My all-time favorite TV show would have to be Joss Whedon’s Firefly. Set in the future, it follows the lives and relationships of an odd assortment of characters as they travel the universe in an ageing spaceship.
At the heart of the ship, named “Serenity,” is a common eating area. As they eat together, the passengers and crew share more than food—they share laughter, and stories, and conflict, and special moments. At the table, Mal is no longer captain, Simon and River are no longer fugitives—they are all equals, comrades with a common unity. Bonds are formed and strengthened, which enable them to keep each other’s backs as they go out into dangerous worlds. They cease to be individuals, and become family.
The act of sharing a meal is one of the most simple and effective ways to build up any community of people. Jesus spent a great part of his ministry eating with people. Many of his stories were about feasts and banquets. The early church celebrated communion by eating together. The modern simple church movement and missional communities often structure their gatherings around a meal. One inspirational movement that excites me is called “Neighbor’s Table”—a love movement begun by Sarah Harmeyer in 2012, which is spreading across communities and neighborhoods.
Each week at Fresh Start Community, we end our meeting by eating lunch together—nothing flash, just sandwiches and salad. We call it the Love Feast—communion as a shared meal. I think it would be beautiful for God’s people to rediscover the relationship-building, one-anothering power of sharing food with one another.
