Artwork - Weekend of Prayer & Action Against Hunger 2024
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Each year, a piece of art has been created as part of the Weekend of Prayer and Action Against Hunger. In 2024, Rosie Hilditch created a piece called 'Table Blessing.'
Bio: Rosie is an artist and Religious Studies teacher, living in Cyprus. Her work is inspired by the processes and forms of byzantine iconography. Having completed her Bachelor’s degree at the London School of Theology, Rosie is passionate about the role of visual art in the church.
Artist statement: The image-making process began as I gathered various pieces of paper ephemera: seed packets from my many failed attempts at growing food with my young children; a copy of Isaiah 58:1-8; leaflets from the World Council of Churches’ Food for Life Campaign. All of these pieces of paper ephemera are collaged into the background of the painting and washed over with thin, pale coloured paint, tying the background together but also obscuring the details of the paper. The painting itself is impacted by the bumps and inconsistencies of the collaged background. Cutlery is a theme that has come through my work for a number of years, the replacement of these with the gardening tools are a reflection on the processes used to bring forth nutritious, life-giving food from the soil.
Table Blessing
Reflection by Rev. Judy Davis
Whenever my church family gathers for a fellowship meal, it is truly a time for celebration and sharing. I am blessed to be part of a very culturally diverse congregation, which is reflective of the community where I live in Geneva, Switzerland. As families arrive and lay their food offerings on the tables, it quickly becomes a “feast for the eyes.” Alongside the familiar salads, hummus dip and brownies lay the cassava cakes from the Philippines, mandazi from Tanzania and Kenya (also known as “puff-puffs” in Nigeria), pakora, fish cutlets and curry channa from India, guacamole, beans and rice from Latin and America, salmon and rice from Japan, olive bread, quiche, to name but a few.
It is our church’s custom to offer up a table blessing before the meal by singing together, “Bendice, Señor, Nuestro Pan.” The words and tune are simple, easy to catch on for those who are new, yet deeply meaningful:
“Bendice, Señor, nuestro pan / Y da pan a los que tienen hambre / Y hambre de justicia a los que tienen pan / Bendice, Señor, nuestro pan Lord, bless the bread you have given / Give bread to all who are hungry / Give hunger for justice to those with bread / Lord, bless the bread you have given”
It is a holy moment, to be gathered in faith, giving thanks to God for the gift of abundant food before us, while remaining mindful of those who hunger. The simple words of this song-prayer echo the plea of the prophet Isaiah, to satisfy the needs of those who hunger and to provoke a hunger for God’s righteousness among those who have plenty.
Food is a gift from God, given for us and for all God’s creatures – to be nourishment and provide joy, to share with others, so that all may flourish. At the table in fellowship, not only do we share food. We also share our stories. We listen to each other’s stories, and through these encounters we experience grace, as we give and receive in relationship together. In the words of theologian Norman Wirzba, when that sharing is done in the name of God, “eating is the earthly realization of God’s eternal communion-building love.” (Food and Faith: A Theology of Eating) Such encounters give us a glimpse, perhaps, of the heavenly banquet to come.
The “Ten Commandments of Food,” is an engaging resource that was developed for Christians who seek to engage meaningfully with issues of hunger and food justice in our local and global communities. It is a worthwhile endeavor that can lead to transformative change for ourselves and for others. But don’t hesitate because of the term “commandment,” which for some people conveys a tone of negativity or restrictions.
On the contrary, “The Ten Commandments of Food” invites us to engage positively with the challenges that exist, offering very concrete reflections and action steps. To understand these as guidelines for holy action, means, instead, that we are putting the best of ourselves forward into loving God and others, which can lead to flourishing for all, as God desires.
This is also portrayed with a beauty, simplicity, and freshness in the artwork on the cover by artist Rosie Hilditch. In the blue bowl are fresh greens and tomatoes, which one can imagine were newly cultivated from a nearby garden, then washed, and prepared to eat.
The gardening tools that represent utensils remind us of the labor – and the laborers – required to grow and harvest our food. The tiles around the bowl consist of pages from “The Ten Commandments of Food,” which give respect to our shared commitment to alleviating the causes of hunger in our communities and the world. May God guide and bless us as we join in the work of God’s Kingdom.