Hospitality

When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, in case they may invite you in return, and you would be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you, for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. -- Luke 14:12-14

When Ken purchased the land where the new baby's home is located, there were two widows already living on the land. According to Ugandan law, the widows are to be either be given a small plot in which they can continue living or Ken is to help find and finance a new home for them. Their own families are buried on this land, so it was unthinkable for Ken to have them move off of the land. One of the widows is even caring for several grandchildren that have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS. When the law required to go one mile, Ken made the choice to go two (Matthew 5:41). He is giving each of the widows on his property one full acre plus permission to farm and work the land. There is an additional widow that is a neighbor to Ken's property that also cares for her orphaned children due to HIV/AIDS. This same widow cared for and tended the grave site of Vivian Perdew, before there was even plans to build a new baby's home.

We had the opportunity to participate in this hospitality that Ken and Kathy are showing to these strong and resilient women by bringing gifts of kerosene and cooking ingredients. The previous post has several pictures of this encounter. One of the houses is made of mud and is caving in. It is unsafe to sleep in. Another has a metal roof with many holes. In one corner the metal has been broken away and replaced with an old cloth. When it rains, she does not stay dry. Ken will be looking for donations to help these families and build them a new house. To build a decent livable house for these families would cost around $15,000.

In the end, hospitality is not about the food prepared or the gifts given. Hospitality is about honoring your neighbor. Luke reminds us to honor those that are cast off to the margins of society: "the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind." I think we could also add the widows and orphans to this list. Ken and Kathy have given us a beautiful picture of what hospitality to the widows and orphans looks like. We have been brought into this story and have now been able to become participants, in a small but meaningful way, in the practicing of pure religion (James 1:27) here in Uganda.

What was most surprising about our visits to these widows homes was that we became the recipients of hospitality. "Tusenyuse Okulaba, I am happy you are here; You are welcome." Each of the widows greeted us in kind and invited us to come in and sit in their houses. One even quickly ran inside to tidy up the place when she saw us coming. They have shown us honor and have given us all a gift. This is a gift that cannot be expressed in mere words; it must be experienced and felt first-hand.