Lectionary Art: Eating Meals

If you follow the Lectionary you probably know that one of the text's this week is the story of Jesus at a Pharisee's house. It is found in Luke Chapter 14. This story speaks to me because I'm a bit of a foodie and absolutely love it when our house is full of people sitting around the table for food and conversation. I'm thankful that there are so many Biblical examples that involve scenarios around sharing a meal because I can relate to them. Luke shares this story so we can see that service is more important than status and that the table is open to everyone. Here are two master art images that illustrate this lesson...

Tamalada, Carmen Lomas Garza

Making tamales is an experience of food and gathering of people around a table...often for a special occasion. Everyone is welcome! Everyone has a job to complete and no job is more important than another. The tasks are all required for the end result to occur. 

• how does your family celebrate special occasions?
• how do you include everyone in your family whether they are a blood relative or not?
• why do you think the artist chose such vivid, happy colors for this painting?

Mother with Baby, a Child Placing Bread in an Oven, Hablot Browne 

Artist Hablot Browne sketched a child serving by helping with the bread baking. This is fitting for our Biblical text because it can cause us to think about who is able to serve.

• how do the simple colors and loose lines make you feel? Do they enhance or detract from the story the artist is telling?
• examine the facial expressions. What do they imply about the scene and everyone's level of "status" at this frozen moment in time?
• how old do you need to be to serve? How do you serve in your home?