) “guest; host”;
–the word hospice or “rest house for travelers” appears in the 18th century, particularly among monks traveling through the Alps. As we understand the word today, hospice, as a “home for the aged and terminally ill,” was first used in 1879.
It was an “ah-hah” moment to read about the definition of “host” or hospitis. The word is a compound of host and guest. Its usage can lead one to the altar of the Eucharist where we, the guests, are interlinked to the provisions of our most powerful Host, the Lord of hosts. Do you think there is something meaningful here for our Thanksgiving 2015?
There are darker words that circle the hospitality family, words like “hostage” and “hostile.” They’re kind of like the obnoxious guests who spoil the Thanksgiving meal. Hostage comes from the Old French where, among other uses, it was the name for the person held by a landlord for unpaid compensation. Hostile, from late 15c., Middle French, means “belonging to an enemy” or directly from Latin hostilis “of an enemy or characteristic of the enemy” and hostis: simply “enemy.” Since a stranger could either be an enemy or a guest, one can appreciate this ancient fork-in-the-road usage.
A little bit farther back in epistemology, the Greek word for hospitality has some contemporary interest. You know this word in Xenia, Ohio. In 1803, the Rev. Robert Armstrong suggested the Greek word Xenia for the town because it implied friendliness and hospitality to the xenos (guest). Xenophobia is “the fear of that which is perceived to be foreign or strange.” Does this resonate with any attitudes you’ve encountered about the millions of refugees today who, just like the Pilgrims, seek a safe harbor? I agree; it’s a complicated topic.
The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag could have gotten it all wrong that Thanksgiving in 1621, but they didn’t. Both groups reached out beyond their comfort zones. Both were giving and receiving. Both groups were thankful for a good cultural exchange. Because they did this under wise and honorable leadership, they experienced a peace between each group that lasted throughout their lifetimes. It wasn’t perfect, but it was better than the alternatives.
Hebrews 13:2–Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have entertained angels without knowing it.
To view some three-minute videos on Plymouth in 16202-21 check out: www.history.com/topics/mayflower