Communion Message #2

As a woman, I can’t really help it. I notice something really obvious about the last supper. It’s not the strange conversation points about blood and flesh. It’s not the strange competitive argument that the disciples engaged in. It’s not the controversy about Judas. 

I notice that there are no women at this table.

The scriptures make it clear. This table was set for the 12 disciples. All men. No women.

Jesus had female followers, and later there were significant females in the early church. But if you were just to look at the story of the last supper, it’s hard not to think that maybe Jesus didn’t see women as equals. 

But when you examine the facts, I notice that there also weren’t any Black people at that table. And there weren’t any Asians. It was unlikely that there were people with disabilities at the table. The point is, the last supper was probably not particularly diverse. Considering the context of that time, we would see that the Messianic promise was first and foremost a promise for the Jewish people. And the 12 men, were all indeed Jewish men. And at that time, Judaism was a tradition that held vastly different roles and expectations of women and men. These roles and expectations might have meant that women weren’t allowed at many tables. 

The astounding fact is, that only a few days later, Jesus completely upends the whole narrative. His death and resurrection meant that never again would accessibility to the table be dependent on culture, geographical location, ethnicity, social status or gender. Henceforth, any man, woman, or child could eat with Jesus and are invited to His table. He promises that whoever opens the door in response to His knock will eat with Him. There are now no conditions to having supper with Jesus, besides opening the door.

The last supper wasn’t only the last time that Jesus would eat with the disciples. It’s the last time that the rest of us wouldn’t eat with Jesus. Never again would we be excluded from the table.