Our October Bookshelf
Our October Bookshelf
As self-described book enthusiasts, one of the ways we enjoy sharing hospitality is by sharing book recommendations. As wayfarers in our own language hospitality journey, when we find something that has been helpful or thought-provoking, we get excited about sharing it with one another. So, pull up a comfy chair, grab a cozy coffee or tea, and let us pull something from our bookshelf to share with you.
Kristyn’s Pick: Van Opstal, S. (2022). The next worship: Glorifying God in a diverse world. IVP Books, an imprint of InterVarsity Press.
What is the book about? Van Opstal sets up a beautiful rationale for glorifying God through worship practices that invite multilingual and multicultural expressions. With themes like hospitality, solidarity, and mutuality, this book offers principles and practices that invite creative reimagining of worship practices that bring believers together in worship.
What stood out about it? One especially compelling aspect of the book is the author’s use of stories. The ideas about worship and diversity move from theory to reality in the personal narratives of believers and communities. These stories illustrate how people can be spiritually formed through participation in multilingual worship.
How did this connect to language hospitality themes? Among the reasons for engaging in multilingual worship, is that it is an act of welcoming and loving our neighbors while expressing a Christ-like example of hospitality. Here are a few quotes that have left me thinking more deeply about language hospitality:
“As long as our worship makes people feel excluded or in constant visitor status, we are not accomplishing the ministry of biblical hospitality.” (p. 63)
“Leading worship in a multiethnic world requires extending hospitality in ways the church historically has not done. Our desire to include others and embrace them for who they are is communicated in our worship practices.” (p. 73)
“Diverse worship should not be a toll for growth but an expression of hospitality, solidarity and mutuality in reconciliation.” (p. 117)
Derek’s Pick: Butterfield, R. (2018). The gospel comes with a house key: Practicing radically ordinary hospitality in our post-Christian world. Crossway.
What is the book about? Why the biblical and theological rationale for how and why hospitality is an important aspect of representing and living out the Gospel.
What stood out about it? Butterfield provides a number of practical examples of what hospitality can look like. In reality, hospitality, or more specifically, being hospitable isn’t as hard as we might make it. We can create a difficult bar to hurdle if we impose certain standards of what we think hospitality should be like.
As a pastor, I recall times where we would have families in our home and I would labor hard to make things just right because I thought hospitality also had to project/communicate a certain message of welcoming. In some respects, it could be performative. Yet, it is quite challenging to manage the various aspects of “Martha Stewart”-like hospitality, and we weren’t even close. Getting past this level of expectation has been freeing for my family. Butterfield reminds us that people coming over are more interested in learning and seeing who we are rather than having a meal that Gordon Ramsay might serve. (Not that you shouldn’t turn down an invite to Stewart’s or Ramsay’s home if they were to ask.)
How did this connect to language hospitality themes? Being a good host can also mean being a good guest, even if it’s in one’s own home. Guests come into a place of hospitality receiving something from the host. A host that takes the posture of humility recognizes they can receive from their guest, as well.
More to the point, being a host that acts like a guest is a willingness to be served. What will it look like? Good question. There are various ways a guest can bless a host. This type of hospitality recognizes and releases the power dynamic in the host-guest relationship. “Mi casa, su casa” (my house is your house) takes on a different aspect when a guest starts looking around for something in your fridge.