Francis Gonsalves

Gandhiji once said, “If God were to come to this world, he would come in the form of bread”. God is considered the “Giver of Bread” in many religious traditions. Moreover, God is also symbolically regarded as Bread — The One who nourishes everyone. Indeed, just as flour is kneaded into dough, so is God’s presence and power kneaded into bread or its desi variants: roti, idli, dosa, appam, paratha and naan. Thank God! We eat. We live.
Bread of either wheat or barley is a staple of Biblical diet. So much is it a “necessity of life” (Sirach 29:21) that the Bible speaks of the “staff of bread” (Leviticus 26:26; Ezekiel 5:16; 14:13), implying that bread enables one to walk. Thus, bread is often synonymous with food itself; for instance, the phrase “by bread alone” (Deuteronomy 8:3) means “by food alone” (Genesis 3:19; Numbers 21:5; Luke 15:17).
In many religions bread symbolises existence itself. In the Taittiriya Upanishad 2:2-5 and 3:1-6, bread is sacred and food is Brahman. In its self-sacrifice, food provides nourishment and promotes life. The Hindu tradition has certain gradation in food: sattvic, rajasic, tamasic foods. Food is the channel of the spirit and the bond of fellowship.
In the Bible, the breaking and sharing of bread cements friendship. In fact, the word “companion” is derived from the Latin cum-panis — literally, “with-bread” — implying that one fosters friendship through sharing one’s bread. Hospitality, therefore, is immeasurably important. The Sanskrit saying athiti deva bhava reminds us that the guest is God.
“The Hospitality of Abraham” is a beautiful icon of Andrei Rublev, painted in 1411, now showcased in the Tretyakov Gallery in Moscow. It depicts three divine guests that appeared to Abraham. Eager to serve them finest food, Abraham is blessed with the promise of a son. Offering food to Gods is meritorious since it expresses our gratitude to God. But, what about food we offer to other people?
Food items sometimes suggest subtle social discriminations that surface at birth itself. In certain communities in Gujarat, for instance, parents distribute pendas at the birth of a boy and jelebis in the case of a girl. Moreover, communitarian roti vyavahara prescribes whom one can eat with, and proscribes with whom one can’t. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could share meals with all people as in the Sikh communitarian langar?
Today, “fast food” fads make us gorge enormous chunks of food without ruminating over the symbolic, social and spiritual meanings attached to food and eating. Not so with Jesus. After miraculously feeding a multitude with bread and fish (John 6:1-14), Jesus proclaims, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry” (John 6:35). Here, Jesus symbolically refers to himself as bread since, besides satisfying the physiological hunger of his people, he nourishes them with words of wisdom.
Jesus often speaks of life and afterlife in terms of a banquet wherein, initially, a chosen few are invited to dine with the King, understood to be God. However, being overly preoccupied with trifles, they ignore the royal invitation. Furious, the King then orders his courtiers: “Go out into the streets and lanes and invite everyone you find to the banquet” (Matthew 22:1-10). In parables such as these, Jesus critiques those who use religion as a ruse to discriminate and decimate, exclude and exploit.
Jesus’ “table companionship” becomes scandalous to the religious bigwigs of his time for he has meals with those whom they consider “sinners”. Yet, his meals become channels of God’s compassion and forgiveness (Matthew 9:10-13; Luke 7:36-50; 19:1-10). Throwing overboard exclusionary roti vyavahara, he redefines religious regulations so that all hungers — spiritual and physical — might be satisfied.
Today, many bhaktas feed animals as a religious responsibility. Appreciating such sensitivity, I also ask: What about India’s starving millions? When tonnes of grains rot in granaries or are eaten by rats, isn’t it my sacred dharma to protest and to ensure that these hungry million sisters and brothers of mine get at least a bowlful of rice or two rotis?
“As for the earth, out of it comes bread”, says Job (28:5). True; yet so many processes and people are involved between earth and bread. The tears, toil and sweat of millions of people, as well as God’s benevolence, have gone into each mouthful we eat. So, while we pray: “O God, give us today our daily bread” (Luke 11:3), let’s share our bread with those who starve. May we truly be bread; for God is Bread.

— Francis Gonsalves is the principal of the Vidyajyoti College of Theology, Delhi. He is involved in interfaith dialogue and peoples’ initiatives for fostering justice, harmony and peace. He can
be contacted at fragons@gmail.com