I like to eat.  According to the Gospels, so did Jesus.  One of the criticisms leveled against Him by His adversaries was that He was always eating and drinking with “the wrong kinds of people.” As William Willimon says in his little book SUNDAY DINNER, “The dinner table is such an intimate, holy, transforming, mysterious place—you’ve got to be careful whom you eat with.  If you are trying to convince yourself that another person is not a full, valuable human being, a brother or sister, be careful not to invite that person to dinner.  Be careful.  Remember, as Oscar Wilde said, ‘After a good dinner, one could forgive anybody, even one’s relatives.’” (Nashville, The Upper Room, 1981, p.  45). 

In the Bible, eating has special significance.  The Biblical story begins with the eating of the …