Eating Your Way Through Luke's Gospel

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is going to eat, eating, or coming from eating - so contents Robert J. Karris in his fascinating book, Eating Your Way Through Luke's Gospel. In the Gospel of Luke, the reader sees how important food was in the earthly ministry of Jesus - and if food and eating meals was of great significance for Jesus, ought it not be for His followers?Karris' book is amazingly comprehensive for such a short book (109 pages).Karris begins by exploring what the people of Jesus' time would actually have been eating and how they would have been eating and with whom - wonderful background information for preaching or researching.Then, he looks more at the theme of food in Luke by examining the passages and Greek words used.The third chapter looks at Jesus as glutton and drunkard, friend of sinners. The fourth, Jesus as guest, host, and teacher. The fifth, Jesus' petitioning of food, and food imagery in the parables.In the sixth chapter, Karris gives and overview of the theme of food in Matthew, Mark, and John - quoting Scripture at length.In the seventh, he explores the relationship between women and food in Luke.In the eighth, he addresses how eating serious, dangerous, and joyful - in context.An appendix correlation the books pages to the Gospel readings of Lectionary Cycle C. This makes is very easy to find explanation of the food passages in his book when they arrive in the preaching cycle.Each chapter has a good-sized selection of works for further reading, and the book has its own selected bibliography.The one assertion that I had trouble with was when he stated that when Jesus said, "do this in remembrance of Me," He was not merely referring to the Passover or the Lord's Supper, but to the fellowship of all meals. I don't see how one can interpret the text that far.Even so, this is an amazing and helpful book for any interested in the topic of food in Luke, Jesus' interaction with food, and preaching and researching the texts that concern food in Luke (especially). He has done a great deal of work to put together his presentation and to provide further resources. I highly recommend this book to all preachers and to all interested in food in Christian context.

This is a fascinating little book that examines Luke's gospel from a food perspective. In Luke's gospel, Jesus is always at a party, going to dinner or coming from a meal - usually with people that are considered a bit on the nose. The book takes you through what people actually ate in those days, and he uses statistics and historical data to show that in these backwaters of the Roman empire, most of the people, especially fussy eaters like the Jews, were always on the edge of starvation.The bread and wine that Jesus used, was poor stuff, not artisan baked gourmet bread and wines from the Barossa. Wheat bread was exclusively for the rich, the poor ate barley bread, and the wine was watered down leftovers after the best was hauled off to Rome. What about fish you say? There wasn't much, and even most of Peter's bountiful catch would have gone to the taxpayers, and alot of it went to make fish sauce that kept well.So, there are no recipes here, ( a bit disappointing to me), but each of the food episodes is illuminated by what it would have meant in those semi starved days.Vegetarians will be happy to know that most people were vegetarian except for few occasions, as meat was expensive.Karris encourages readers to read the gospel as a hospitality narrative and not read too much theology into it, you will find a different Jesus in here if you do that, one who you would be happy to host at your dinner table, and who would invite you back just as readily!

Fun and easy to read and you will learn about Jesus, his suppers and society, things you did not know. Dr. Karris is a wonderful scholar and writer.

A unique perspective on Luke's account of the life of Christ with special attention given to the intimacy and profundity of the informal and the prophetic dimensions of His message.

The author writes with great humor about food in the New Testament (Luke)

As someone who loves food and us realistic about what was available in biblical times, I felt thud was a bit dumbed down.

Actually, I tossed the book after looking through it for a couple of hours. The writer seems to have to stretch awfully far in his conclusions, and nothing is very clear. I really don't "get" the book.

Robert Karris' slim book is anything but "slim pickins" on the theme of food in the New Testament gospels. A recognized scholar on scripture topics, including an important book on Luke, Karris here presents rich fare for those interested in understanding the importance of food in the first century A.D. world of the gospels and in reading on Jesus' meals in a richer context. Karris writes for a general audience in a lively and entertaining style. Additionally, I have used this book for background in two of my graduate school scripture courses. As I wrote in a previous review: He has fashioned a 'meal'that provides enticing and nourishing food for thought, meat for good homilies, and staples for a life of Christian discipleship."

very good for the bible study

good