Criswell Theological
Review 5.2 (1991) 221-239.
Copyright © 1991 by The
THE
AND THE LORD'S SUPPER:
FAMINE, FOOD SUPPLY, AND
THE PRESENT DISTRESS *
BRADLEY B.
BLUE
Introduction
Food
figures prominently in 1 Corinthians. This should not come as
a surprise, since food and related concerns
(e.g., commensality) are pre-
dominant in many other NT texts. In addition, it
was an important is-
sue in the Jewish communities; so important, that
many of the
synagogue complexes included cooking and dining
facilities. In some
instances, the Jewish community gathered in a
renovated house (i.e.,
house synagogue), in which case the facilities were
already present.
And
in the nondomestic setting, facilities were sometimes
introduced.1
Food and meals were also important
concerns to the non-Jews in
the Greco-Roman world.2 In particular,
as in the Jewish communities,
* For John McRay,
with sincere appreciation.
1 The most helpful
collections for synagogue complexes are offered by L M. White,
The Christian Domus Ecclesiae and Its Environment: A Collection of Texts
and Monu-
ments (HTS
36;
Synagogue:
Archaeological and Epigraphic Evidence since Sukenik,"
Aufstieg und Nie-
dergang der riimischen
Welt 2.19.1
(1979) 477-510. Evaluations of the material include:
L
M. White, Building God's House in the
Roman World. Architectural Adaptation
among Pagans, Jews, and Christians (The ASOR Library of
Biblical and Near Eastern
Archaeology;
Baltimore/London: Johns
and In Private: The Role of the
2 D. E. Smith,
"Meals and Morality in Paul and His World," SBLASP (1981) 319-39;
"Table
Fellowship as a Literary Motif in the Gospel of Luke," JBL 106 (1987) 613-38,
222
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
food and meals are prominent features in various
associations and
religious/cultic groups.3
This fact is seen in 1 Cor 8:10 with the refer-
ence to being "at table
in an idol's temple." It was not uncommon for
a temple to include culinary appurtenances and
accommodate com-
mon meals. In addition to
literature from this period4 and the archae-
ological evidence from
invitations to religious meals at temples as well as
in houses.6 One ex-
ample will illustrate the phenomenon of religious
meals and their set-
ting in the Greco-Roman world: the cult of Sarapis.
The remains of an inscription on
a column) of a temple to Sarapis
by Apollonius II.7 The inscription,
and Social
Obligation in the Context of Communal Meals: A Study of the Christian
Meal in 1 Corinthians in
Comparison with Graeco-Roman Meals (unpublished ThD.
dissertation,
3 A catalogue of material
has been assembled by H.-J. Klauck in his 1980 disserta-
tion (Catholic Theological
Faculty,
was later published as Herrenmahl und hellenistischer Kult.
Eine religionsgeschichtli-
che Untersuchung zum
ersten Korintherbrief (NTAbh
[NF] 15;
1981).
A second edition appeared in 1982.
4 Philostratus,
for example, writes that Ptolemy of Naucratis had a
brilliant repu-
tation among the sophists: “For
he was one of those who were admitted to dine at the
public expense in the
of the Sophists 595 [LCL
Heinemann, 1968]). Like other public
buildings, the banqueting halls (in the temples)
were donated by benefactors. See for example the
banquet hall in the
mis at
self (Philostratus, Lives of the Sophists 605).
5 A good example can be
seen in the sanctuary of Asclepius at
cincts included dining rooms
beneath the Abaton which accommodated meals G. Wise-
man, “
Welt 2.7.1 (1979] 487, 510;
cf. J. Murphy-O'Connor,
ology (Good News Studies 6;
Wilmington: Michael Glazier, 1983) 161-67, figs. 9 and 10.
The
earlier sanctuary of Demeter-Core at Acrocorinth
(6th-2d century B.C.) included
some 40 dining rooms (accommodating seven-ten diners
each). For this evidence see
the literature cited in “Invitations to the Kline
of Sarapis,"
New Documents Illustrating
Early Christianity. A Review of the Greek Inscriptions and Papyri published in
1976
(Macquarie
University: The Ancient History Documentary Research Centre, 1981)
21:5-9.
One recent study is concerned with this question: E.
Will, “Banquets et salles de
banquet dans les cultes de la Grece et de l'Empire romain," Melanges d'histoire anci-
enne et d'archeologie offerts a Paul Collart (ed. P. Ducrey; Cahiers d'archeologie ro-
mande 5; Lousanne:
Bibliotheque historique vaudoise, 1976) 353-62. For a general
discussion of the function of the Roman temples see
J. E. Stambaugh, "The Function of
Roman
Temples," Aufstieg und Niedergang der ramischen Welt 2.16.1
(1978) 554-608.
See
the examples and literature cited in R MacMullen, Paganism in the Roman Em-
pire (London/New
Haven: Yale University Press, 1981) 36.
6 C.-H.
Kim has produced a satisfying (although not exhaustive) collection in his
study "The Papyrus Invitation," JBL 94 (1975) 391-402.
7 The report appeared in
full in 1975: H. Engelmann, The Delian Aretalogy of Sa-
rapis (Etudes
preliminaires aux religions orientales
dans l'empire romain 44;
Bradley B. Blue: THE
dated to the late 3d century B.C., records that
Apollonius received a
nocturnal vision in a dream in which he was
encouraged not to pro-
long the despondency of his ancestors who ignored
the god; rather, he
was to build a temple so that Sarapis
would no longer have to live "in
a rented room" (e]n
misqwtoi?j). Despite opposition, Apollonius fulfilled
the summons, and the project was completed in six
months. The Sa-
rapeion included a dining hall
(40 sq. m.), marble seats, and couches.
In addition to this epigraphic
evidence, the papyri are full of invi-
tations to a dinner at the
table of the lord Sarapis.8 The occasions for
these dinners in the Sarapeion
were wide ranging, including birthday
parties.9 What is most striking,
however, are the references to dining "at
the table of the lord Sarapis"
in places other than the Sarapeion,10 and
in particular the references to the meals in the
homes belonging to in-
dividuals.11 It is not inconceivable
that the Sarapeion could in fact be a
Brill);
cf. A. D. Nock, Conversion: The Old and
the New in Religion from Alexander the
Great to Augustine of
Hippo
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1933) 50-53 and most re-
cently R M. Grant, Gods and the One God (Library of Early
Christianity;
and development of this cult group in his The Sarapis under
the Early Ptolemies
(Etudes
preliminaires aux religions orientales
dans l'empire romain 25;
Brill, 1972).
8 P. Oxy 110 (2d century A.D.): Invitation to a dinner at the table
of the lord Sarapis
in the Sarapeion (deipnh?sai ei]j klei<nhn
tou? kuri<ou Sara<pidoj
e]n t&? Sarapei<&. Klei<nhn
appears to be a technical term (roughly
equivalent to i[e<rwma
in the
76),
cf. Kim, "The Papyrus Invitation," 395; H. C. Youtie,
"The Kline of Sarapis," HTR 41
(1948)
9-29; L. Koenen, "Eine
Einladung zur Kline des Sarapis (P. Colon
inv. 2555),"
Zeitschrift fur Papyrologie und Epigraphik 1 (1967) 121-26. P. Oxy 2592 is similar
while 1485 is an invitation to dine at the
9 P. Oxy 2791: "Diogenes invites you to dinner for the first
birthday of his daughter
in the Sarapeion
tomorrow " This is not to suggest that all birthday celebrations
were held in the Sarapeion
or other temples. Most of the common celebrations took
place in the home. One of the most common invitations
sent was for the marriage cele-
bration (which often included a
meal), cf. P. Oxy 111, 524, 1579 (all
listed, along with oth-
ers, in Kim, "The
Papyrus Invitation").
10 P. Oxy 1484: "Apollonius requests you to dine at the table of
the lord Sarapis on
the occasion of the approaching coming of age of
his brothers at the temple of
Thoeris. . . ."
11 This has not gone
unnoticed. Cf. Klauck, Herrenmahl und hellenistischer Kult,
134-36;
idem, Hausgemeinde und Hauskirche im fruhen Christentum
(SBS 103; Stutt-
gart: Katholisches
Bibelwerk, 1981) 88-89. (A revision of this work
appeared later as
"Hausgemeinde und Hauskirche im fruhen Christentum,"
Theologisches Jahrbuch 1985
led. W. Ernst et aL;
publication). Kim, "The Papyrus
Invitation"; cf. "Invitations to the Kline of Sarapis,"
New Docs 1976 (1981) 21:5-9. Nonetheless, a few
examples are instructive:
P. Oxy 523 (2d century A.D.) Invitation to a dinner at the table of the
lord Sarapis in
the house of Claudius Sarapion
(deipnh?s(ai) par ] au]tw?i ei]j klei<nhn
tou? kuri<ou Sara<pidoj
e]n
toi?j Klaud[i<ou] Sarapi<w[noj ] . . . ).
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CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
house12
(converted or otherwise).13 A house may be envisioned in the
Delian Aretalogy (i.e.,
rented quarters—e]n misqwtoi?j). Keeping this in
mind, Paul may very well have been referring to
religious meals in
1 Cor 10:27 as well as
in 8:10.
In 8:10, it is clear that a temple
proper is
the venue. In chap. 10, the matter is not quite so
clear. Given the evi-
dence, we should not rule out
the possibility that Paul is referring to re-
ligious meals in a private
home. If the meal was not religious, it was
more likely than not that the meat would have been
part of a pagan sac-
rifice (cf.10:28),
particularly since meat was usually only available on the
occasion of sacrifices.14
This preliminary overview allows us
to turn to the Corinthian cor-
respondence. Unfortunately, we
cannot take up all the questions con-
cerning food/invitations and
religious associations at
is more modest and our question more restricted:
we will only take up
the question of the difficulties at the table and
Paul's injunction in
1 Cor 11:17-34. We begin with three
assumptions: 1. Like many other re-
ligious groups, the Christians
gathered in a house. 2. Like other groups,
P. Oslo 3.157 (2d century A.D.F
Invitation (from Sarapion the gymnasiarch) to a dinner
at the table of the lord Sarapis
in his own house (deipnh?s[ai] ei]j
klei<nhn tou? kuri<ou S[a-
ra<pidoj]
e]n t^? i]di<&
oi]ki<% . . . ).
P. Yale 85 (2d century A.D.F
Invitation (from Dionysios) to dine on the 21st at
the kline
of Helios, great Serapis,
at the Ninth hour, in the house of his father (deipnh?sai
t^? ka ei]j
klei<nhn [Hli<ou mega<lou Sara<pidoj. . . patrikh?i e[autou? oi]ki<%).
A
fourth possibility is in P. Oxy 1755
(second or early 3d century A.D.): Invitation to din-
ner at the table of the
lord Sarapis in the house of Sarapion
( ]Erwt%
se ]Api<wn deipnh?sai
e]n
t&? oi@k& tou? Sarapei<ou ei]j klei<nhn tou?
kuri<ou Sara<pidoj . . . ). As Grenfell et al., com-
ment: "It is not clear
whether the oi#koj was Apion's
[the host's] own house, in which
case e]pi< may be supplied before tou? Sarapei<ou,
or was a part of the temple itself; cf. e]n
t&?
Sarapei<& in [P.
Oxy.]
110.3." Similar invitations to religious banquets in private homes
could be included at this point, e.g., for the
devotees of
A.D.F
Invitation (from Sarapous) to a dinner in his house (deipnh?sai
ei]j i[e<rwma th?j kuri<aj
@Isidoj e]n t^? oi]ki<%).
12 In addition to the
literature cited above, see J. E. Stambaugh and D. L Balch,
The New Testament in Its
Social Environment (Library
of Early Christianity; Philadel-
phia:
13 It is not
inconceivable, however, that the houses belonging to the Delian
sup-
porters were too small for such a gathering
although the dining hall in the new Sa-
rapeion would not have
accommodated a large crowd It must be remembered that
whatever location was chosen, accommodation was
needed for the sacrifice and meal (cf.
"Invitations
to the Kline of Sarapis," New Docs 1976 (1981) 21:6.
14 Smith, Social Obligation, 12; G. Theissen, The Social Setting of
Pauline Chris-
tianity: Essays on
Bradley B. Blue: THE
the Christians partook of a common meal15
in the house. 3. Given the
at
his lengthy stay at
tainly addressed the question
of proper procedure and protocol at the
table. That this was the case is seen in Paul's own
words in 11:2; i.e.,
Paul's
commendation that the Corinthians maintain the
traditions.
If 11:2 serves as more than sarcasm17
or literary device,18 but as a
captatio benevolentiae to introduce the issues
taken up in 11-14,19 we
must seriously consider whether the
"deviations" addressed in 11-14
(specifically 11:17-34) are deliberate, or whether recent events
(unparal-
leled during Paul's visit)
have raised new problems which Paul must ad-
dress in absentia. If this is indeed the case,
alternative solutions must
be found which answer the question: Why so much
attention to such a
fundamental and important issue? In the case of
11:17-34, the syntax
suggests that new circumstances have been
introduced at
which affected the Christian gathering and, in
particular, the meal.
The Language of Gathering
The vivid language of gathering in 1
Cor 11:17-34 includes the
use of sune<rxomai five times. In this passage Paul does not commend
15 Tertullian's
comments are most instructive: “The Salii cannot have
their feast
without going into debt; you must get the
accountants to tell you what the tenths of
Hercules
and the sacrificial banquets cost; the choicest cook is appointed for the Apa-
turia, the Dionysia, the Attic mysteries; the smoke from the banquet
of Sarapis will call
out the fireman. Yet about the modest supper-room
of the Christians alone a great ado
is made" (Apology
39, ANF 3).
16 Murphy-O'Connor
dates Paul's arrival to A.D. 49 and his departure to A.D. 51 (St.
Paul's
liest History of Christianity (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1983) 49. R.
Jewett dates Paul's ap-
pearance before Gallio sometime during the twelve month period ending with
July 1,
A.D.
52 (Dating Paul's Life [
Apostle to the Gentiles. Studies in Chronology [
C.
Herner, The Book of Acts in
the Setting of Hellenistic History [WUNT 49;
J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck),
1989] 255-56).
Most recently, see J. McRay (Archaeology and
the New Testament [
to A.D. 51.
17 So J. C. Hurd, The Origin of 1
Corinthians (London: SPCK, 1965) 182-82, citing
support.
18 So H. Conzelmann, 1
Corinthians (Hermeneia; Philadelphia: Fortress,
1975) 182.
19 G. D. Fee, The First Epistle
to the Corinthians (NICNT;
mans, 1987) 500.
20 In
11:17, 18, 20, 33 and 34. The only other occurrences in the Pauline
corpus
come in 14:23, 26, and 7.5.
226
CRISWELL THEOLOGICAL
REVIEW
the Corinthian gathering for the community meal;
rather, his griev-
ances indicate that their
meetings are more destructive than benefi-
cial (ou]k ei]j
to> krei?sson a]lla> ei]j to> h$sson sune<rxesqe; "when you
come together it is not for the better but for the worse").
Apparently
the abuse was sufficiently abhorrent that the
divisions (sxi<smata,
v 18)
and factions (ai[re<seij,
v 19) rendered the meal as merely one of many
and not the Lord's Supper (v 20). In this pericope Paul establishes
three pairs of antithesis: 1. "house"
contrasted with "house church,"
2.
kuriako>n dei?pnon
("the
Lord's supper") with to> i@dion
dei?pnon ("one's
own meal"), and 3. e@xontej ("those who
have") with mh>
e@xontej ("those
who do not have").
(18) prw?ton me>n ga>r
w!ste, a]delfoi< mou,
(33)
For, to begin with, So then, my brothers and sisters
sunerxome<nwn u[mw?n
e]n e]kklhsi<% 1
when you come together as the church
a]kou<w sxi<smata e]n u[mi?n u[pa<rxein
I
hear that there are divisions among you
(20)
sunerxome<nwn ou#n u[mw?n e]pi> to> au]to> sunerxo<menoi
ei]j to> fagei?n
when you
come together when
you come together to eat
ou]k e@stin
kuriako>n dei?pnon fagei?n:
it is not to eat
the Lord's supper
(21)
e!kastoj
ga>r to> i@dion dei?pnon prolamba<nei
2 a]llh<louj e]kde<xesqe
e]n t&? fagei?n,
when you eat, each of you goes ahead share with one another
with
your own supper
kai>
o{j me>n pein%? o{j de> mequ<ei ei@ tij pein%?
(34)
and one goes hungry and another becomes if anyone is hungry
drunk
(22)
mh> ga>r oi]ki<aj ou]k e@xete 3 e]n
oi@k&
do you not
have houses at
home
ei]j to> e]sqi<ein kai> pi<nein; e]sqie<tw,
to eat and
drink in? eat
h}
th?j e]kklhsi<aj tou? qeou? katafronei?te
i!na mh> ei]j kri<ma
sune<rxhsqe
Or
do you show contempt for the church so
that when you come together,
of God it
will not be for your condemnation
kai>
kataisxu<nete tou>j mh> e@xontaj:
and humiliate those who have nothing?
"House” as
Residence and Church: (Re-)Defining Boundaries
The first pair contrasts the oi#koj/oi]ki<a (house) and the e]kklhsi<%
("church," i.e., "the meeting in
the 'house"'). Paul describes the latter
as: ounerxome<nwn u[mw?n e]n e]kklhsi<% (assembling as a church, v 18),
sunerxome<nwn
ou#n u[mw?n e]pi> to>
au]to<
(assembling as the community,
Bradley
B. Blue: THE
v
20)21 and sunerxo<menoi ei]j
to> fagei?n (assembling to eat, v 33). Here,
Paul's
emphasis is on defining what is appropriate and inappropriate
when the various house churches (h[
kat ] oi#kon e]kklhsi<a) gather in
one house:22 behavior which may be
acceptable in the house (oi#koj/
oi]ki<a, vv 22, 34) is not
appropriate for the "church" (e]kklhsi<a) when
gathered in the house.23 The very fact
that the believers met in a pri-
vate house forces Paul to
avoid using house, i.e., oi#koj/oi]ki<a, as a desig-
nation for assembled believers in favor of participial
clauses which
effectively mean: when all of you are gathered together
in a given
house as the church.
"Those Who
Have" and "Those Without"
The third pairing contrasts those
who have and those who are
lacking: one is hungry, another drunk (o{j
me>n pein%? o{j de> mequ<ei);
some
have houses, others have nothing (oi]ki<aj e@xontej, mh>
e@xontej). On the
one hand there are believers who have plenty of
food and drink while
others have an insufficient quantity (and quality?)
and are hungry. The
stark difference between these two groups is seen at
the table. To fur-
ther accentuate the
difference, those belonging to the advantaged
group have houses to which Paul relegates their
detestable behavior,
while the second group are without (food and,
perhaps, houses).24
21 According to B.
Metzger this phrase (e]pi>
to> au]to<)
"which is common enough in
classical Greek and the Septuagint, acquired a
quasi-technical meaning in the early
church. This meaning, which is required in Acts 1:15;
2:1, 3:1, 47; 1 Cor 11:20; 14:23,
signifies the union of the Christian body, and
perhaps could be rendered 'in church
fellowship'" (A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament [
Bible Societies, 1971] 305). This rendering is
supported by M. Wilcox (The Semitisms of
Acts [
church" (94,98). In his opinion, the expression
is a Hebraism and may carry with it the
idea of (joining/belonging to) the
community/congregation, similar to the
dHyl
tzyhl; cf. M. Black, An
Aramaic Approach to the Gospels and Acts (3d ed.;
Clarendon,
1967) 10-11 and
Early Christian Literature," Restoration Quarterly 16 (1973) 202-8.
22 The construction h[ kat
] oi#kon e]kklhsi<a, 'die sich hausweise konstituierende
Kirche' (Klauck, Hausgemeinde und Hauskirche,
21) occurs four times in the NT: 1 Cor
16:19;
Rom 16:5; Phlm 2;
ering in the confines of a
private house. The construction e]kklhsi<a o!lh depicts the
ering of the believers in one
house. At
23 It may very well be
that the behavior which Paul relegates to the oi#koj is
equally unacceptable in that context and must be
addressed at a later time (cf. v 34). His
present concern, however, is to intervene so
that what has been/may be acceptable in
the oi#koj is not promulgated in
the house gatherings.
24 Although it is not
explicitly stated that those who are lacking are without
"houses," the group which "is lacking" the
food for the meal (see below) is likely the
228
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