Do you bless your food before you eat? How about after?
Deu 8:10-12 And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you. (11) "Take care lest you forget the LORD your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, (12) lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them,
The topic of 'breaking bread' has always been interesting to me. I must admit, I am on a self commissioned quest to debunk the mystery of the souffle cup of grape juice, and a teasing oyster cracker as sufficient means of celebrating the 'Lord's Table.' I keep asking over and over, what does it all mean.
In my questioning, I discovered a book regarding the topic of, you guessed it, 'Breaking Bread.' Only this time, the perspective is painted with the brush of meals in Judaism.
If 'breaking bread' in ancient Judaism meant having a meal together, what is it that the early Christians would have done as well? The author's premise is definitely not to treat my thesis, but there is an interesting view introduced in it's pages. The Halachah, or the blessing placed on meals of believers changes how we view feasting.
This book takes the reader on an exciting journey into the biblical precedence of praying the Torah and Blessing the Lord, not just the food, for the meal. It is compact and approachable for the reader in many regards. You can find the book for a mere $10.00 online, or visit their site for other great products and information from a Messianic Jewish lens. Visit First Fruits of Zion for more great stuff.
2 comments:
Do you think Jesus told us to "take communion" at times throughout the year or as oft as we do this "passover" remember Him? Most books from First fruuits of Zion teach that we as gentile believers in Jesus(the Jews Messiah) are to uphold the law._torah, at least to some degree more than most do.
To answer the first question about 'taking communion,' I am not sure I can call it that. I do not even believe that the 'ceremony' we have today even closely resembles what would have taken place in the early church. The Catholic Church ruled it anathema to celebrate 'love feasts' where early Christians would have been celebrating the Lord's Table in a meal.
The second statement, I cannot tell if it is a question or comment? I am not sure I am at odds with the teaching I read in the Breaking Bread book. I cannot speak empiracally concerning their other books, as I have not read them, but the idea I got from this read is that the practice of Messianic Jews and the Torah implication is very edifying. If anything, I would look to the example of Jesus...a Jew...and reflect on how he kept the Torah.
The best part of the Breaking Bread book is it clearly demonstrates the importance of the meal, and the blessing of the meal, and exemplifies what ALL scholars agree on, the Lords Table was a meal.
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