Eating God

“Take and eat: This is my body ..., this is my blood ..., do this in remembrance of me.” With these words, Jesus is said to have established the sacrament of communion. What was and should be eaten and drunk from time to time was, and still remains, highly controversial. Should it be wheat or barley bread, soured or unleavened, as a wafer or not, with or without cheese, a priest’s goblet, a communal goblet or a single goblet? Can it also be alcohol and gluten free?

And what do Christians do in countries without wheat and wine, especially in postcolonial times? Anselm Schubert explores communion through the lens of food history and brings a new understanding to certain central theological debates. The result is an accessible and original brief cultural history of Christianity that will appeal to a wide audience.