May 8, 2026

 

Dear Friends,

We began a one-year observance of our twenty-fifth anniversary on September 8, 2025. It will conclude on September 8, 2026. 

As part of our observance, we began, on September 21, 2025, a year of reflections on the heart of the Interfaith Peace Project – the Interpath Principles. The reflections are being sent to you on the eighth and twenty-first of each month. If you would like to view the previous reflections, you can find them on our blog at: interfaithpeaceproject.org.

If you have anything that you would like to share, please contact:

Thomas P. Bonacci, C.P.
peace@thomaspbonacci.net
925-787-9279

---

THE INTERFAITH PEACE PROJECT
A Legacy of Peace-Making for Twenty-Five Years
September 8, 2001 – September 8, 2026
HOSPITALITY

INTERPATH PRINCIPLE SEVEN

We delight in the presence of one another.
Hospitality is at the heart of our work and outreach.

Two strangers embracing in tears at a refugee camp,
 finding solace and solidarity in each other’s struggles. 
Adobe Stock 767509086 by Justlight

COMMENTARY

We strive to offer a safe and welcoming haven. We strive to accept people as they are. This attitude of the heart stems from a deep practice of respect and openness, inviting our companions to open the door to the depths of their hearts. We seek to be what people need us to be. Rumi reminds us, “We humans are each a guesthouse.” As a guesthouse, we open our hearts and minds to those who may walk with us, seeking to be fully alive. 

REFLECTION

The Sufi poet, Rumi, composed a beautiful poem in which all people of the World would one day sit down and enjoy a great feast together. He envisioned a table delightfully set, waiting for us to stop fighting and join in the feast. If you ever have the chance to savor Rumi’s, One Song, seize the opportunity:

… just beyond the arguing,
where we are all one people,
there is a long table of companionship
beautifully set
 and just waiting for us to sit down.

Isaiah imagined the fulness of time as a moment of hospitality when the Nations would come as cherished guests to the table of the Lord (consider Isaiah 25: 1-10 thoughtfully and prayerfully).

Many faith traditions have hospitality at the core of their self-understanding of what it means to be blessed by God and live in peace. For many, the principal belief is the dignity of each and every person. The Divine is lovingly manifested in everyone, whether they know it or not. Therefore, everyone should be treated with respect, welcome, and gracious hospitality.

In the Gospel of Mark, there is a powerful story about the radical hospitality of Jesus. He enters into the house of Levi, who is notorious since he oppresses even his own people by engaging in extortion (see Mark 2: 13-17). The willingness of Jesus “to dine with sinners and outcasts” disturbs the powerful and self-righteous. The religious officials are beside themselves as Jesus makes friends out of their enemies.

There is a wonderful story about the Buddha drinking tea with his arch-would-be enemy, Mara. The story is not considered to be factual or historical, but its message is powerful and pointed. Buddha welcomes with joy the one who would destroy him with the illusions of greed, power, and success. 

In all these examples, hospitality is born from the heart. Our willingness to share a cup of tea with another person is the outward manifestation of the deep, inward love in the human heart. This is the essence of interfaith practice.

Blessings to you, Beloved Community, for all the times you opened the door of your house and people entered the soul of your heart. Never be afraid of the love within you as it empowers you to be your true and authentic self.