The Economic Ethical Practice of Bread-Breaking: John Howard Yoder's Perspective

The Economic Ethical Practice of Bread-Breaking: John Howard Yoder's Perspective

Andres S. TANG

This paper gives an introductory presentation of John Howard Yoder's understanding of the bread-breaking practice recorded in the New Testament. Yoder distinguishes his position from those of Roman Catholics, Luther, Calvin and Zwingli by emphasizing the communal dimension of the practice among Christians rather than the vertical dimension between God and the believers. Yoder considers that in the Gospels this daily communal practice was initiated and prescribed by Jesus Christ. After the ascension of Jesus Christ, this practice continued among the early Christian communities as recorded in the Book of Acts and the apostles' epistles. The analysis of this practice shows that the primary meaning of bread-breaking is not a ritual between the divine and the human but the sharing of daily bread among Christians. Yoder's analysis is further supported by contemporary biblical studies. Reta Halteman Finger employs social-scientific criticism to study the Book of Acts and finds out that the Lord's Supper, the Eucharist, and love feasts in the early Christian communities all point to the general practice of this economic sharing. The significance of this practice for the individualistic society like ours is noteworthy.