Passover Meal

This year celebrating Easter was a little different. At first I was set on giving up something for Lent, but soon realized my motivation was wrong in doing that because I was not intentionally setting out more time to spend with the Lord. Lent became a way for me to detox from bad habits instead of looking forward to the passion of Christ and the good news of His death and resurrection. But as it would turn out, this Easter season still turned out to be very meaningful.

Last Thursday, traditionally called Maundy Thursday happened to be the Jewish Passover. I'd never made connections to the Passover during Easter time but then again I've never been steeped in tradition either, coming from an evangelical root. I don't even know what Maundy means. But on Thursday we gathered for a meal at church. It was a time to fellowship and see Christ's sacrifice in light of the Passover tradition of Egypt. One really neat thing I learned as we ate roast lamb and drank red wine over the table at church was that the gospels never did mention the supper contents of that last meal Jesus had with his disciples. There was no dinner menu or passover recipe. Perhaps the writer really did want to signify that Christ was to be the Passover Lamb, the the Bread of life, the perfect sacrifice.

On Friday morning we went to the good Friday service at church. We were reminded anew of the immense sacrifice it took for God to assuage his anger and wrath against us and pay the penalty of our sin. To think that Christ not only bore our sin (the very antithesis of who He was and the very thing he hated) but also bore the Father's full wrath and fury against the sins of mankind boggles my mind. And yet Christ not only took it, but considered it pure joy to endure the cross. Some of the hymns we sung were so masterfully arranged to complement the liturgy. It really helped me deepen my understanding of God's love.

Saturday morning a bunch of new friends from church gathered together to go hiking in Sai Kung. The weather has been pretty sub-par the last week and there had been monsoon warnings for the weekend. But everyone seemed excited to go and no one was willing to cancel in spite of the rain. I think we hiked Stage 2 of the MacLehose trail. The scenery we could see ended up being quite grand. We were in the bay where the enclave faced the Pacfic directly and waves would pound into the coast line. Quite a wonderful hike in the drenching rain.

But the best part about the hike was the fellowship. This was a group of friends Michelle had met at church not too long ago taking the Christianity Explored course with a friend. They all came from different backgrounds but had an interest to better understand who Jesus is and what being at church was about. It was so cool to chat with each one of these new friends and hear their stories and get to know them a little better. I realize that this is the story of Easter! That somehow at the cross all our differences and histories are laid aside and we can come together under God's grace and love and commune together as family. That's one of the reasons I love this church so much. It's because I can do tangibly see that truth worked out in the way we serve each other and walk through life together.

Easter Sunday was a mixed day, not that I wasn't happy about it, but perhaps because of the long hike, I was a bit worn out. Also there were a few things that had made me grumpy in the morning which I didn't really let go of until later that set my day off wrong. But since the reoccurring theme in this post is about meals, I want to focus on one on Sunday that spoke to me about communion.

On Sunday, we had lunch with Michelle's uncle Winston, who unfortunately had a stroke a few months ago. He has since returned to HK from San Diego to be closer to family who now takes care of him. He struggles with regaining use of his right arm and speech is now near impossible for him. The last few months have been very challenging for him.

I share this because I believe that meals have a significant place in our theology and application of it- meaning how we live out our understand of who God is and what he desires in this world. In particular I think that times of meals bind us together as a community and enliven us to the imaginations of the Kingdom to come.

What I see from Winston is that beyond the wonderful tastes of the sushi he is treated to at the restaurant from perhaps the dreary everyday monotony he has at home, Winston eats this meal in communion with others. No longer is he solitary but is given this avenue of fellowship with others who will laugh and cry with him. Meals, real life-giving meals, I would say, are those that are not only where physical food is partaken, but where relationships are nourished, persons are edified, and hopes built and rebuilt. Meals are only filling when they are shared with people.

There were a couple of touching moments in our lunch where in the midst of enjoying the good food, an aunt encouraged Winston to work hard and regain some of his abilities. She said that it's hard to understand why at one moment he seemed to have it all an then lose it the next. She told him that in spite of all these circumstances we all loved him and will support him through this trial.

And though I might not agree with all that the aunt says or her methods, I see that though meals might not cause these words to be said or community to be had, they are certainly reflective of a vulnerability to be open both physically and relationally.

Perhaps this is why so many of the Bible's stories revolve around meals. Jacob and Esau's trust is betrayed over a bowl of stew. Joseph and his brothers are reconciled over a banquet. The levitical priests are united over their animal sacrifices to God and the subsequent eating of the food. God communes with us as He breaks Himself open at the cross.

During the lunch yesterday, I witnessed not just food enjoyed, but marginalities stripped off. Winston wasn't just a stroke victim who was once rich a successful; we are not middle-class pity-payers doling out sympathy. We are equal and together, as it should be, at the table of life. We share in food, in our fears and anxieties, celebrate the slivers of goodness to be found, and encourage each other to press on. Winston is not a Christian, but all the same, we gather because he is still crafted in the image of God despite his handicap now. We commune because it is a God-given appetite placed in the recesses of our heart.

Perhaps meals are a foretaste of heaven when we will be united with Christ in perfect harmony, when Christ who has avowed to not drink of this cup during the Last Supper will finally in His elation celebrate His wedding feast with His bride. We are to look to that day as our model and share shadows of that in the time that is now. In the meanwhile, we eat in love and drink to peace, together as we send our gazes heavenbound.