“Swallowship” – it’s a weird word, I know. But the meaning it holds exceeds the multiple frowns it receives at first glance.
When people come together to spend time in fellowship over a meal, it is known as Swallow- ship. However, it should be added in the Ts and Cs of the word that coming together over food can also just be known as a meal. But, when one refers to Swallowship, one is referring to people intentionally coming together. It is not just about eating and then leaving. It is about enjoying both the food and the company of others.
Why make such a big deal about a meal, you maybe ask? In his book Food and Faith, NormanWirzba wrote the following:
“Food is a holy and humbling mystery . . . Whenever people come to the table they demonstrate with the unmistakable evidence of their stomachs that they are . . . finite and mortal creatures dependent on God’s many good gifts: sunlight, photosynthesis, decomposition, soil fertility, water, bees and butterflies, chickens, sheep, cows, gardeners, farmers, cooks, strangers, and friends (the list goes on and on). Eating reminds us that we participate in a gracesaturated world, a blessed creation worthy of attention, care, and celebration.”
Internally, that is what our Wednesday night meals are about – celebration. Externally, it is a beautiful space where we as a congregation can come together and get to know each other. The logistics around the meal are very simple. Every week someone nominates themselves to take the lead in choosing a recipe. Each person then brings an ingredient with them, and we end up having a lovely meal together at the price of a packet of tomatoes.
Remember that these meals are open to the whole congregation. Because it is as they say: “the more the merrier”.
Ingrid Kassier