August 28, 2016

Helen Jacobi

Ordinary 22     Proverbs 25:6-7     Psalm 112     Hebrews 13:1-2, 8,15-16     Luke 14:1, 7-14

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Our neighbours at the City Mission serve dinner every night of the week. What is served depends on the donations of the day. Sometimes there is plenty, sometimes there is not. Last Tuesday evening the food served was a bit special. Rather than coming in and lining up at the counter for a portion, the City Mission regulars were welcomed to tables laid with white table cloths where they were served a 4 course meal. They were served by some rather famous waiters – TV stars, rugby players, politicians; they ate food cooked by some top class chefs. By all accounts it was a special night. Those who served were humbled by the experience. They were all well used to being served at fancy dinners. This time it was their turn to serve.

In Jesus’ time sharing of meals were important ways of socialising – they were very structured affairs, whether a family meal or a gathering of friends or business associates. Jesus is invited one day to the house of the leader of the Pharisees, for a Sabbath meal. This is not a family tea, this is a highly structured and ritualised meal in the house of the wealthy.

The meal would have been served by slaves and servants, and Jesus notes how the guests take the places of honour.

There was at any of these meals a hierarchy of seating – the top table was reserved for the top guests, and each table was ranked. Now there wasn’t a seating plan or name cards – it was much more subtle than that. An invitation would have been sent and it would include the guest list. So you could figure out ahead of time where your place was on the list. First century Palestine was a very stratified society and so everyone knew their place. Then on the day of the banquet a messenger would come with a reminder invitation. [1]

If you were of a humble disposition you would sit lowish in the pecking order but if you were ambitious you would probably risk pushing up the ranks a bit and see if you could get away with it. The risk was that your host would come and embarrass you and say – excuse me but please give up your seat for this guest. The trouble was that the best table had the best food and wine and the lower table had the cheap stuff, with lots of bread and not much else. [2]

Jesus seems at first to be simply commenting on the social etiquette and reminding people of their manners – he quotes Proverbs (25:6-7) – it is better to be asked “friend, come up higher” than to be embarrassed. But then he goes that bit further and says don’t invite your friends to dinner, because they will repay you – indeed all invitations, gifts, were very definitely expected to be repaid by something of similar value – but instead invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. All groups of people who were considered unclean in Jewish law and so very unsuitable meal companions.[3]

I am sure the Pharisee, the host, a religious leader, was thrilled by Jesus’ advice. I wonder what place he gave Jesus at the table?

Meals and banquets are often the subject of Jesus’ teaching – sometimes the banquet is the heavenly banquet of the future, sometimes the way the kingdom of God will be, sometimes Jesus is simply enjoying a good meal with friends.

Jesus wasn’t really interested in people’s table manners, he was instead challenging the social order of the day and offering a new model for living: friend come higher up, come and join us at our table.

Dr Rosemary Dewerse said in a recent blog:

“Spaciousness is something I believe Jesus invites us into. As we follow him we are caught up into the big dreams of God, visions that have room enough for everyone, for every living thing in creation. Following Jesus we have the opportunity to see things from God’s-eye-view, a perspective of reconciliation and boundless hope. And we can live, even amongst the crap and tears and struggle, expectant of kairos, of the inbreaking of the Spirit who goes before us. [4]

Jesus is doing much more here than reminding us of good table manners; Jesus is challenging us to think about space and hospitality – in our lives personally; as communities; and on a global level too.

Global conversations are dominated at the moment by the American elections – by the Trump mantras about building walls and excluding people of Moslem faith. And while I am sure all of us sitting here today reject those kind of politics I worry about the public discourse, the public conversations that become normalized. I remember last year when we hosted a dialogue about housing speakers who shocked us with stories of racism and abuse from our own communities.

Jenni Broom reminded us last week to watch our language when talking about refugees – using words like “waves” and “hordes” of refugees demean the people of whom we speak. And now in France Moslem women are being harassed for swimming in modest swimwear. Some municipalities are trying to outlaw the “burkini” (swimwear designed for Moslem women). This is the height of absurdity and yet exclusion becomes the norm and not the abnormal.

In our city of Auckland as we become incredibly rich with cultural diversity we have to work at welcoming all to the table. Racism or prejudice creep very easily into our private and public discourse. As we come to make our choices in the council elections soon listen carefully to candidates and who they wish to welcome to the table, and who they might exclude.

And coming back to our neighbourhood – this place. The City Mission not only serves dinner every day but also lunch if and when there is food donated for lunch. Some members of our community have suggested that we might take on a Sunday lunch once a month. As we leave our worship here on a Sunday to go to a café, or home to a warm lunch, people begin to queue next door. What if once a month we organized ourselves to prepare lunch so it could be served to our neighbours? Some of us can cook; others can donate the ingredients; others can assist the Mission staff to serve and clean up. We haven’t worked out all the logistics yet but we are working on it. So think about whether you might like to be on a team.

The writer of the letter to the Hebrews says: “do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.” The writer is referring to the time when Sarah and Abraham hosted 3 strangers to lunch (Genesis 18) – they told them they would have a child – Sarah laughed and said – don’t be silly I am too old. But the angels were right. You never know what happens when you offer hospitality.

We gather around a table every week. A table with no name places, no hierarchy, where all are welcome, all are given places of honour. What do we learn at this table? What are we sent out to do? Who might we welcome and say – friend, move up higher, take my place, let me serve you.

[1] p289 New Interpreter’s Bible vol 9

[2] p286 New IB

[3] p287 New IB

[4] http://tekareongawai.org/talanoa/2016/8/23/big-hearted-people