Food and Meals

Abstract

Food and meal communities belong directly together when one looks at the Synoptic Gospels and the sociohistorical context behind them. This article examines the literary and socio-historical perspectives in which meals were eaten in the ancient Mediterranean world. It gives a short introduction to the meal in the Greco-Roman world and the foodstuffs used by participants in these meals. Then meal scenes found in the Synoptic Gospels are discussed, comparing their descriptions of the life, Passion, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Particular attention is drawn to the meal scenes in which various theological, social, and political courses and agendas are established.