Parable and Conscience Meditation November 14

Liturgy  November 14

Some moments of prayer and reflection can help us to appreciate that our meals too have a Christian significance (Const. 19.2).

In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the meal has a sacred sense.  It was through a meal that the God of Israel initiated the Exodus.  This paschal meal is repeated each year to bring Jewish people into the experience.  Isaiah spoke of the great messianic banquet prepared by God to celebrate the final liberation at the end times.  Jesus inaugurated the New Covenant at the table and left the Christian community the Eucharistic meal as a memorial of his Death and Resurrection.  The Eucharistic rite became the characteristic action of the Church.  The various meals that Jesus took with the disciples after his Resurrection confirmed the faith of the Church.  Inspired by the Eucharist, the Christian community developed a tradition of eating together regularly—an event called the Agape—as the expression of fraternity and solidarity with the poor.  Part of Christian eschatological awareness is the Wedding Banquet, where the restoration of all in God will be celebrated at the end of time.  Liturgically, the altar, the table of the Eucharist, occupies a central place in churches.  It symbolizes Christ and receives marks of reverence before, during and after the celebration.  In the Church, there is a long tradition of prayer before and after family and community meals.  The daily meals of Christians make allusion to all the sacred meals of tradition.

The hen, whether she drinks a little or a lot, raises her head to the sky.  (Madagascar)