Welcoming All to Christ Table: Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity

Today is International Friendship Day, a concept central to us at No Reservations. Friendship is one of those dynamic aspects of life that evolves through the many seasons we experience. For some, friendships are bonds formed early, with childhood friends becoming unbreakable supports of unconditional love, enduring whatever life throws at us. For others, friends come and go, but each face and each bond adds to the overall framework of who they are and who we are yet to become.

In a city like Miami, where many of us are transplants from around the globe, finding friends can be particularly challenging. This is especially true for those struggling to make a living in an economy that continually demands more of our limited resources. When can we find time to meet new people when we are just trying to survive? This is why groups like ours exist and why our ministry is so important for the people of South Florida. We offer a space for individuals from all walks of life to be still and meet friends who can make this life not only bearable but actually enjoyable.

Shared experiences are what make us human. We seek connections, understanding, and thrive in environments empathetic to our lived experiences and struggles. We yearn to share our happiness with others and, at times, to cry on the shoulders of those who will love us with “No Reservations.” This is the Christian promise and mission—to bring people together so we might experience the wonders of this world as one. Community was a key component of Christ’s ministry, as he sought to unite people from all walks of life in Imperial Roman-controlled Palestine.

The Gospels portray Christ spending time and sharing meals with every member of his society, particularly those whom many today still view as undesirable. These were the individuals society collectively projects its anxieties onto, saying, “I might be ‘this,’ but at least I am not like ‘those’ people.” Yet, it was “those” people who became integral to and remain a focus of Christian identity.

That is why the recent Christian “outrage” over the alleged portrayal of the Last Supper at the Paris Olympics is comical. It seems modern pockets of Christians have forgotten that they are called to be the living embodiment of Christ in the world. If we are the hands and feet of Christ, then the Last Supper is a metaphor for the ever-expanding table of Christ, welcoming the societal undesirables as it did then. Embracing “those” in our communities, we find the essence of the Messiah, the living heart of Christ, and the very Soul of God.

So, if drag queens offend you, know that Christ would welcome them to the table. If the existence of queer people threatens your comfort, understand that Christ would break bread with them. If people’s authenticity triggers your inability to share this planet with others, remember that Christ is there drinking wine with them, loving them fully for who they are. What the Paris Olympics have done is showcase the very nature of Christianity that welcomes all into the fold, creating community around those outcast and hated by the so-called “moral” minorities who scream outrage while the world moves towards the shared universal vision of liberty, equality, and fraternity—values inherent in Christ’s ministry and the early church movement.

Bravo to France for sparking this conversation and for showing the world that Christ’s love, as represented by the Last Supper, is ever-expansive and always welcoming to all.