Eating with Honor: The Corinthian Lord's Supper in Light of Voluntary Association Meal

Practices
Author(s): RACHEL M. MCRAE
Source: Journal of Biblical Literature, Vol. 130, No. 1 (SPRING 2011), pp. 165-181
Published by: Society of Biblical Literature
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41304193
Accessed: 10-02-2016 17:39 UTC

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JBL130,no.1 (2011): 165-181

Eating with Honor: The Corinthian

Lord's Supper in Light of

Voluntary Association Meal Practices

RACHEL M. MCRAE
mcrae.rachelO@gmail.com
QueensSchoolofReligion, ON K7L0A1,Canada
Kingston,

Therehasbeenincreasing byscholarsstudying
recognition theGreco-Roman
worldofthefirstcentury thata largerdatabaseofmealpracticesis desirablefor
understanding thesocialbanqueting behindPaulswordsconcerning
practices the
Corinthian banquet of 1 Cor 11:17-33.Scholarssuchas GerdTheissen,WayneA.
Meeks,MatthiasKlinghardt, and Dennis E. Smithhave minedtheelitecommen-
oftheancientsand haveestablishedthata standardformofthe
salityliterature
Greco-Roman banquetunderliespracticesofthetime.1Ritualsvaried,however,
and AndrewMcGowanremindsus that"variousgroupsseemto havehad differ-
entexplicitunderstandings and purposesin mindand to haveused eatingand
drinking togetherin a varietyofritualforms."2
GerardRouwhorst pointsout,cit-

I amgrateful
forfeedback onvariousdraftsofthispaper
from Professor
Richard
Ascough,
andforthehelpful
suggestionsofthetwoanonymous JBLreviewers.
1 ofAthenaeus,
translations Learned Ovid,Meta-
English Deipnosophists, Banqueters;
morphoses;Pausanias, andJuvenal,
ofGreece;
Description JuvenalandPersius
arefrom theLoeb
Classical SeeTheissen,
Library. TheSocialSetting ofPaulineChristianity:
EssaysonCorinth
Fortress,
(Philadelphia: 147-63;
1989), Meeks,TheFirstUrbanChristians:
TheSocialWorldofthe
Paul(NewHaven:
Apostle YaleUniversityPress,1983);Matthias "ATypology
Klinghardt, ofthe
Community Meal"(paperpresentedtotheMealsintheGreco-Roman World SBL
Consultation,
annualmeeting, November,
Atlanta, 2003);D. Smith,"TheGreco-Roman Banquetas a Social
Institution" presented
(paper totheMealsintheGreco-Roman World SBLannual
Consultation,
Atlanta,
meeting, November, 2003); idem,"Greco-Roman Meal Customs,"ABD 4:650-53;and,
morerecently,
idem, From Symposium toEucharist:TheBanquet intheEarlyChristianWorld
Fortress,
(Minneapolis: 2003).
2McGowan, "Food,Ritual,andPower," inLateAncient Burrus;
(ed.Virginia
Christianity
Peoples ofChristianity
History 2;Minneapolis: 2005),145-64.
Fortress,

165

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166 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

ingMaryDouglass work,thatwhena groupconstructs a ritualtradition,

itis con-
structing a socialidentity:
"Every meal- especiallywhen taken together bymore
thanoneperson-encodessignificant messages about social and hierarchicalpat-
terns."3
A studyofbanqueting traditionsofGreco-Roman voluntary associationshelps
toclarify therolethattheMediterranean codeofhonorandshameplayedinestab-
lishingtheirsocialidentity.As Jewish and Christian groupsbothsawthemselves
andwereseenbyothersas voluntary associations,suggestthatsimilarsocialand
I
hierarchical patternsbasedon thecode ofhonorand shameoftheMediterranean
worldareevidencedin thebanqueting traditionsoftheCorinthian community.4
Thesesocialpatterns, ratherthantheeconomicpatterns ofwealthand poverty,
explainthedivisions intheCorinthian community. Becausethehonor/ shamecode
is a changeablevaluesystem ratherthana fixedeconomicsituation, I suggestthat
Paulis therefore ableto proposeradicalchangesto theCorinthian mealritualin
orderto establishnew social and behavioralpatternsthatreflectthevaluesof
humility, mutualupbuilding, and lovethatJesustaught.In effect, Paul uses the
mealritualto createa newChristian socialidentity.
GerdTheissenfirstanalyzedthesocialproblemsoftheCorinthian commu-
nity,demonstrating thattherewas a "markedinternalstratification" withinthe
community, thefactions
attributing to economicdivisions.Theverb7rpoXa(zj3dva)
in 1 Cor 11:21is understood to describethefewwealthy Corinthians whobegin
theirprivatemealbeforethecommunalmealandreceivelargerportionsowingto

3Rouwhorst, "Table Community inEarly Christianity,"inAHoly Jewish

People: andChris-
tianPerspectives
onReligious Communal Identity(ed.Marcel PoorthuisandJoshuaSchwartz; Jew-
ishandChristian Perspectives 12;Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2006),69-84,here69,citing Mary
Douglas,ImplicitMeanings: Selected Essays inAnthropology (2nded.;London/New York: Rout-
ledge,1999);PaulBradshaw, TheSearch fortheOrigins ofChristian Sources
Worship: andMeth-
odsfortheStudy ofEarly Liturgy(NewYork: OxfordUniversity Press, Andrew
1992); McGowan,
"Rethinking Agape,"Studia Liturgica34(2004):165-76.
4Peter Richardson,BuildingJewish intheRoman East(Waco: Baylor Press,
University 2004),
187.Christians
toowere viewed ascollegia; seeJohnS.Kloppenborg, "EdwinHatch,Churches and
inOrigins
Collegia," andMethod: Towards a NewUnderstanding andChristianity.
ofJudaism Essays
inHonour ofJohnC.Hurd (ed.Bradley H.McLean; JSNTSup 86;Sheffield:
JSOT Press,
1993),228:
statement
"Pliny's that inBithynia
Christians ceasedmeeting after edict
Trajan's banning hetaeriae
indicates
boththat theChristians involved sawthemselves asconstituting
anassociation,andthat
thisjudgement wasshared byPliny." SeealsoB.W.R.Pearson, "Associations,"
DictionaryofNew
Testament Background (ed.Craig A.EvansandStanley E. Porter;DownersGrove, IL:InterVar-
2000),137;Hans-
sity, JosefKlauck, TheReligious ContextofEarly A Guide
Christianity: toGreco-
Roman (Studies
Religions of theNew Testament and ItsWorld; T&T
Edinburgh: Clark,2000),54;
Robert L.Wilken, TheChristians as theRomans SawThem (NewHaven: YaleUniversity Press,
1984),44-46;Jim Harrison, "Paul'sHouseChurches andtheCultic RTR58(1999):
Associations,"
31-33;S. C. Barton andG.H. R.Horsley, "AHellenistic CultGroup andtheNewTestament
Churches,"JAC24(1981):28-38;Richard S.Ascough, PauVs Macedonian Associations:
TheSocial
ContextofPhilippiansand1 Thessalonians (WUNT2/161; Tubingen: Mohr Siebeck,
2003), 71-94.

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 167

theirrank.5Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, drawingon thearchaeological evidenceof

remainsaroundCorinthofseveralwealthy villaswitha triclinium(diningroom)
and an atrium, further speculatesthatthevillaat Anaplogarepresents thetypeof
homeownedbya wealthy Corinthian patron of the He
Jesuscommunity.6 reasons
thatthehost(perhapsGaius)entertained theeightwealthiest members ofthecom-
munity in the tricliniumofhis villa (which seats the
nine) relegating restofthe
Corinthian group to inferiordining in his villasatrium.7 Gregory Lintonagrees
withthissuggestion, estimatingthat there were perhaps sixsmallerchurch groups
in Corinthwhowouldjoin together to celebrate theLords Supper.8 Perhapsmore
thanthirty-five participantsweredining.9
PeterLampe,too,suggests thatthewealthy Corinthians participatedin "First
Tables,"a dinnerattended bytheleisuredelite,and thatthepoorerpeoplearrived
laterforthe"SecondTables,"whichwas thesymposium, and receivedlesserpor-
tionsconsisting ofsweetdessertsand fruit, or perhapsspicydishes,seafood,and
bread.10 This explanation was acceptedbya numberofotherscholars.11 Never-

5Theissen, SocialSettingofPauline 151-54;

Christianity, idem,Social andtheEarly
Reality
Christians:
Theology, Ethics
andtheWorld oftheNewTestament Fortress,
(Minneapolis: 1992);
E.A.Judge, TheSocialPattern oftheChristianGroups intheFirst SomeProlegomena
Century: to
theStudy ofNewTestament IdeasofSocialObligation (Christ andCulture Collection;London:
Tyndale,1960);Abraham Malherbe,SocialAspectsofEarlyChristianity Lectures;
(Rockwell Baton
Rouge:Louisiana State
University Press,
1977).
6Murphy- O'Connor, St.PaulsCorinth: TextsandArchaeology DE:Michael
(Wilmington,
Glazier,1983),155-56.
7 O'Connor cites DennisE.Smith, "Social intheContext ofCommu-
Murphy Obligation
nalMeals:A Study oftheChristian Mealin1 Corinthians inComparison withGraeco-Roman
Meals"(Th.D.diss., Harvard 1980),156.
University,
8Linton ("House Church intheNewTestament Era,"inStone Journal
Meetings Campbell
8 [2005]:220-44, here233)suggeststhatthere weresixsmall groupsmeetinginthehomes ofthe
followingpeople inCorinth:Aquila and Priscilla
(Acts 18:2-4);TitiusJustus
(Acts 18:7);
Crispus
(Acts18:8);Chloe(1 Cor1:11);Stephanas (1 Cor1:16);andGaius(Rom16:23). Thechurch in
neighboringCenchreae meets inthehomeofPhoebe (Rom16:1-2).
9HenkJ.de "TheEarly oftheLord's Supper,"inReligious
Identityandthe
Jonge, History
InventionofTradition:Papers Readata NOSTER Conference inSoesterberg,
January 4-6,1999
(ed.JanWillem vanHenten andAnton Houtepen; Studies inTheology andReligion 3;Assen:
VanGorcum, 2001),209-37, here209.
1UPeterLampe,TheCorinthian EucharisticDinner ofa CulturalContext
Party: Exegesis
(1 Cor.11:17-34),"Affirmation4 2-3.
(1991):
11 OsiekandDavidL.Balch, FamiliesintheNewTestament World:
Households and
Carolyn
HouseChurches (Family,Religion,andCulture; Louisville:
Westminster JohnKnox, 1997),200-
203;BradleyB.Blue,"TheHouseChurch atCorinth andtheLord's Supper:Famine, FoodSup-
ply,andthePresent Criswell
Distress," TheologicalReview 5 (1991):233-34;Dennis E.Smith and
HalE. Taussig,ManyTables: TheEucharist intheNewTestament andLiturgyToday (Philadel-
phia:TrinityPressInternational, 1990),64;deJonge, "Early 209-10;Linton,
History," "House
Church Meetings," 243.

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168 ofBiblicalLiterature
Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)

theless,therehavebeen recentchallengesto thistheoryby L. MichaelWhite,

DavidG. Horrell, andJ.J.Meggitt, producing "a somewhat revised, morecautious"
attitude concerning the economic status ofthe Corinthians and the causeoftheir
socialdivisions.12
Here,inscriptions ofthevoluntary associationbanquetingcustomsmaybe
engaged in thediscussion, fortheycontain muchevidencefordivisionswithina
dininggroup - divisions not
predicated on wealth buton thehonor/shame codeof
theMediterranean region.13RichardS. Ascough notesthat"segregativecommen-
salityis notlimitedto thosein theupperranks- itsstrength liesin theabilityof
groups to be about
(self-)selective who can join in the and
eating drinking."14 We
suggest that, similarto othervoluntary associations, thedivisionsmarring the cel-
ebration oftheLords Supperin Corinthmaybe attributed tothehonorandshame
valuecode.

I. Honor and Shame in the Associations

"Itis becomingan acceptedfactthathonorand shamewerepivotalvaluesin

antiquitythatstructured thedailylivesofpeoplesaroundtheMediterranean."15
Thevoluntary associationssubscribed
to thesameculturalagonisticsocialvalues
ofhonorandshameas theMediterranean societyinwhichtheylived.16
In thiscode

12Horrell,"Domestic SpaceandChristian atCorinth: NewContexts

Meetings Imagining
andtheBuildings EastoftheTheatre,"NTS50(2004):359.Forthediscussion oftheeconomic sta-
tusoftheCorinthians, seeGailR.O'Day, "Jeremiah9:22-23 and1Corinthians1:26-31:A Study
inIntertextuality,"
JBL109(1990):259-67;andtheinterchange ofideasamong Meggitt (Paul,
PovertyandSurvival [StudiesoftheNewTestament andItsWorld; Edinburgh:T&TClark, 1998],
153,179;"Response toMartin andTheissen," JSNT 24 [2001]:85-94),DaleB.Martin ("Review
Essay:Justin
J.Meggitt,Paul,PovertyandSurvival JSNT 24[2001]:51-64),andTheissen ("Social
Conflicts
intheCorinthian Community: Further Remarks onJ.J.Meggitt,Paul,PovertyandSur-
vival,"
JSNT 25[2003]: 371-91).SeealsoSteven J.Friesen, inPauline
"Poverty Studies:Beyond
theSo-Called NewConsensus," JSNT 26(2004):323-61; Bengt Holmberg,"TheMethods ofHis-
torical
Reconstruction intheScholarly 'Recovery'of Corinthian in
Christianity,"Christianityat
Corinth:TheQuest forthePauline Church (ed.Edward Adams andDavidG.Horrell; Louisville:
Westminster John Knox, 2004),255-72; L.Michael White, TheSocialOriginsofChristianArchi-
vol.1,Building
tecture, GodsHouseintheRoman World: Architectural
Adaptationamong Pagans,
JewsandChristians (Valley PA:Trinity
Forge, PressInternational,
1990),102-39,esp.107;Linton,
"House Church Meetings," 238;Horrell,"Domestic Space,"354-56.
13Ascough, "Forms ofCommensality inGreco-Roman CW102(2008):33-
Associations,"
46.
14Ibid.,37.
15Neyrey,Honor andShame intheGospel ofMatthew Westminster
(Louisville: John Knox,
1998),3;ZebaCrook("Honor, Shame,andSocialStatus JBL128[2009]:
Revisited," 591)agrees
that"there
ismore thanenough evidencetodefend theproposition intheMediterranean,
that past
andpresent,these valuesremain pivotal."
16The isindebtedtobothCrook,Honor, Shame,' 591-611, andthe
following paragraph

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 169

ofvalues,an adultcouldattainhonorindividually (ofsecondaryimportance) and

collectively(ofprimeimportance). The honor could be attributed(thehonor that
thepeoplescourtofreputation attributesto peoplewhentheyareborn,whichis
acquiredthrough birth,family connections, or endowment bynotablepersonsof
power) as wellas distributed(honor thatthe peoples court ofreputationdistributes
whenever someoneoutwits another, when a benefaction is made,or after
anykind
ofpublicchallengeand riposte)."Whilepower,wealth,and genderdo figureinto
the rules ofhonorand shame,theseindividualistic characteristicsmattermuch
lessthantheopinionofthePCR [publiccourtofreputation], whoeverthatmight
represent in anygiveninstance."17 Honorwas alwaysgainedat theexpenseof
another, for,according tothisworldview of"limited good"orperception ofscarcity,
all good thingsexistin limitedquantity. Shameor dishonorresultsfromlackof
acknowledgment bythepubliccourtofreputation. In thepubliccourtofreputa-
tion,marginalized peoplesuchas lowstatusgroupsandwomencouldgainhonor.
Aristotle claimsthatshameadheresto thosewhofailto demonstrate thefourcar-
dinalvirtues(Rhet. 2.6.3-4).
The banquetbecamean important vehiclefordistributing honor.As Willi
Braunhasnoted,theearlyChristians in Paulscommunity didnotinventtheirban-
quetfromnothing.18 "Throughout theirlives,individuals inantiquitywereembed-
ded in some collectiveor group- eitherthe family, whichwas the dominant
institution ofthatsocialworld,orpeergroupsatthegymnasium, symposium, army,
synagogue, orassembly ofcitizensinthepolis."19 Therewasa long-standing tradi-
tionofbanqueting inthesegroups,practiced atvirtually everysociallevel.Allover
theMediterranean world,fromearliesttimes,culticassociationmembersvolun-
tarilyjoinedtogether forconvivialityandto expresstheirpietyin regularly sched-
uledprivatesacrificial banquets.20
Ourmainsourcesofinformation forassociations arethethousands ofinscrip-
tionsdatingfromas earlyas thefifth century b.c.e.To date,fifteenfragmentary
inscriptions possiblybelongingto voluntaryassociationshave been foundat
Corinth.21 Extensive excavations atEphesushaveuncovered theexistenceofforty-
one tradeassociationsand nineteenculticassociations.Twenty-four voluntary
associationsare attestedon Delos, forty- six at Thessalonike,and fifty-nine in

seminal
workofBruce J.Malina
andJerome H.Neyrey,"Honor andShame
inLuke-Acts:Pivotal
Values
oftheMediterraneanWorld,"inTheSocialWorld ofLuke-
Acts:
Models
forInterpretation
MA:Hendrickson,
(Peabody, 1991),1-46.
17Crook,
"Honor, Shame,"610.
18Braun,
"TheGreco-Roman Meal:Typology ofForm orFormofTypology?"
(paperpre-
sented
totheMealsintheGreco-Roman World SBLannualmeeting,
Consultation, Atlanta,
2003),2.
November,
19Neyrey,
Honor andShame intheGospel 28.
ofMatthew,
20Ascough,
"Forms ofCommensality,"3.
21See "TheCompletion ofa Religious TheBackground
of2 Cor.8.1-15,"
Ascough, Duty:
NTS42(1996):584n.3.

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170 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

Ostia.22 Archaeologists in Petra,Nabatea,speculatethatas manyas forty associa-

tions( marzeah ) established sanctuariesin the highplaces of thecanyon.23 James
Rivespointsto theimportance ofthissourceofinformation forsocialand reli-
giouslifein antiquity; itfillsthegapsleftbyliterary sourcesandgivesus "a viewof
civiclifeatgroundlevelas wellas fromtheheights."24
Membership numbers intheassociations weregenerally small,averagingper-
haps fifteen to one hundred, and were mainly drawn from the urbanpoor,slaves,
and freedmen.25 Intersecting socialrelationsin theGreco-Roman worldplayeda
major rolein the formation of voluntaryassociations,for while the members were
mainly the urban and their
poor,slaves, freedmen, patrons could be bothwealth-
ierandofa higherstatusgroup.26 Manypeoplebelongedto morethanone associ-
ation.27 Witha fewexceptions, suchas groupsthathad a longpedigree, including
Jewish synagogues and ancientsocieties,associationsweredeclaredillegalunder
variousRomanadministrations after184b.c.e.,buttheycontinued tothrivedespite
sporadicsuppression.28 During thefirst
century, with itsmigration andintermix-
ingofpeoples,powers,andideas,thepresenceofassociations wasfeltthroughout
theentireRomanEmpire, especially inurbanareas, where theyplayeda significant
rolein mediating variouskindsofsocialexchange.29 associationbecamethe
An
"sociallyconstructed replacement forthefamily."30
An association's privatebanquetwas thechiefvenueforannouncing, award-

22Richardson, Jewish,
Building 193.
23Robert Wenning, "TheRock-Cut Architecture
ofPetra,"inPetraRediscovered:LostCity
oftheNabataeans (ed.GlennMarkoe; NewYork: CincinnatiArtMuseum, 2003),133,142;Laila
Nehme, "ThePetra Survey inibid.,
Project," 158.
24Rives,CivicandReligious Life,inEpigraphic Evidence: Ancient
History from Inscrip-
tions
(ed.John Bodel;ApproachingtheAncient World; London: Routledge,2001),118-19.
25John S.Kloppenborg, "Collegi Issues
andThiasoi: inFunction, Taxonomy andMember-
in Voluntary
ship," in theGraeco-Roman
Associations World (ed.John S. Kloppenborg and
Stephen G.Wilson; London/New York: 1996),
Routledge, 23.
26Philip A.Harland,"Connections withElitesintheWorld oftheEarly in
Christians,"
Handbook ofEarlyChristianity:SocialScience Approaches(ed.Anthony J.Blasi,Paul-Andre
Turcotte,andJean Duhaime;Walnut Creek, CA:AltaMira.2002),389.
z/Ascough, A QuestionofDeath:PaulsCommunity Building Languagein1 ihessaloni-
ans4:13-18,"JBL123(2004):510.
28Ascough, "Greco-Roman Philosophic, andVoluntary
Religious, inCom-
Associations,"
munity Formation intheEarlyChurch andtheChurch Today (ed.Richard N. Longenecker;
Peabody. MA:Hendrickson, 2002),3.
Ibid.;Kloppenborg,Collegia andThiasoi,17;Burton L.Mack, WhoWrote theNewTes-
tament: TheMaking oftheChristianMyth (SanFrancisco:
HarperSan 1995),19.
Francisco,
30Ascough, "QuestionofDeath,519,citing Jonathan Z. Smith,Here,ThereandAny-
where" (keynote addresstotheconference entitled
"Prayer,Magic, andtheStars intheAncient
andLateAntique World," UniversityofWashington,Department ofNewEastern Languages and
March
Civilization, 3-5,2000),14.

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 171

ing,and paradinghonorific deeds.Honorswerevaried:31 erectionofa stele,bust,

or statue;honorsattheannualormonthly banquet such as theprivilege ofreclin-
ing on the couch of and
honor, crowning with a goldorolive or floral
wreath,which
was sometimes adornedwithwoolenor redribbons;publicannouncement ofthe
persons benefaction during the sacrifices
and meetings;bestowal ofmoney hon-
or
orariaor interest on mortgaged land;exemption from all membership feesfora
of
period time; or the privilegeof frontseats foroneself and ones guest(s)during
thegames.For officials, honorsmightincludeattendanceat a sacredmeal,an
increasedshareofthedistributions aftersacrifice,32or specialclothing, suchas
priestly headband or specialcloak forthesacred procession and meal.33
Associa-
tions,alongwithelitesandmunicipal usedthephysical
institutions, manifestations
ofthebanquetdisplayto further their own socialprestige in thecompetition for
membership, patrons, and politicalpower in theirworld.
Associations wereoftenincludedin selectpublicandprivate banquets,where
wealthy benefactors wouldpresentdistributions (sportulae ) accordingto a strict
hierarchy.34 Participation in thesebanquets,throughtheirmembership in their
collegia, elevatedmembers'personalstatusas wellas thestatusoftheircollegia.
"Theeffect ofallthiswasthatcollegiawerepresented as respectable organisations,
as first-levelstatusgroupsforambitious membersoftheplebsthatwereseenas an
integral partoflocal socialhierarchies."35 Membership in associationsand atten-
danceattheirbanquetswereseenas an acceptable(i.e.,honorable)sourceofsocial
identity.36
Associationinscriptionsoftenincludedthe wish that theirassociation
"increasebyzeal forhonor,"or that"thereshallbe a rivalryamongeveryoneto
striveforhonoramongthem,everyone knowing thattheywillbe honoredina way
worthy ofthosewhothemselves showkindness."37 Memberscompetedforofficial
leadership positionsin theirassociations-positionsthatwouldhavebeendenied
themin theircivicinstitution, becauseoftheirrankand status.38 Throughthese

31Ascough, PaulsMacedonianAssociations,24-28;Klauck, ,44.

Context
Religious
32For attheprocessionseeIDelos1520.
guests
33SeeRachel M.McRae, "TheCorinthian LordsSupper andtheGreco-Roman Banquet"
thesis,
(M.T.S. Queens Theological
College,2008),appendixB.
34Associations alsohandedoutsportulae;seeFrankM.Ausbiittel,
Untersuchungenzuden
VereinenimWesten desromischen Reiches(Frankfurteralthistorische
Studien
11;Kallmiinz:
MichaelLassleben,1982),55-56.
35OnnovanNijf, TheCivic
World Associations
oftheProfessional intheRoman East(Dutch
Monographs onAncient andArchaeology
History 17;Amsterdam:J.C.Gieben,
1997),155,166-
68.
36Ibid.,28.
37IGII/2,1369(Eranos ofLiopesi, second
Attica, C.E.)andIGII/2,1292(Cultof
century
Athens,
Sarapis, third b.c.e.).
century
38IliasArnaoutoglou, "Between Koinon andIdion:LegalandSocialDimensions ofReli-
giousAssociationsinAncientAthens," inKosmos: inOrder,
Essays andCommunity
Conflict, in

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172 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

positions members wereabletoexertsomemeasureofcontrol overtheircollegium

,
andprovidea structure fornegotiating relationshipswith theofficials
of the munic-
ipality andtheelite.39 Positionssuchas quinquennalis (presidentoftheRomancol-
legia), magistercenarum (masterofthe Roman banquet),archisynagogos andarchon
(president ofthe Greek association),archeranistes (master of theGreek banquet),
epimeletes (supervisors)andtamias(treasurer) weredesirable andhighly respected,
althoughoftenfinancially onerous,requiringconsiderabledisbursement ofthe
member s privatefunds.40 Lengths of tenure and
varied, many officials
purchased
theirvaluableoffices.41
Similartootherassociations, theCorinthian community encouraged itsmem-
berstoexcel.PaulpraisesTitusforaccepting thejob ofmoneycollector: "youexcel
in everything- in faith,in speech,in knowledge, in utmosteagerness, and in our
loveforyou- so we wantyouto excelalso in thisgenerousundertaking" (2 Cor
8:7). We see that therewere for
opportunities achieving honor withinthe individ-
ual housechurchin theleadership rolesas well.Memberspursuedstatusthrough
theirrolesas prophets,speakers-in-tongues, teachers,and so forth.42 In 1 Cor
12:28-30,intensionwithhisusualteachings ofequality andmutualservitude, Paul
too participates in legitimatingtherankingsystem, as he enumerates theofficial
positionsinthecommunity: inthetoprankarePaul,thefounder, andApollosand
Cephas,leadersand apostles.Theyreceivewagesfromthegroup(1 Cor 3:8),

Athens
Classical (ed.PaulCartledge,PaulMillett, andSittavonReden; Cambridge: Cambridge
UniversityPress,1998), 75;Ascough,Pauls Macedonian Associations
,25;Wilken, asthe
Christians
Romans SawThem , 35-40;Andrew D. Clarke, ServetheCommunity oftheChurch:Christiansas
LeadersandMinisters. Christians
First-Century intheGraeco-Roman World(Grand Rapids:Eerd-
mans, 2000), 68;Pauline Schmitt-Pantel, Activities
"Collective intheGreek
andthePolitical City,"
inTheGreek Cityfrom Homer toAlexander (ed.Oswyn MurrayandS.R.F.Price;Oxford:Claren-
don,1990), 200-201; Frank Frost
Abbott, TheCommon ofAncient
People Rome: Studies
ofRoman
andLiterature
Life NewYork:
(1911;repr., Biblo& Tannen, 1965),221-25;JohnF.Donahue, The
Roman Community at TableduringthePrincipiate (AnnArbor: UniversityofMichigan Press,
2004),84.
39Kloppenborg, andThiasoi,"
"Collegia 27;vanNijf,CivicWorld ,21.
40Fortamias, seeIG II/2,1327;quinquennali: CILIV,2112;archisynagogos: IGX/2, 288,
289;archon : IGX/2, 58;archeranistes
: IG II/2,1343;epimeletes:IGX/2, JJnter-
88;Ausbiittel,
suchungen zudenVereinen , 55-57;Halsey Royden, "TheTenure ofOffice oftheQuinquennales
intheRoman Professional AJP
Collegia," 110(1989)303-15; Arnaoutoglou,"Between Koinonand
Idion,"75;Ascough, "Greco-Roman Philosophic, ReligiousandVoluntary 15.
Associations,"
41SIG3,1009(Chalcedon, first
century IPriene
b.c.e.); 174(second century IPriene
B.C.E.);
201-2(Anatolia, second centuryb.c.e.).
42Contra Lectures
Edwin Hatch(TheOrganization oftheEarly ChristianChurches:
Eight
Deliveredbefore theUniversityofOxford, intheYear1880[Bampton Lecturesfor1880;London:
Rivingtons,1881;repr., Eugene,OR:Wipf & Stock,1999],119),whorecognizes thatthedistinc-
tionsarebaseduponvarieties ofspiritual power,butdenies thatthisaffects
their
official
stand-
inginthegroup.

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 173

acquirea groupfollowing, andbuildon thefoundation laidbyPaul(3:10).Prophets

arenamedsecond,fortheybuildup thecommunity and acquiremorehonorthan
thosewhospeakintongues(14:5).Teachersarethird;fourth arethosewhoeffected
"deedsofpower";fifth, thosewhocontribute theirgifts ofhealing;andthenappear
thosewhooffer "forms ofassistance,formsofleadership, variouskindsoftongues"
(12:28).Each of theseleadershippositions has been givena title,similarto other
associationtitles,suchas epimeletes andgymnasiarch ,43
Honorwas acquiredin associationsthroughbenefaction, as well.Wealthy
patrons(ofbothgenders)contributed to thebuildingand upkeepofassociation
meeting halls,sanctuaries,andbanqueting in exchangeforthe"symbolic
facilities,
capital"beforegodsandfellowcitizensthattheassociationcouldgivethem.44 Indi-
vidualsofreligious associationsbenefited fromthe"kinship" networks established
betweenpatronsand sub-elite, allowingpoorermembersincreasedaccessto the
economicand politicalbenefitsthatpatronscould offer.45 In addition,patrons
sometimes benefited fromthisexchange,
politically as evidencedbyelectionslo-
gansfromPompeii, whichindicatethatassociations supported theirpatrons'
claims
to politicaloffice.46Inscriptionson stelaeerectedto honorindividuals repeatedly
emphasizethatthepatron/ess was"well-disposed totheaffairs ofthegodsandthe
affairsofthesynodoswithregardto seekinghonor,and seekinghonorprivately
andpublicly."47
Thatwomenalso participated in thedistribution ofhonorthrough banquet
iconography is seeninfunerary monuments. Itis apparent thatthequestforhonor
did notend at deathbutcontinuedbeyondthegrave.A greatmanygravemonu-
mentsfromclassicalandarchaicGreece,Etruria, andtheRomanEmpireevidence
variationson thebanquetingschemecalled Totenmahl. "The basic motifofthe
Totenmahl consistsofa singlemalefigure, wearing tunic and mantleor withhis

43 H. McLean comments that"itisinstructive toobserve thatvarious Christian

Bradley
also
groups experimented withtheir
own titles" ("The AgrippinillaInscription:
ReligiousAsso-
ciations andEarly Church inMcLean,
Formation," OriginsandMethod ,259).Cf.1Cor12:27-31;
Eph2:19-21; Phil1:1.
44 "Between KoinonandIdion," 81.
Arnaoutoglou,
45McLean, 266-67.McLean
Inscription," further thatthisaccessto
"Agrippinilla suggests
patron wasmanipulated
relationships bytheCorinthian groups informing factions.
46Kloppenborg, andThiasoi,"
"Collegia 30n.66,referencing CILIV,113,206,336,497,
677,710,743,826,864,960,7164,7273,7473,etc.
47IDelos1519,1520, and1521(Berytos, second century IGII/2,2343(Athens,
B.C.E.); 400
B.C.E.);IG II/2,1301(Piraeus, 222b.c.e.);CIJI, 694(Stobi, thirdcentury C.E.);CILVI,10234
(Rome, 153C.E.);IGX/2, 259(Thessalonica,firstcentury C.E.);CBP455(Phrygia, thirdcentury
C.E.);I DFSJ11(Baruch Donateurs
Lifshitz, dans les
etfondateurs synagogues juives[CahRB 7;
Paris:
Gabalda, Sardinia,
1967])(Olbia, Italy);I DFSJ 12(Pergamum); DFSJ13(Phoceae, third
cen-
turyC.E.), DFSJ16(Teos,third centuryC.E.);DFSJ31(Nysa, third centuryc.E.);DFSJ33(first
century c.E.);DFSJ15(Smyrna, fourth
century c.E.),20,21,28(Sardis);36,37(Side,fourthcen-
turyC.E.).

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174 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

uppertorsobare,reclining on a couchwitha drinking vesselin his hand and a

smalltablein front ladenwithfood.A womanoftensitseitherin a separatechair
or on thefootofthecouch;a servantbringsdrink."48 Etruscanand Romantomb
paintings and reliefsalso evidence respectable married womenreclining honor-
a
ablyupon kline, either aloneor with theirhusbands.49 Recent commentators now
recognize threepossibleinterpretations of the Totenmahl Manyargue that the
reclining are the
banqueters enjoying pleasures ofthe banquetas the highestpoint
oftheirlifetimes; somesuggestan otherworldly banquet.A thirdinterpretation
seesthebanquetas thecelebration ofthecultofthedead,wherefamily members
feastwiththedead on thethird,ninth,andthirtieth day after and
death, annually
thereafter.50Mostofthefuneralbanquetswouldhavetakenplace outdoors,but
wealthier familiesoccasionallyincorporated a smalltricliniumintothegrave.
On thecoverofa marblesarcophagus, an
thereis inscription datingfromthe
second to the thirdcenturyc.E. recordingthatMarcus AureliusAmmianos
Menadrianosdonatedto theguildof flaxworkersand dealersthesum of 250
denariifortheannualcrowning ofthetombofhimself, hiswife,and hisdescen-
dants,and forthedistribution ofmoneyto theguildmembers.51 Iftheflaxwork-
ersarenegligent in theirperformance ofthefunerary banquet,withitshonorable
gestureofthecrowning ofthetomb,themoneyshallbe takenfromthemandtwice
thesumshallbe paidto anotherassociation, theFriendsofWeapons.
As in otherassociations,"thestructured socialrelationshipsin a churchsuch
as atCorinth,withitsfictive kinship,probably facilitated
opportunities forpatron-

48Katherine M. D. Dunbabin, TheRoman Banquet: ImagesofConviviality (Cambridge:

Cambridge University 2003),104;SeealsoMatthew
Press, B.Roller,Dining Posture inAncient
Rome: Bodies
, ValuesandStatus(Princeton:Princeton UniversityPress,
2006), 12-13.
4yWomen werenotportrayed asrecliningatGreek banquets.Forrespectable women, see
Jocelyn Penny Small,"Eat,DrinkandBeMerry," inMurlo andtheEtruscans: ArtandSociety in
Ancient Etruria(ed.Richard DanielDe PumaandJocelyn PennySmall; Wisconsin Studiesin
Classics;Madison: ofWisconsin
University Press,1994),87-88;andDunbabin, Roman ,
Banquets
115-17. ForHierapolis,seeFrancescoD'Andria,
Hierapolis:AnArchaeologicalGuide (Istanbul:
Ege
Yaynian Francesco D'Andria,2003),209.
50Jean-Marie Lemotif
Dentzer, dubanquet couche dansleProche-Orient etlemonde grecdu
VIIeauIV siecleavant J.-C.
(Bibliothequedesecoles d'Athenes
franchises etde Rome 246e;Paris/
Rome: £cole
fran9aise deRome, 1982),1;seealsoDunbabin, Roman Banquet , 108;D.Dexheimer,
"PortraitFiguresonFunerary AltarsofRoman LibertiinNorthern Romanization
Italy: orthe
AssimilationofAttributesCharacterizingHigherSocial Strata?"
in Burial,
Society and Contextin
theRoman World (ed.JohnPearce,Martin MillettandManuela Struck;Oxford: Oxbow, 2000).
51McRae, "CorinthianLord'sSupper,"54.SeealsoPMich. V.243 and244;IHierapP 23;CIJ
111(Hierapolis, second centuryc.e.);CBP455(Phrygia, thirdcentury c.E.);IGVII,687,688
(Tanagra,Boietia,175b.c.e.); Graecae
Inscriptiones adResRomanas Pertinentes(ed.R.Cagnet et
E.Leroux,
al.;Paris: 1906-27),IV,796(Apameia, Bithynia);Ascough, PauVsMacedonian Associ-
ations,25-28;Kloppenborg, "CollegiaandThiasoi," 21-23.

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 175

age,clientelism, employment andsocialandpoliticalmobility."52 In addition,

these
were
opportunities open to both women and men. "Cotter concludes thatwhen
Romanculturalstandards aretakenas thecomparison, thereis nothingcounter-
cultural in Paulsputting womeninpositionsofauthority."53 Paulusesthelanguage
ofhonorto praisethebenefactors ofthevariousekklesiai. Stephanasis fulsomely
complimented: "you know thatmembers of the household ofStephanaswerethe
firstconvertsin Achaia,and theyhavedevotedthemselves to theserviceofthe
I to
saints; urgeyou putyourselves at theservice ofsuch people,and ofeveryone
who works and toilswith them. ... so giverecognition suchpersons"(1 Cor
to
16:15-18).Priscaand Aquila are honored: "GreetPriscaand Aquila,who work
withme in ChristJesus, andwhorisked their necksformylife,to whomnotonly
I givethanks,butalso all thechurchesoftheGentiles"(Rom 16:3; 1 Cor 16:19).
Phoebeis praisedbyPaul as deaconand benefactor in theekklesiain Cenchreae:
"I commendtoyouoursisterPhoebe,a deaconofthechurchatCenchreae, so that
youmaywelcomeherin theLordas is fitting forthesaints,and helpherin what-
evershemayrequirefromyou,forshehasbeena benefactor ofmanyandofmyself
as well"(Rom 16:1).Chloeis acknowledged as a leader/benefactor in herekklesia
:
"Forithas been reportedto me byChloes peoplethatthereare quarrelsamong
you"(1 Cor 1:11).
It is herethata certaintensionin Pauls thinking concerning thesystemof
honorand shameis seenin 1 Corinthians and Romans,for,as willbe discussed
below,Paullargely deplorestheuse ofthehonor/shame code in hiscommunities.
In hispreviousletterto theThessalonians, Paulhad warnedthisparticular group
to behaveproperly towardoutsiders and be dependenton no oneat all (pjSevos),
thatis, notevenbenefactors (1 Thess4:12). Furthermore, in 2 Cor 8:1-15,Paul
usesshametomotivate members ofthecommunity to contribute totheJerusalem
collection, citing it as an honorary religiousobligation.54 Whereas someassocia-
tions used fines,floggings, and expulsionto punishaberrantbehavior,Paul
attempts to shametheCorinthian community intobettertreatment ofthedisad-
vantaged at theLords Supper (1 Cor 11:22), even though deploredthehonor/
he
shamecode.
Thephysicalarrangements ofplacesetting and foodatthebanquetalso rein-
forcedthehierarchy ofhonorandshame.In thediningtriclinia , thethreecouches
andtheseatingon thesethreecoucheswerearranged inhierarchical fashion.55
The

52McLean, 269.
Inscription,"
"Agrippinilla
MCrook,Honor, Shame,608,citing
Wendy Women
Cotter, RolesinPauls
s Authority
Churches:
Countercultural NovT36(1994):350-72.
orConventional?"
b4Ascough, Duty,584-99.
Religious
5bSeealsoMoshe andthePenalCodeoftheQumran
Pattern
TheOrganizational
Weinfeld,
A Comparison
Sect: with andReligious
Guilds Associations Period
oftheHellenistic-Roman (NTOA
Vandenhoeck
2;Gottingen: & Ruprecht, 26(1QS6:4,8-9).
1986),

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176 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

place of honoron theprimarycouchwas eitherin themiddleor on one side,

dependingon Greekor Romancustom.Placeson eachcouchrankedin descend-
ingorderin relationship to thehonoraryguest.56 Competition was so fiercefor
honorable positionson the couches- and the status thatthesepositionsentailed-
thatassociations,in an attempt toestablish somemeasureoforder, wouldlegislate
and
against prescribe fines forthe of
changing placesby thosewho competedat
thebanquetforbetterseats.57 The couches,especially thehonoredcouch,werefor
TheRomansconnected
self-display. withpower-"themorepowerful
visibility the
man, the more visiblehe is."58Association inscriptions on stelae often record
the
honoringofa patronor official withthehonorarypositionon thecouch.59 The
varioustricliniathemselves werealsorankedinprestige, to
according proximity to
andvisibilityofthehonoredguest,andtheportionandqualityoffoodweredeter-
minedin a hierarchical fashion.60
AtthebanquetoftheLords Supperalso,competition canbe seen.Thetradi-
tionalhierarchicalpositioning ofthe Greco-Roman banquetofbothelitesandasso-
ciationswasfollowed by the Corinthian ekklesia, withthehonoredpeopleseatedon
morecomfortable, well-positioned couches and served firstwithhigher-quality
in
fare.As othersmallvoluntary associations,theremayhavebeenoneortwowho
werewealthy andofnoblebirth, butprobably notenoughtofillnineplaceson the
couchesoftheprimary triclinium.Paulcomments, "notmanyofyouwere. . . pow-
erful,notmanywereofnoblebirth"(1 Cor 1:26).Itis peopleoflittlewealth(rela-
tiveto theelite)or noblebirth,suchas ekklesia patronsStephanas, Gaius,Chloe,
Phoebe,Prisca,andAquila,whowerehonoredbyseatson theprimary couches.In
addition,othersoflow economicstatussuchas Apollosand Cephas,as apostles
andleaders;Titus,themoneycollector; andtheprophets, teachers, andhealersof
thecommunity werehonoredbecauseoftheirvaluedofficial role.Itwouldbe these
peoplewhowouldbe "devouring" theirfoodanddrinking toexcess(1 Cor 11:21).
Further,thedisadvantaged groupwascomposedofthosewhohadno honor-
ablestanding in thecommunity. Theylackedwealth,power,and status,as wellas
giftsand gracesvaluableto thecommunity. Theyheldno leadershippositionin
thegroup,suchas healer,teacher, or prophetand thuswereshamed(jcaTaio^u-
vere)according totheCorinthian publiccourtofreputation. Theywerepositioned
fartherfromthehonoredguestsandwereservedlater, withfoodanddrinkoflesser

56IDelos1520.
V Forexample,theIobakchoi;
see1GII/2,1368;CILXIV,2112(Lanuvium, 136c.e.).
Italy,
58HoltN. Parker,
"TheObserved inTheArtofAncient
ofallObservers," (ed.
Spectacle
Bettina
Bergmann andChristineKondoleon;StudiesintheHistory DC:
ofArt;Washington,
National ofArt,
Gallery 167.
1999),
59IDelos1520and1521(second b.c.e.).
century
60SeeMcRae, "Corinthian
Lord's
Supper,"appendixB;JohnDArms,"TheRoman Con-
viviumandtheIdeaofEquality,"
inSympotica:A Symposium ontheSymposion
(ed.Oswyn
Murray;Oxford:
Clarendon, 309.
1990),

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 177

Itmaybe thatthelow-status
qualityandlimitedquantity. members considered this
treatment for
acceptable, they receivedsomehonor from admittanceto thegroup
andthebanquet.Theymayhavehad upward-moving to improvetheir
intentions
charismatic
in thegroupbyseekingleadershipor developing
socialidentity skills
in thenextyear.

II. Divisions within the Associations

Belonging to a groupand diningtogether tendedto encouragefactions both

withinand betweengroups.As Claude Grignonobserved,commensality (ban-
queting)tendsto"approve andexpressdiscontinuities thatseparatehumangroups"
allowingmembersto "assertorto strengthen a 'We'bypointingoutand rejecting,
as symbolsofotherness, the notWe,strangers, or infe-
rivals,enemies,superiors,
riors."61
Criteriaforadmittance tothegroupandtherefore tothebanquetwerewell
definedin theassociationinscriptions, encouraging thismethodof"othering."62
Somegroupssetmembership fees,as wellas recognizing inheritancerights,such
as theAthenianIobakchoi,who exacteda higheradmittance paymentforthose
withoutinheritance ThecultofBendischargedlifetime
rights.63 dues.64
Someasso-
ciations,suchas theAndanianmysteries, observeda periodofinitiation and con-
secration,whileothers,such as the Mystaiof Zeus demandedan oath.65All
associationssetbehavioralrulesandpenaltiesiftheruleswerebroken.
The agonistic spiritpervadedtheculture, appearingin all facetsofpubliclife,
including athletic,
artistic,and theatrical
events.66 Divisions,factions,and leader-

61Claude Grignon,"Commensality andSocialMorphology: AnEssay inFood,

ofTypology,"
Drink andIdentity:
Cooking , Eating andDrinking inEurope sincetheMiddle Ages(ed.Peter
Oxford/New
Scholliers; York: Berg,2001),28-29.
62SeeRichardS. Ascough, "Defining Community-Ethos inLightofthe'Other':Recruit-
ment Rhetoricamong Greco-Roman ReligiousGroups," Annali distoria 24(2007):
dellesegesi
53-70.
63IGII/2,1368(175-76 C.E.).
64IDelos1519and1521(second century b.c.e.);IGII/2,1283(Piraeus,261/260 IG
b.c.e.);
SIG3,1106(Kos,300b.c.e.);IG IX/1,670(Phycos,
II/2,1327(Piraeus); secondcentury C.E.);
PLille
Dem.29(Souchos, Egypt, 223b.c.e.); PCairo
Dem.30605,6 157/156
(Tebtunis, CIL
b.c.e.);
XIV,2112(Lanuvium 136c.E.).PMich. V.243,4(Tebtunis, 43c.e.).
65IGII/2,1369(Athens, second century C.E.);IGII/2,1291(Piraeus,third
centuryb.c.e.);
IGII/2,1365,6 first
(Laurion, century c.E.);IGV/l,1390(Andania, 96b.c.e.);
IGX/2, 259(Thes-
first
salonica, centuryc.e.);SIG3,985(Philadelphia, first
Lydia, b.c.e.).
century
66Robin LaneFox,Pagans andChristians intheMediterranean Worldfrom theSecondCen-
turyADtotheConversion ofConstantine (London: Penguin Books, 69;Charlotte
1986), Roueche,
PerformersandPartisansatAphrodisias intheRoman andLateRoman AStudy
Periods: Basedon
Inscriptions
from theCurrent Excavations atAphrodisias inCaria(Leeds:W.S. Maney & Son,
1993),24.

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178 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature
Journal

shipdisputeswerea problem.Associationinscriptions fromKos, Miletus,and

Piraeusareconcernedwithchallenges to thepriestesssauthority fromwould-be
priestesses who wished to gather the thiasostogether, to undertake theroleofthe
priestess herself,or to impose further expenses on the association.67 In Delos,an
inscription forbidsany member ofthe synodos from attempting to subvert theoil-
ing and crowning ofthe bust,and in Kos impiety was called down uponanyone
offering an interpretation concerning thepriestsofDemeterthatviolatedwhatwas
written in thesacredlawson thenoticeboards.68
Divisions,factions, andleadership disputeswerea problemintheCorinthian
community as well.Linton and James G. Dunnspeculate
D. thattherewereas many
as sixcommunities ofJesusgroupsin Corinth,eachofwhichmetin thesuitably
largehomeofa member, forfrequent, regular meetings, andmetlessoften(weekly?
in
monthly?) gatherings of "thewhole church."69 It seemsthatthereweredivisions
amongthesegroups,forat thebeginningoftheletter, Paul exclaims:"forithas
beenreported to mebyChloespeoplethattherearequarrelsamongyou"(1 Cor
1:11).Thesegroupswereengaging inboundary-setting behaviorattheexpenseof
theirfellowgroupsin Corinth.LiketheIobakchoi,70 whoengraved on theirstela,
"nowwe arethebestofall Bacchicsocieties," theindividualhouse-communities
proclaim,"I belongto Apollos,"or "I belongto Paul" (1:12; 3:4) meaning"our
ekklesiais thebestekklesia inthecityofCorinthandourleaderbeatsyourleader!"
In 1 Cor 11:17-19Pauldiscussesthefactions (crjciqzaTa)amongthepeoplein
theCorinthian ekklesia.TheNSRVtranslates this:"there havetobe factions among
you,foronlyso willitbecomeclearwho amongyouaregenuine[Soxi^oi]."It is
unclearwhether Paulis usingthewordJoKiftoi in connection withdoctrinalatti-
tudesorsociocultural attitudes.Mostscholarsinterpret Paulstoneas oneofresig-
nation,or mockdisbelief (rhetoricaldissimulatio ); he is admitting shockat sucha
monstrous violationoftheunitywhichhe hastaughtthem.71 R. AlistairCampbell

67IMilet VI 22(Miletus, 276b.c.e.); SIG3,1012(Kos,second/first IGII/2,

b.c.e.);
century
1328(Piraeus, 183/182b.c.e.);PLond. VII.2193.
68IDelos1523(second b.c.e.); 8 (Kos,third b.c.e.);IGII/2,1368
century IKosHerzog century
(Iobakchoi, secondcentury b.c.e.);IG II/2,1369(Athens,secondcentury c.E.);IGV/l,1390
(Andania);Weinfeld, Organizational Pattern
oftheQumran Sect,35-36(1QS7:3-5).
69Linton, "House Church 233;cf.Dunn,TheTheology
Meetings," ofPaultheApostle (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998), 541.
70IGII/2,1368.
' *see l,. i niseiton,
i nettrst : a commentary
tomec orintnians ontneureeK
Antnony Lptsue
Text(NIGTC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 857;
2000), BenWitherington III,Conflict Commu-
and
nityinCorinth: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on1 and2 Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Eerd-
mans, 1995),247;Richard B.Hays, First Corinthians Louisville:
(Interpretation; John Knox,1997),
195;Richard A.Horsley, 1Corinthians (ANTC;Nashville:Abingdon, 1998), 159;Craig S.Keener,
1-2Corinthians (NewCambridge BibleCommentary; Cambridge/New York: Cambridge Uni-

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 179

offersan important translation:"So thatifyoupleasetheelitemaystandoutfrom

therest."72He pointsoutthattheword5o>a^oiis theCorinthians wordrather than
Pauls,and thatthis is the the
way upper-class Corinthian members describe them-
selvesas a methodofattaining distinction.
A studyofassociation inscriptions offers a somewhat similarusageoftheword
5o)a|id£cdand itscognates. The associations use theterm frequently, withthesense
of"approved the
by people," and I suggest thatthisis theinference thatPaulwants
his communities to make:"foronlyso willitbecomeclearwho amongyou are
approvedbyyourassociation."The verbform is used in a numberof
inscriptionsto indicate"approved bya vote,"or "resolved," as in theregulations of
a Piraeaneranosfrom300 b.c.e.:AyaSeTTu^ei. As5[o^0ai]toT$epavicrraTg £7raive-
craiA[i(Jxu]X[a)va("Forgood fortune, be itresolved bytheassociationmembersto
commendAischylion").73 Theverbformoccursalso in theregulations ofa thiasos
ofPiraeusin 325 b.c.e.:av 5o)ceT r&txoivcoi (whatever "seemsappropriate to the
association").74The adjectivalformdescribingan appropriate amountof wine
appearsin Epictetascult-foundationinscription: ofvov%evixbv ixavovSoxifxov
("enoughapprovedforeign wine");75 in a decreeconcerning thefestival ofArtemis
inEphe-sus, avSpoqSoxiticordrov is "a manverywellthought of?'76 In theregulations
oftheAndanianmysteries of96 b.c.e.,itis theanimalsthataremarkedas approved
bythetenofficers: rotg5e 5oxi(mc70evToig aa^ieiovemfiahovTOo oi iepof("lettheoffi-
cersputa marking on theapprovedanimals").77
Familiarwithassociationbehaviors, Paul recognizedthatapprovalfromthe
members wastheusualmethodofgaininghonorinordertoholda leadership posi-
tion.An excessiveexampleofthisis seen in thestoryofAnaniasand Sapphira,
who lie abouttheircontributions in orderto gainhonorwiththeircommunity
(Acts5:1-11).78This seekingofhonor,evenfora faithcommitment, causedthe

Press,
versity 2005), 96;JeromeMurphy-O'Connor, "TheFirstLettertotheCorinthians," inNJBC,
808-9;GraydonF.Snyder, First AFaith
Corinthians: Community Commentary (Macon, GA:Mer-
cerUniversity
Press, 1992),155.
72Campbell, " DoesPaul inDivisionsattheLordsSupper?" NovT33(1991):69.
Acquiesce
73IGII/2,1291.Seethisuseoftheverb inIGII/2,1368(Athens, 175-77 c.e.);IGII/2,1327
IGII/2,1252+ 999(Athens,
(Piraeus); 300b.c.e.);IGII/2,1297(Athens, 237b.c.e.);IGII/2,1273
281b.c.e.);IGII/2,1201(Piraeus,
(Piraeus, 222b.c.e.);IGII/2'1361(Piraeus, 350b.c.e.);IDelos
1521(166b.c.e.);IDelos1519(153b.c.e.);IGXII/3,330(Thera, 210b.c.e.);SIG3,0867.
74IGII/2,1275.
75IGXII/3,330(Thera, 210b.c.e.).
76SIG3,0867.
77IGV/l,1390(Andania, 96b.c.e.).
78RichardS.Ascough, "BenefactionGoneWrong," inText andArtifact intheReligionsof
Mediterranean
Antiquity:Essays inHonorofPeter Richardson(ed.StephenG.Wilson andMichel
Studies
Desjardins; inChristianity
andJudaism 9;Waterloo,ON:WilfridLaurier University Press,
2000),105.

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180 Journal 130,no. 1 (2011)
ofBiblicalLiterature

inevitable divisionsorsplits.Pauldoubtstheeffectiveness oftheseproclivities, for

he comments in 2 Cor 10:12:"Butwhentheymeasurethemselves by one another,
andcomparethemselves withone another, theydo notshowgood sense."Reveal-
ingagaina certaintensionin histhinking, Paulrecognizes thatfactions aredevel-
opingamong the Corinthian because
ekklesiai ofthe cultural honor code.Although
inconsistencies areevident, as notedabove,Pauldeploresthisagonisticsystemof
honorand shame.He statescategorically in hisletterto theCorinthians, "In this
matter, I do not commend you!"(1 Cor 11:22). Paul seeks to overturn thevalues of
the honorand shamecode, teachingthe membersof the community mutual
upbuilding, mutualservanthood, andpowerinweakness, andencouraging strong
fictivekinshipgroups.79
Itis God whois nowthesupremepatronandsourceofallbeneficence.80 Paul
says,"For us there is one the
God, Father, from whom are all thingsand for whom
we exist,and one Lord,JesusChrist,throughwhomare all things,and through
whomwe exist"(1 Cor 8:6). Honorno longercomesfromtheacknowledgment of
good deeds or benefaction by ones equals, where there is a scarcityofhonorfor
eachtoacquire.HonorcomesfromGod,whorepresents abundance:"fortheearth
anditsfullness aretheLord's"(1 Cor 11:26).Good deedsorbenefaction no longer
needto be claimedfordue honor,forit is enoughthatGod knows.As Ascough
notes,Paul'scountercultural viewofthehonorsystem is "'treasure inheaven'rather
than'honoron earth.'"81 In thiscommunity, thenewcode embeddedin theban-
quetreflects Jesus'ethicsofservice,sacrifice, and substitutionary atonement: "do
notseekyourownadvantage, butthatoftheother"(1 Cor 10:24).The ritualofthe
Lord'sSuppercallstheparticipants to behaviorbased on valuessuchas equality,
ratherthanhierarchy; mutualservitude, ratherthancompetition; and humility,
ratherthantheupwardmobility enshrined in thepowerstructures oftheGreco-
Romanworld.
TheCorinthians' socialidentity as individuals andas a groupwillderivefrom
identification witha groupthatturnsawayfromthepivotalvaluesoftheMediter-
raneanworld.The newsocialidentity changesthesearchforstatusintorecogni-
tionofGod'sleadership, guidance, andpower.82 Attributive honornowcomeswith
possessionoftheHolySpirit. Distributive honorcomesfroma lifedevotedtoservi-
tudeandcompassionforothers.Judgment ofhonorcomesthrough "thebodyand
bloodoftheLord."Indeed,judgmentofthisnewformofhonoris alreadyappar-

79Paul's totheCorinthians
teachings onmutual arefound
servanthood in1Cor9:19-27;
mutual
10:31-33; inlovein1 Cor8:1-3;10:16-17;
upbuilding 14:26;16:14;and
12:12-13:13;
powerinweakness in1Cor1:19-31;
(humility) 18-20.
2:10-16,
80 HonorandShameintheGospel 42.
Neyrey, ofMatthewy
81Ascough,"Benefaction
GoneWrong,"104.
82Inthefollowing I amindebted
paragraph, toMalinaandNeyrey,"HonorandShame in
Luke- 65,fortheir
Acts," ofthenewvaluesystem
analogies totheActsoftheApostles.

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 McRae:EatingwithHonor 181

entto thegroup:"forall who eatand drinkwithoutdiscerning

thebody,eat and
drinkjudgmentagainstthemselves. Forthisreasonmanyofyouareweakand ill,
a newsocialidentity,
and somehavedied"(1 Cor 11:27-30).Paul is creating the
Christianidentity.

III. Conclusion

The associationsprovidemuchinformation on howthecode ofhonorand

shame, which was embedded in all facetsoftheMediterranean world,underlay all
ritualbehavior.Honor was soughtthrough membership and officein a groupand
wasrewarded atthemonthly banquet.Theimportance ofthebanquetas a location
forawarding honorcan be tracedevento theTotenmahl iconography offunerary
monuments. Those who receivethehonorof recliningon theforemost couch,
therefore,arethehonoredofficials ofthecommunity- thosewhoservein offices
suchas healers,prophets,speakers-in-tongues, and treasurers,and thoseofboth
genderswhoarepatronsandbenefactors. As befitstheirhonoredstatuswithinthe
group,theyare servedfirstwithspecialportionsoffoodand wine.Those who
occupytheleastimportant couchesarethosewithlittlestatusinthegroupbecause
theylackpersonalgifts,officialstanding, orwealth.
While the dishonored,who knowno othervalue system,mayintendto
improve theirlowstatuswithinthegroupinthefuture, Pauldeploresthisuseofthe
honorand shamecode at thebanquetcelebrating theritualoftheLordsSupper.
Pauloverturns thisvaluesystem, encouraging theteachings ofJesusaboutequal-
ity, and
humility, mutuality instead of hierarchy,aggrandizement, andcompetition.
Although unableto dispensecompletely with the honor -
system as evidencedby
his supportofpatronageand methodsofofficeseeking - Paul changesthevalue
system oftheLords Suppertorecognize God as thedivinepatron, attributivehonor
as thegiftoftheHolySpirit,and distributive honoras a lifedevotedto servitude
and loveforothers.Judgment ofhonorcomesfromthebodyand blood ofJesus
Christ,whosememoryis forever enshrinedin theLords Supperbanquetritual.
Paulrejectstheold behaviors pervading theMediterranean worldandencourages
newbehaviorsthatreflect thesocialidentity ofa follower ofJesus.

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