Wednesday Night Dinner Update

by Frank Holman, Elder for Wednesday Night Dinner

A recent Seattle Times article, Breaking Bread With Strangers, extolled the virtues of eating meals together with friends and sometimes with strangers. The headline continued: “With supper clubs, Seattle chefs are creating community over dinner”. Supper clubs have now become a regular feature in Seattle, and throughout the article the goals of community, conversation and connection occurred repeatedly.

For over 25 years, Bethany has had its own version of a supper club which gathers in and outside the Fellowship Hall every Wednesday evening [except the month of August] to enjoy our own chefs’ creations. On July 26th our “community over dinner” celebrated the year with a picnic on the church lawn, gift cards for community members, guest and volunteer surveys, and a sixth vaccination clinic. We resumed the dinner on September 7th, and enjoyed reconnecting with one another after our time away.

Covid has challenged, but not defeated, the community, conversations and connections. However, as Pastor Doug reminds us, we have not quite arrived at the New Jerusalem where we can fully enjoy the complete return to the community table, meal and fellowship. We are still on the road (literally many meals served and eaten along Queen Anne Avenue) singing Psalms of Ascent: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His word I put my hope” (Psalm 130:5). And like the ancient pilgrims climbing toward Jerusalem, we still converse, eat together, pray, sing, shelter from the weather, connect and encourage each other with Hope on the avenue.

We are grateful for all the people who sustain this community within Bethany. As we look forward, we continue to invite the greater Bethany community to participate in and with Wednesday Night Dinner. For further information, visit the Bethany website (www.bethanypc.org/ministries/wednesday-night-dinner) or contact Hannah Kunde, Doug Rutherford or me (Frank Holman at fwholman@holmancahill.com).