This article is part 1 of 2 on parish hospitality. You can read the second article here. Want details on the workshop The Gospel of Welcome? Check the end of this article!
“Welcome one another, then, as Christ welcomed you, for the glory of God.” — Romans 15:7
Every parish wants to be known as welcoming. Yet many of us have experienced walking into a church and feeling invisible, unsure of where to sit, or whether anyone even noticed we came. Real Christian hospitality goes far beyond a friendly handshake at the door. It is a way of seeing every person with the eyes of Christ—especially the stranger, the seeker, and the one who hesitates at the threshold.
God’s Welcome Comes First
The starting point for all hospitality is God Himself. Scripture reveals again and again that the Lord’s heart is open to the outsider. Abraham runs from his tent to greet three strangers; Israel is commanded to love the alien because they once were strangers in Egypt; Jesus shares table fellowship with sinners and outcasts.
At the Last Supper, the Son of God kneels to wash the feet of His disciples, modeling a love that serves. To be hospitable, then, is not simply to be polite—it is to mirror the very nature of God, whose generosity restores communion. Hebrews reminds us: “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.”
When the Church practices this kind of welcome, she becomes a living icon of divine mercy.
Hospitality Is Evangelization in Action
The word evangelization often brings to mind preaching or teaching. Yet the Gospel is proclaimed first through encounter. Hospitality is the soil where the seed of faith can take root.
Imagine a visitor—let’s call her Joanna—who hasn’t been to Mass in years. She arrives with her young son, anxious and unsure. In the first ten minutes, she decides whether this parish will become her spiritual home or a brief, disappointing stop. Those ten minutes matter profoundly.
If Joanna is greeted with confusion, locked doors, or indifference, she may conclude that the Church has no room for her. But if she is met with genuine care—a smile in the parking lot, help finding a seat, someone who learns her name—her defenses soften. Before a word of doctrine is spoken, she has already encountered the Gospel through love.
Hospitality, then, is not a sideline ministry; it is the first act of evangelization.
Preparing the Way at Mass
Radical hospitality requires planning and intentionality. It means setting up structures that make it easier for everyone to do the right thing—to notice, to serve, to include.
Before Mass, that may look like clear signage, accessible seating, ramps, hearing supports, or greeters who recognize newcomers. During Mass, it could mean ushers who help families find a place, worship aids that make participation easier, and announcements phrased as warm invitations rather than reminders.
After Mass, it continues in the priest or deacon’s personal word of thanks, in parishioners who linger to meet someone new, in volunteers who invite guests for coffee. None of these gestures are complicated, but together they shape an atmosphere where strangers become friends and friends become family.
When done well, the liturgy’s beauty is not hindered by hospitality—it is amplified. The Mass proclaims that God gathers His people to a shared altar; our human warmth makes that truth visible.
Extending Welcome Beyond the Narthex
A truly welcoming parish doesn’t stop caring once people walk out the doors. The Church’s hospitality must spill over into the world.
This may take many forms: parishioners who invite neighbors to dinner, small groups that intentionally include those on the margins, ministries that serve the lonely or homebound. Even the tone of parish communication—bulletins, websites, social media—should speak inclusion rather than insider language.
Radical hospitality means re-imagining parish life as a network of relationships instead of a list of programs. It asks each of us: Whom have I not yet seen? and How can I make space for them?
When every baptized person takes ownership of welcome, the Church becomes what she was meant to be—a community that embodies the mercy of Christ in daily life.
The Courage to Pray With Others
Few gestures express authentic Christian hospitality more deeply than prayer offered in the moment of need. Many of us promise, “I’ll pray for you,” but hesitate to pray with someone—right there in the pew, the parish hall, or the parking lot.
Yet such prayer can be brief and simple: “Lord, please bring your comfort to my friend in this struggle. We trust your love.” The act of pausing to invite God into another person’s situation communicates both faith and tenderness. It reminds us that hospitality is not only social; it is spiritual.
To pray with someone is to welcome Christ Himself into the encounter. It takes courage, but it often leaves both people changed.
Hospitality as a Habit of Discipleship
Structuring the importance of hospitality is important, but a hospitable parish is built by hospitable disciples. That culture grows not from slogans but from daily habits:
- noticing those who seem alone and greeting them by name;
- introducing visitors to others rather than leaving them adrift;
- offering help before it’s asked for;
- following up with a newcomer after their first visit.
These small choices, repeated week after week, form hearts that are generous, attentive, and outward-focused.
Hospitality ceases to be “someone else’s job.” It becomes part of who we are as followers of Christ. We are all people of welcome because we are all recipients of divine mercy.
One Step at a Time
Transforming parish culture doesn’t require grand initiatives. It begins with each of us committing to one next step: learning to greet by name, volunteering as a greeter once a month, ensuring accessibility for people with disabilities, or simply sitting with someone new at coffee and donuts.
These acts, small but intentional, build the fabric of belonging. As they multiply, the parish begins to radiate peace. Visitors sense something different—a warmth that cannot be manufactured, because it flows from Christ Himself.
A Church That Feels Like You Could Belong
When a parish truly lives the Gospel of welcome, evangelization becomes natural. People who once felt excluded discover they are loved by God and others. Longtime members are renewed by the joy of serving. The community becomes a sign of hope to those who hunger for connection and healing that can only come from the Lord.
To welcome as Christ welcomes is to make the invisible God visible. It is to say, with our words and actions alike: You matter. You belong. You are loved. Welcome home.
Want a workshop to help your parish grow in this kind of radical hospitality?
The Mark 5:19 Project offers a workshop on The Gospel of Welcome: Becoming a Parish of Radical Hospitality, a practical formation experience for parishes ready to make the shift from “nice” to truly evangelizing.
Learn more or request a conversation here.
