The Lord’s Supper? When eating and dining become determinative in 1 Corinthians 11:17–34

Abstract

In 1 Cor 11:17–34, Paul admonishes the church in Corinth for celebrating the Lord’s Supper in a way that maintains and perpetuates inequitable treatment based on socioeconomic status. His concern is that such practices harm the church’s witness and create a disunity that tears the body of Christ apart and connects the church to liability for the death of Jesus himself. In Paul’s argument, food and dining do not function merely symbolically or metaphorically, but serve to actualize either unity in the body of Christ or division that leads to physical consequences of judgment from God. Paul grounds his argument in the logic of the tradition of the Lord’s Supper as it was handed down to him.