Breaking Bread

Yesterday I had a group of church friends over to my house after church for a back yard cook out and swim.  We were supposed to do it a week ago, but it was stormy, so we postponed.

What a treat!  The kids had fun in the pool, while the grown ups cooked burgers and hot dogs.  We ate, we talked, we relaxed.

We ended up spending much of the week-end together.  Saturday, in the late afternoon, I headed over to the parsonage.  My pastor hosted a gathering of people who take an active part in planning the more participatory worship service.  We all brought food and wine and gathered around the huge dining room table. 

We've been doing this service for 2 years now, so we don't have much to tweak, troubleshoot, or plan.  Our Saturday night turned out to be more of a time of socializing at first and then deeper connecting.

I thought about suggesting that our Sunday morning service go to having a meal together.  But I also know how hard it can be to put together a meal on a festival Sunday, like Easter.  Still, nothing connects people like a meal.

We've had one of the kind of worship/eating experiences that I'd like to have more often.  On Maundy Thursday, we had an experience that was both meal and worship (see this post for more details).

Could our participatory service have a meal as part of it once a quarter?  Could that meal also be a Eucharist?  That will be my goal.