The Glory of a Feast is the Joy at the Table

Up to now, you’ve read some ramblings of an average guy who loves his food and how the aspects of food prep and the art of consuming said food can have a different reflection when seen through masculine eyes.  These are some thoughts I’ve had for quite some time which seem to rise above eating a sandwich and Mac & Cheese over the sink.

From the World English Dictionary:

feast  

 — n  

1.  a large and sumptuous meal, usually given as an entertainment for several people 

2.  a periodic religious celebration 

3.  something extremely pleasing or sumptuous: a feast for the eyes  

4.  movable feast  a festival or other event of variable date 

— vb  (foll by on ) 

5.  ( intr ) 

 a. to eat a feast 

 b. ( usually foll by  on ) to enjoy the eating (of), as if feasting: to feast on cakes  

6.  ( tr ) to give a feast to 

7.  to take great delight (in): to feast on beautiful paintings  

8.  ( tr ) to regale or delight: to feast one's mind or one's eyes  

[C13: from Old French feste , from Latin festa , neuter plural (later assumed to be feminine singular) of festus  joyful; related to Latin fānum  temple, fēriae  festivals]

After looking up this definition, I can understand how most people think of a feast as nothing but a big, tasty, meal.  But as I was thinking about the word along with my love of food and my Christian beliefs, I realized that the two biggest feasts in Christendom are Easter and Christmas.  Those of you who know the church calendar know that preceding both of these feasts is a time of preparation, Lent and Advent. I think the Church Fathers had it going on when they scheduled a period of time for reflection, preparation and most of all; anticipation.  The time leading up to the feast can make the actual event much more meaningful.

One such feast that we, as a family, often refer to is a meal we hosted one Easter for our orphan friends. These are our friends who live too far away from any family to celebrate Easter.  My lovely wife Michelle and I enjoyed every aspect of the day and the days leading up to it. From the first thought early in the new year, we became excited and this excitement grew as we planned the menu, plotted the dining logistics, Michelle called our guests asking for their favorite quote or Bible verse to share at the meal.  This gave an opportunity for our guests to have a little anticipation as well.  We used these quotes as place settings which then turned into bookmarks that our guests kept after the food was long gone. The food, by the way, was a traditional baked ham along with a leg of lamb, stuffed with a chick pea dressing, a cool vinegrette-dressed asparagus salad, corn soufflé, and Michelle’s locally famous ‘Turtle-pecan Pie’.  The room was tight for the dozen or so guests, so we decided against family style and buffet, to encourage conversation. This meant we got up and served each course and seconds, thirds, dessert and coffee. To host a celebration is work. One has to understand and accept this going into the job. As a host, you may miss out on conversations, have less time to enjoy the day and have plenty of work before and after the event.  That said, Michelle and I truly enjoyed that opportunity to serve and host our guests and accept the down side the job.  Although most of our guests can’t recall the entire menu, what we and our guests took away from that celebration was the joy at the table.  It was a joy which could not have been experienced with a couple of pizza boxes and 2-liter bottles thrown together at the last minute. 

A feast, a true feast, requires anticipation for every one attending.  There is ample time to prepare the room and the table, but mostly time to prepare the heart to culminate into the real Joy that occurs at a Glorious Feast.