It is clear from the Gospel that Jesus enjoyed festive
occasions, particularly meals with friends and sometimes with those on the
margin of society like tax collectors and sinners. The religious leaders frowned
on his social activities, accusing him of being a drunkard and a glutton. It never deterred
Jesus because he knew that it is often when we gather socially that we are more receptive
to what he has to tell us of the Kingdom of Heaven. He likens it to a wedding banquet
and it is clearly a place for fun and fellowship — primarily with God but also with each
other.
It is not insignificant that he chose bread and wine as the symbols by which he comes into
our lives in a spiritually significant way — as the food for our pilgrimage to God. Though
we have surrounded this with a religious service which includes learning about Him through
the Biblical teachings (particularly the Gospel) and a time for sorrow, and prayer for the
community both locally and worldwide. The Eucharist is the fellowship meal whereby
we gather with our Lord. In it we put into practice the four principle marks of
the Christian Church as found in Acts 2:42:
They devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship,
the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Communion with Jesus is thus in the context of a sacred meal.
In the post-Easter stories there is much about the disciples gathering with their
Risen Lord. At Emmaus, he was recognised in the middle of a meal when he broke bread;
on the lakeside he prepared breakfast for the disciples. In today’s Gospel he asks
for food and they gave him broiled fish.
Sharing food and fellowship with friends is part of the social life of our society
but in a religious context it is also a gathering with the Lord.
In a wonderful film, Babette's Feast, a foreign woman living in an austere
religious village in Scandinavia eventually gets them to unfreeze by cooking them a
wonderful and sumptuous meal. Everything they stood for in religion — the
Puritan
ideal that to enjoy oneself is a sin — was challenged and whilst they tried very
hard not to enjoy themselves, it was the simple goodness of Babette and her
fantastic cooking that won them over. They came to see that Christianity can be
enjoyable and that they really don’t have to be miserable. More importantly they
came to see that the moment they unfroze they became much more real to each other as
well as allowing joy to enter into their relationship with God. It transformed them.
The Eucharist, for all its religious language and action is basically a
fellowship gathering with Jesus and he cooks us a sumptuous meal — the centrepiece of
which is his own self-giving to us. All good cooks put a lot of themselves into the
food they offer and none more than Jesus himself.
Today we have two parties. The Eucharist when we celebrate with our Bishop and
give thanks for 100+ years of fellowship in the Lord here at St. John’s and
tonight’s party which is an extension of that Fellowship. Both are opportunities
to celebrate with Jesus. Let’s party!
