Monday March 31: 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1

"The sharing of food lies at the heart of Jesus' ministry.  It's a message of commensality, the act of eating of together".  Daniel G. Deffenbaugh, Gospel Meals:  Reclaiming the Gospel Practice of Commensality.  

Commensality - the act of eating together at the same table.  Seems simple enough.  But Jesus' mealtime habits were the topic of much criticism - why don't you wash your hands ritually before a meal, why do you eat with "outcasts and sinners"?  Members of the Corinthian church were embroiled in ethical dilemmas about what they should eat with whom.  They are important questions because they reflect our understanding about who belongs and who doesn't, and about who we think is important or worthy and who isn't.

So St. Paul has much to say about eating habits and offers principles for making ethical decisions about food, and meals, and table etiquette.

'All things are lawful', but not all things are beneficial.  'All things are lawful', but not all things build up. Do not seek your own advantage, but that of others . . . and then he offers the Corinthian church some specific examples for their situation . . . So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.

St. Paul also has something to say about the shared meal we call the Eucharist and how our everyday meals and the Lord's Supper are connected.  Listen to, or sing along with, the meditation below on the Eucharist and 1 Corinthians 10: 16-17.  You may choose to ponder - what does it mean to me to share food together at the same table with others?

Click on this link One Bread, One Body to listen or sing along.





Marilyn Malton