Casting Nets with the Saints. Chris Stewart

      Pillar 3

       Hospitable

      Being Church means being God’s people, in accordance with the great plan of his fatherly love. This means that we are to be God’s leaven in the midst of humanity. It means proclaiming and bringing God’s salvation into our world, which often goes astray and needs to be encouraged, given hope and strengthened on the way. The Church must be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel.

      — Pope Francis ¹⁵

      An invitation means nothing if, when a person attends an event, retreat, parish, or home, he or she is not made to feel welcomed. When guests arrive in our churches and communities, it is imperative that they feel this is where they belong, that this is family, and this is what they long for. However, our sense of being hospitable must move beyond our natural capabilities. Our welcome must indeed be so real that it gives people a taste of their eternal home. Have you ever spent time with someone you believed was a living saint? Do you remember the feeling of wanting to linger in their presence and longing for the next time you would see them? The saints are sanctuaries of the Lord’s loving arms.