The Henri Nouwen Society in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with Father Henri J. M. Nouwen DAILY MEDITATION "The Intimacy of the Table" for Thursday, 16 February 2017

The Henri Nouwen Society in Toronto, Ontario, Canada with Father Henri J. M. Nouwen DAILY MEDITATION "The Intimacy of the Table" for Thursday, 16 February 2017
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Photo courtesy of SDGimagery.comThe table is one of the most intimate places in our lives. It is there that we give ourselves to one another. When we say, "Take some more, let me serve you another plate, let me pour you another glass, don't be shy, enjoy it," we say a lot more than our words express. We invite our friends to become part of our lives. We want them to be nurtured by the same food and drink that nurture us. We desire communion. That is why a refusal to eat and drink what a host offers is so offensive. It feels like a rejection of an invitation to intimacy.
Strange as it may sound, the table is the place where we want to become food for one another. Every breakfast, lunch, or dinner can become a time of growing communion with one another.

For further reflection...When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God." After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this, and divide it among you." And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them...[Luke 22: 14-17, 19]
Your response...What opportunities to give or receive hospitality do you see today?

Continue the Inspiration
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Text excerpts taken from Bread for the Journey, by Henri J.M. Nouwen, ©1997 HarperSanFrancisco. All Scripture from The Jerusalem Bible ©1966, 1967, and 1968 Darton, Longman & Todd and Doubleday & Co. Inc. Scripture chosen by L. Yeskoo.
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