The Jewish ritual of the Shabbat
The Jewish ritual of the Shabbat, or Sabbath, meal on Friday evening at sundown is the quintessential dining experience. Candles are lit before daylight disappears from the sky. The blessing is sung. Bread is broken. Wine, signifying abundance, is poured. Participating in this ceremonial meal is a privilege I was graced to experience during my stay in Israel. I took from it the lingering emotional impact of tradition and respect for family and national heritage.
In Switzerland, the land of Reformed Christian tradition, 1 awoke to the tinkle of cowbells from a nearby mountainside and the smell of coffee on my first-ever day in Europe. The four weeks I lived and worked at L’Abri Fellowship community in Huemoz have become a predominant motif in my stained-glass story.
There, in 1970, Edith Schaeffer was matron and hostess, opening her chalet home to young people from around the world, hundreds every year. The long narrow table wedged into a small dining area was punctuated with ffickering light. Guests spoke late into the evening with Francis Schaeffer, theologian and philosopher who attracted a worldwide audience. Food was served with artful simplicity; appealing to the eye as well as the palate. Candlelight and conversation were as necessary to dining as the bread basket or water glasses.
Ever since my travels abroad, Christian, Jewish, and Islamic traditions of hospitality have been a part of every meal in my home. I can just as easily begin a meal with a silent moment as with a memorized grace sung at the table or a spontaneously composed prayer of thanksgiving. The form of prayer isn’t important. The act of reverence before a meal can be communicated in a variety of original ways, yet we offer praise to the same everlasting Father. In the act of blessing a meal, we honor what we are there for: getting closer to each other and to God.