This I Believe: breaking bread

Our pledge campaign this year is Work-in-Progress. Each week in service, someone from Bethany is sharing a core belief of their own, religious or otherwise. These beliefs are a snapshot of a moment in time when this is what at least one person currently at Bethany believes. But we are, as individuals and a church, a work-in-progress. We are on the journey. And there’s so much further we can go together. Please give generously, and we can keep making progress.

This week, Sara Lewis Marsden shared:

The cafeteria at my University was known for the quantity of options, not quality.

Luckily, after the first few weeks of class (during which I quickly switched my meal plan from 18 meals per week to 12), I realized that there were plenty of other spots on campus for food – particularly lunch. I quickly fell into a routine of sorts. On Mondays, I’d eat at the cafeteria. I still had fond memories of off-campus weekend meals, and the cafeteria was an ideal location to say hi to a large number of people. Additionally, they had soft serve ice cream and cereal-marshmallow treats. Each Tuesday, I went to the United Campus Ministries “Blue House” for Veggie Lunch, where the conversation and views were progressive and I could catch up with my “Earth Matters” club friends. Wednesdays, my roommates (who were all Catholic) and I met up at the Newman Center. The line was always long, but it gave us a chance to catch up on our week so far. Some Thursdays, I’d join my friend Tyler at the Baptist Student Ministry, where, in exchange for a message heavy on evangelizing, the Mac and Cheese was divine. Friday was saved for a small group of close friends who would all meet at the Student Union to splurge on pasta.

While they gave me some additional perspective, attendance at these lunches wasn’t a cry for religious guidance. Nor was I just mooching free food, exactly. In my family, eating together is how we say, “I love you”, and joining my friends at their free lunch of choice was a way for me to invest in those relationships. Throughout life, I have found that the ability to sit at a table and eat together is a critical component of community. When we share something as fundamental as food, it leaves space for listening and learning and creates ties that can be built upon.

I believe in breaking bread together; I believe in the power of a shared meal. Here at Bethany, we break bread regularly as part of communion, but also share meals during church coffee hours, Thanksgiving potlucks, and summer ice cream socials. And beyond that, we help others have their own shared meals through our work with the Lakeview Food Pantry, Night Ministry, Crib and other organizations. Bethany is part of my community and I am part of the Bethany community for many reasons, but one of them is because we eat together.