{"id":25306,"date":"2025-06-02T09:23:50","date_gmt":"2025-06-02T13:23:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=25306"},"modified":"2025-06-02T10:35:21","modified_gmt":"2025-06-02T14:35:21","slug":"25306","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=25306","title":{"rendered":"A Bigger Table"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Sidewalk Prophets - Come To The Table (Official Lyric Video)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DXXxLwxfo0U?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Father Richard Rohr understands <strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Jesus\u2019 eating habits as a model <\/span><\/strong>for the kind of inclusive and open hospitality Christians might practice.<\/em>\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>God\u2019s major problem in liberating humanity has become apparent to me as I consider the undying recurrence of&nbsp;<em>hatred of the other<\/em>, century after century, in culture after culture and religion after religion.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Can you think of an era or nation or culture that did not oppose&nbsp;<em>otherness<\/em>? I doubt there has ever been such a sustained group. There have been enlightened individuals, thank God, but seldom established groups\u2014not even in churches, I\u2019m sorry to say. <strong>The Christian Eucharist was supposed to model&nbsp;<em>equality and inclusivity<\/em>, but we turned the holy meal into an exclusionary game,\u202fa religiously sanctioned declaration and division\u202finto groups of the worthy and the unworthy\u2014as if any of us\u202fwere worthy!<\/strong> [1]&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before Christianity developed the relatively safe ritual meal we call the Eucharist, Jesus\u2019 most consistent social action was<strong> eating in new ways and with new people, encountering those who were oppressed or excluded from the system<\/strong>. It seems Jesus didn\u2019t please anybody by breaking rules to make a bigger table. Notice how his contemporaries accused Jesus: one side criticized him for eating with tax collectors and sinners (see Matthew 9:10\u201311). The other side judged him for eating too much (Luke 7:34) or dining with the Pharisees and lawyers (Luke 7:36\u201350, 11:37\u201354, 14:1). <strong>Jesus ate with all sides. <\/strong>He ate with lepers (Mark 14:3), he received a woman with a poor reputation at a men\u2019s dinner (Luke 7:36\u201339), and he even invited himself to a \u201csinner\u2019s\u201d house (Luke 19:1\u201310). How do we not see that? [2]&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It seems we ordinary humans must have our \u201cother\u201d! It appears we don\u2019t know who we are except by opposition and exclusion. \u201c<strong>Where can my negative energy go?\u201d<\/strong> is the enduring human question; it must be exported somewhere. Sadly, it never occurs to us that&nbsp;<em>we<\/em>&nbsp;are the negative energy, which then sees and contributes to that negative energy in others. The ego refuses to see this in itself. <strong>Recognizing this takes foundational conversion from the egoic self, and most have not undergone that transformation. <span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">We can only give away the goodness (or the sadness) that we ourselves have experienced and become.\u202f&nbsp;<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Eucharist is meant to identify us in a positive, inclusionary way, but we are not yet well-practiced at this. We honestly don\u2019t know how to do unity. Many today want to make the holy meal into a \u201cprize for the perfect,\u201d as Pope Francis observed. [3] Most Christians still do not know how to receive a positive identity from God\u2014that we belong and are loved by our very nature! [4] The <strong>Eucharistic meal is meant to be a microcosmic event, summarizing at one table what is true in the whole macrocosm: we are one, we are equal in dignity, we all eat of the same divine food, and Jesus still and always \u201ceats with sinners,\u201d just as he did when on Earth<\/strong>. [5]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Meal-Based Social Action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>Jesus didn\u2019t please anybody, it seems. He was always breaking the rules and spreading out the table.<br>\u2014Richard Rohr&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Father Richard considers how Jesus\u2019 eating habits challenged the religious and cultural norms of his time\u2014and our own:&nbsp;<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Jesus didn\u2019t want his community to have a social ethic; he wanted it to&nbsp;<em>be<\/em>&nbsp;a social ethic. Their very way of relating was to be an affront to the system of dominance and power; it was to name reality in a new way. They were to live in a new symbolic universe. This radical idea is given in a simple clue found throughout the Christian Scriptures\u2014one that biblical scholars overlooked until only recently: Jesus\u2019 presence with others at table. That theme is so constant in the Christian Scriptures that scholars today see it as central to Jesus\u2019 message. Jesus <strong>never appears to be pushing what we call social programs. He is much more radical. He calls us to a new social order in which we literally share table differently<\/strong>!\u202f\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The mystery of sharing food and a common table takes place on different levels. First, there\u2019s the unifying idea of sharing the same food. Then, there is the whole symbolism of the table itself: where we sit at the table and how the table is arranged. Together, the food and table become a symbol of how our social world is arranged. <strong>Once we rearrange life around the table we begin to change our notions of social life.<\/strong>\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That, I believe, was <strong>Jesus\u2019 most consistent social action: eating in new ways!<\/strong> In the midst of that eating, he announced the reign of God and talked in new ways. Usually, on his way in or out of a house, he encountered those who were oppressed and eliminated from the system. A great number of Jesus\u2019 healings and exorcisms take place while he\u2019s either entering a house to have a meal with someone or leaving a house just after having had a meal with someone. He redefines where power is on many different levels at the same time. Religious power is, for one thing,<strong> mostly exercised outside the Temple and synagogue.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s necessary to calculate very carefully what was lost and what was gained as Christianity developed. The church moved from Jesus\u2019 real meal with open table fellowship to its continuance in the relatively safe ritual meal that became the Christian Eucharist. Unfortunately, the <strong>meal itself came to redefine social reality in a negative way, in terms of worthiness and unworthiness.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That is almost exactly the opposite of Jesus\u2019 intention. To this day, we use Eucharist to define membership in terms of worthy and unworthy. Even if we deny that is our intention, it\u2019s clearly the practical message people hear. Isn\u2019t it strange that <strong>sins of marriage and sexuality are the primary ones we use to exclude people from the table, when other sins like greed and hatefulness that cause more public damage are never considered<\/strong>?&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">From Chuck DeGroat.   <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Here is an abridged section of Ch. 3 of&nbsp;<\/strong><em><strong>Healing What\u2019s Within<\/strong><\/em><strong>.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Storm and Fog<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of us live in what I call&nbsp;<strong>Storm<\/strong>. From a nervous system perspective, this is a state of&nbsp;<em><strong>hyperarousal<\/strong><\/em>&nbsp;\u2014 our sympathetic system activated to survive a perceived threat. Blood pressure rises, heart rate spikes, adrenaline pumps. We go into&nbsp;<em>fight<\/em>&nbsp;(enemy mode, demanding, defensive),&nbsp;<em>flight<\/em>&nbsp;(anxious, vigilant),&nbsp;<em>fawn<\/em>&nbsp;(appeasing, compliant), or&nbsp;<em>find<\/em>&nbsp;(searching for rescue). These responses are designed for short-term survival \u2014 to get our immediate needs met. But for many, this Storm becomes a long-term reality. We adapt to it. We suffer in it. Alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Others get caught in what I call&nbsp;<strong>Fog<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 a state of&nbsp;<em><strong>hypoarousal<\/strong><\/em>. Here, we feel depleted, shut down, disconnected. This is the domain of the&nbsp;<strong>dorsal vagal system<\/strong>. Where Storm mobilizes us to act in self-protection, Fog immobilizes us through disconnection. In&nbsp;<em>freeze<\/em>, we\u2019re stuck between the urge to act and the instinct to protect. In&nbsp;<em>fold<\/em>, our system numbs out to survive \u2014 heart rate drops, muscles relax, awareness blurs. We may feel ashamed, helpless, even forgetful of what overwhelmed us. It can feel like depression. Or complete shutdown. We may adapt to life here, too.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Feels Like Home<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>To navigate the dysregulating impact of Storm and Fog, we also need to know what it feels like to be&nbsp;<strong>Home<\/strong>&nbsp;\u2014 the internal space of safety, clarity, and connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After moving into a new house with Sara, I remember a lazy Sunday afternoon, lying in bed, watching leaves fall. A whisper rose from within:&nbsp;<em>Home<\/em>. It took weeks to get there, to settle. But my body recognized it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Home is where your nervous system breathes.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s not just comfort \u2014 it\u2019s coherence. Psychiatrist Daniel Siegel calls this the&nbsp;<strong>Window of Tolerance<\/strong>: the internal space where you can feel your emotions in a right-sized way and respond from presence. The wider your window, the more able you are to stay grounded amid life\u2019s chaos.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We are meant to live here, hidden with Christ (Col. 3:3), rooted in love (Eph. 3:17). This is our truest place.&nbsp;<em>Home begins in Eden<\/em>, and its memory lingers in us. As Frederick Buechner writes, \u201cAt the innermost heart\u2026 there is peace\u2026 Eden is there. Home is there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When we\u2019re pulled from Home into Storm or Fog, God\u2019s first question still comes:&nbsp;<em>Where are you?<\/em>&nbsp;(Gen. 3:9). And like the father in Jesus\u2019 parable, God runs to greet us (Luke 15:20). Even when we drift, we\u2019re not untethered. Nothing can separate us from this love (Rom. 8:39). As Martin Laird puts it, \u201cGod is our homeland. And the homing instinct of the human being is homed on God.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To live from Home is to live from your center. As Teresa of Avila asks, \u201cWhat could be worse than not being at home in our own house?\u201d And you can cultivate a sense of Home, physiologically and spiritually.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/substack.com\/redirect\/37052860-a52d-4ae5-a253-edc9ac6f0e20?j=eyJ1IjoiMmRrajIifQ.ND0qR5RKsmVnltuWgIlyr3BY7uwq2Kt9ZzX29UJK4cg\">Practices of nervous system regulation<\/a>&nbsp;can cultivate an enduring sense of Home, even as you occasionally feel pulled to-and-fro. Even the simple act of placing your hand on your chest and breathing can whisper to your body, \u201cIt\u2019s ok. I\u2019m here.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Pay attention to what it feels like in your body to be&nbsp;<em>present and at peace<\/em>&nbsp;\u2014 grounded, open, connected. I know I\u2019m there when I\u2019m breathing, when I\u2019m not rushing, when I feel like myself\u2026 and even&nbsp;<em>like<\/em>&nbsp;myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You might pause right now and reflect:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul>\n<li>When do I feel most at Home?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Where, with whom, under what conditions?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And when do I feel far from Home \u2014 reactive, avoidant, ashamed, disconnected, numb?<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>How can I continue to cultivate a sense of Home?&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Storm<\/em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<em>Fog<\/em>&nbsp;will visit \u2014 <strong>that\u2019s part of being human. But Home is always there, waiting, at the center of your being, beside a window of grace.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Father Richard Rohr understands Jesus\u2019 eating habits as a model for the kind of inclusive and open hospitality Christians might practice.\u202f&nbsp; God\u2019s major problem in liberating humanity has become apparent to me as I consider the undying recurrence of&nbsp;hatred of the other, century after century, in culture after culture and religion after religion.&nbsp; Can you [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25306"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=25306"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25314,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25306\/revisions\/25314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=25306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=25306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=25306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}