Rev. Brian Johnson
Scripture: Galatians 2:1-21; Psalm 100
Many of the disagreements in the early church were about who was welcome to share a meal together. The early church’s worship revolved around shared meals – patterned on the meals that Jesus had with his disciples. These shared meals would eventually evolve to become what we now know as holy communion. But, it wasn’t clear how these meals should work – was everyone welcome? Could Jews and Gentiles (non-Jews), who usually couldn’t eat together because of conflicting religious traditions, eat together now at the table of Jesus? Who is welcome when we gather together and worship God? These questions of hospitality still have important implications for how we live today.