At the Lord's Table

There are an enormous amount of empty ecclesial edifices in the city of Montreal, Quebec. These abandoned artifacts of church architecture are the flotsam left bobbing in the wake of the Quiet Revolution. The rapid escape from religious oppression (and other forms of oppression) in the mid-twentieth century left the churches, once overflowing with members, empty. Saint-Mathias-Apôtre church, in the Hochelaga neighborhood, is one of those buildings. Built in a mid-century style, it no longer offers religious services, or does it?

Churches, in particular liturgical churches, are designed to serve one meal. That meal goes by many names. To some it is Mass. To others it is the Eucharist, Communion or the Lord's Supper. In Jesus' final hours on earth he directed his disciples to eat bread and drink wine as a way to remember him. In liturgical churches this sacrament is practiced at each service. However, the Lord's Supper wasn't the only meal Jesus is known for. It has been said that Jesus eats and drinks his way through the gospels. He is criticized for eating with the wrong people. He miraculously feeds 5,000 people. Food is central to the story of Jesus.

When you walk through the doors of the former Saint-Mathias-Apôtre church food is still central. Now the home of Le Chic Resto Pop a "socio-professional integration, social economy and community action organization." (1) Le Chic Resto Pop is a low-cost ($3.67 US for an adult) "socially responsible restaurant, [serving] nutritious and quality meals at low prices to meet the needs of people with food insecurity." (2) Le Chic Resto Pop also provides unemployed persons the opportunity to gain valuable job skills and boasts a 78% placement rate. (3) Since 1984 they have trained over 1500 people and served over 4 million meals.

The building turned restaurant is still architecturally very much the way it was when it was built and perhaps it is still fulfilling its mission. In Matthew 28 we read Jesus' words, "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in..." The disciples ask, "When did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?" To which Jesus replies "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."

A belief I hold strongly is that the Holy Spirit is always at work. Saint-Mathias-Apôtre church was built to serve the Lord's Supper. Yet, when that meal became tainted by the oppressive and controlling way it was served people no longer came to the table. Still that building was clearly meant to feed the people. The Spirit was still at work. Here and there in the building you see hints of its past purpose in crosses on light fixtures and the mosaics on the door, but Jesus' mission is not obscured at all. The Spirit is still at work. Like the Parable of the Banquet (Matthew 22), Le Chic Resto Pop welcomes everyone to the table to be fed, and in that activity feeds Jesus himself.

Saint-Mathias-Apôtre was constructed to serve one meal, but now if serves millions. In both forms it bears witness to the kingdom of God.

Joel K

 

(1) https://chicrestopop.com/

(2) Ibid.

(3) Ibid.

How Many Countries Are In This Country? (Ted Lasso Advent - Part 6 - Epiphany Edition)

In the first episode of Ted Lasso (Pilot) the new coach and his righthand man Coach Beard (Brandon Hunt) walk out on the pitch for the first time to observe the team. Standing on the sidelines this conversation takes place:

Coach Lasso (Jason Sudeikis): "Holy smokes! Did you see that? That fella looked like a kitty cat when it gets spooked by a cucumber. Who the heck is that?

Coach Beard (Brandon Hunt): Jamie Tartt. Top scorer on the team.

Coach Lasso: Nate, what's he like?

Nate (Nick Mohammed): Who, Jamie? He's great. You know, at football.

Lasso: Yeah, I know fellas like that.

Beard: [That's] Sam Obisanya. He's a right back defender outta the Nigerian league.

Lasso: Nigeria? Like Africa? So these fellas are from all over the place?
(pointing at another player) I mean, he must be from England, yeah?

Beard: Wales.

Lasso: Is that another country?

Beard: Yes and no.

Lasso: How many countries are in this country?

Beard & Nate: Four.

Lasso: It's kinda like America these days.

Today, January 6, is Epiphany on the church calendar. (1) The Advent/Christmas season truly ends on with this celebration. Epiphany is the when the church remembers the arrival of the Magi. After seeing a new star rising at the time of Jesus' birth these foreigners travel to see the person whose birth triggered the star (Matthew 2). While the shepherds who visited the infant Christ were local, the wisemen travel a great distance to visit the toddler Jesus.

In a lecture back in 2011 Ray Bakke noted that the Wise Men, who traveled two years to bring their gifts to this new king, were likely from Babylon. In fact he referred to them as "the Babylonian worship team." He further noted that 600 years before Babylon carried off the Jewish royal family into exile, and now these men from that country where celebrating the arrival of a new King. In his book A Theology As Big As The City Bakke says of Babylon,

"Throughout the Bible, Babylon, is a symbol of the city which is anti-God. Literally the name means "gate to God." (p.184)

I believe that the arrival of the Magi at the end of the Christmas story is an answer to Lasso's question, "How many countries are in this country?" Throughout the Old Testament the primary vehicle of God's redemptive story was a single group of people - one particular country. Individuals from other nations were grafted in, but the main object of God's favor was Israel. Now as Jesus arrives something is shifting. The arrival of the Messiah was for Isreal, but it was also for this anti-God nation as well. No longer was the affection of God rather singular, but now the love extended to all - even those awful Babylonians.

The expansion of the good news from the one to the many is a theme in Jesus ministry, and is underscored in Pentecost. The Book of Acts records the good news extending further and further into the world. Paul writes that in this new reality, "[T]here is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all."

So, when it comes to Jesus, "How many countries are in this country?" The answer is all of them, and it all starts with the Magi.

Joel K


(1) Today also marks the two year anniversary of the insurrection at the United States Capitol. And this week is one in which the US House of Representatives has voted over a dozen times for a Speaker without seating anyone. Clearly the US has more than its own fair share of division (countries if you will). Lasso is right again.