Sunday, March 13, 2005
How To Eat Like A Christian
Tod Bolsinger at It Takes a Church has been doing a series on eating as a spiritual disipline. The series has emphasized that sharing meals together is an important part of our lives as Christians together. He concluded the series on Friday with on post Calvin's view of communion. (HT:SmartChristian)
So why is it so hard to sup with someone? When you can break into someone's schedule, most restaurants these days are too noisy for genuine conversation, particularly if they are anything near affordable. I think it is probabaly precisely because God is so active in such situations. Most people are intimidated by God's action in their lives and go out of their way to keep it to a minimum.
So here is one of those crazy ideas of mine. What if a pastor endeavored to serve this sacrament to his/her congregation each year by having dinner with each of them. I know, a lot of churches have a "Table for Six" sort of thing, but do pastors, "Ministers of the Word and Sacrament," make an effort to make sure they have provided such to each parishioner? "Why that's impossible," they protest, "the congregation is too big." I wonder then, in light of this view of the communion sacrament, can a pastor really minister to a congregation of such size?
Even more, this encounter happens amongst ordinary people through very common elements. Scripture urges us to view the Lord’s Supper as the most ordinary of events. 1 Corinthians 11 depicts much more a family meal with the usual “dysfunction� rather than a religious ceremony conducted to the harmonies of Bach, played on an organ, accompanied by a choir and utilizing silver serving pieces.I really agree with Tod here. The art of the meal is lost today. Most people "grab a bite" on their way from point A to point B. That said, remember the last time you sat at a meal with someone where the meal was the point. Now, try to think of some other time you have spent with those people where you communicated with them as well, felt as comfortable with them, or had a better sense of where they were with God. Pretty hard to do isn't it.
The human elements of bread and wine, hands and mouths, gathered together, breaking and pouring, blessing and giving, eating and drinking are from the most common human experience, meals. Jesus seemed to break all customs about eating, spurning formality and fussiness, caring little about the character of those who ate with him. For him, it was an act of friendship and basic necessity, a most ordinary experience where people came to expect the extraordinary because of his presence and where consequently people were saved and transformed.
So why is it so hard to sup with someone? When you can break into someone's schedule, most restaurants these days are too noisy for genuine conversation, particularly if they are anything near affordable. I think it is probabaly precisely because God is so active in such situations. Most people are intimidated by God's action in their lives and go out of their way to keep it to a minimum.
So here is one of those crazy ideas of mine. What if a pastor endeavored to serve this sacrament to his/her congregation each year by having dinner with each of them. I know, a lot of churches have a "Table for Six" sort of thing, but do pastors, "Ministers of the Word and Sacrament," make an effort to make sure they have provided such to each parishioner? "Why that's impossible," they protest, "the congregation is too big." I wonder then, in light of this view of the communion sacrament, can a pastor really minister to a congregation of such size?
