View source for Agape feast

{{Short description|Communal meal shared among Christians}}
{{redirect|Love feast}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
[[File:Agape feast 03.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Fresco]] of a banquet{{Efn|The word ''Agape'' in the inscription has led some to interpret the scene as that of an agape feast. However, the phrase within which the word appears is {{lang|la|"Agape misce nobis"}} ('Agape, mix for us', i.e., prepare the wine for us), making it more likely that Agape is the name of a woman holding the cup. A very similar fresco and inscription elsewhere in the same catacomb has, in the same position within the fresco, the words {{lang|la|"Misce mi Irene"}} ('Mix for me, Irene'). A reproduction of this other fresco can be seen at the Catacombe dei Ss. Marcellino e Pietro,<ref>{{Citation |title=Storia |place=Italy |language=it |trans-title=History |contribution=Catacombe |contribution-url=http://www.hochfeiler.it/centocelle/parco/pietrestoria/catacombe.html |access-date=8 September 2007 |archive-date=18 January 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100118221714/http://www.hochfeiler.it/centocelle/parco/pietrestoria/catacombe.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> where it is accompanied by the explanation (in Italian) "One of the most frequently recurring scenes in the painting is that of the banquet, generally interpreted as a symbolic representation of the joys of afterlife, but in which it may be possible to discern a realistic presentation of the agapae, the funeral banquets held to commemorate the dead person." An article by Carlo Carletti on {{lang|it|L'Osservatore Romano}} of November 1, 2009, recalls that the same catacomb has a whole series of similar frescos of banquets with men reclining at a banquet and calling on a maid to serve them wine. The names Agape and Irene were common among slaves and freedwomen at the time. Still, the fact that these particular names recur twelve times in the catacomb suggests that they were chosen not just as names for the maids but to evoke the ideas that the two names signify: love and peace.}} at a tomb in the [[Catacombs of Rome|Catacomb]] of Saints [[Marcellinus and Peter]], [[Via Labicana]], Rome.]]
[[File:Lovefeast at Bethania Moravian Church.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|A [[Moravian Church|Moravian]] ''diener'' serves bread to fellow members of her congregation during the celebration of a love feast at Bethania Moravian Church in North Carolina.]]

An '''agape feast''', or '''love feast''',{{efn|Also spelled '''love feast''' or '''love-feast''', sometimes capitalized}} refers to a [[communal meal]] that [[Christians]] and others such as [[Freemasons]] share.<ref name="Coveney2006">{{cite book |last=Coveney |first=John |title=Food, Morals and Meaning: The Pleasure and Anxiety of Eating |date=2006 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781134184484 |page=74 |quote=For the early Christians, the ''agape'' signified the importance of fellowship. It was a ritual to celebrate the joy of eating, pleasure, and company.}}</ref> The name derives from the [[Koine Greek]] word {{lang|grc|ἀγάπη}} ({{lang|grc-Latn|[[agape|agápē]]}}), meaning divine love.

The [[early church]] began the practice of agape meals to foster fellowship among believers.<ref name="Coveney2006" /><ref name="Burns2012">{{cite book |last=Burns |first=Jim |title=Uncommon Youth Parties |date=10 July 2012 |publisher=Gospel Light Publications |isbn=9780830762132 |page=37 |quote=During the days of the Early Church, the believers would all gather together to share what was known as an agape feast, or 'love feast.' Those who could afford to bring food brought it to the feast and shared it with the other believers.}}</ref> These early Christians initially celebrated the [[Eucharist]] as part of the love feast, but between the late 1st century and around 250 AD, the two rites became distinct.<ref name="WallsCollins2017">{{cite book |last1=Walls |first1=Jerry L. |last2=Collins |first2=Kenneth J. |title=Roman but Not Catholic: What Remains at Stake 500 Years after the Reformation |date=2010 |publisher=[[Baker Academic]] |isbn=9781493411740 |page=169}}</ref><ref name="Davies1999">{{cite book |last=Davies |first=Horton |title=Bread of Life and Cup of Joy: Newer Ecumenical Perspectives on the Eucharist |date=1999 |publisher=Wipf & Stock |isbn=1579102093|page=18}}</ref><ref name="Daughrity2016">{{cite book |last=Daughrity |first=Dyron |title=Roots: Uncovering Why We Do What We Do in Church |date=2016 |publisher=ACU Press |isbn=9780891126010 |page=77}}</ref> Today, churches that revive this tradition typically use terms like "love feast" to describe meals distinct from the Eucharist.<ref name="ODCC">{{Citation |title=Dictionary of the Christian Church |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=2005 |isbn=978-0-19-280290-3 |type=article |contribution=agape}}</ref> In the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] and various [[Pietism|pietistic]] traditions, Christians continue to celebrate love feasts to strengthen fellowship among parishioners.<ref name="Crowther1815"/>

Scripture mentions the agape meal in {{Bibleverse|Jude|1:12|KJV}}, and many scholars describe it as a "common meal of the early church."<ref name="Stutzman2011">{{cite book |last=Stutzman |first=Paul Fike |title=Recovering the Love Feast: Broadening Our Eucharistic Celebrations |date=1 January 2011 |publisher=Wipf and Stock Publishers |isbn=9781498273176 |page=42}}</ref> The [[New Testament]] contains additional references to such meals, including {{bibleverse|1|Corinthians|11:17-34|NIV}}, and [[Ignatius of Antioch]], in his ''[[Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans|Letter to the Smyrnaeans]]'', uses the word ''agape''. Around 111 AD, [[Pliny the Younger]] wrote to [[Trajan|Emperor Trajan]] describing how Christians met on a set day to offer prayers to Christ and then returned later in the day to share a "harmless meal."<ref>{{Citation |url=http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?pageno=117&fk_files=2025 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120530180106/http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?pageno=117&fk_files=2025 |url-status=dead |archive-date=30 May 2012 |author=Pliny |title=To Trajan |volume=Book 10 |at=Letter 97}}</ref><ref name="ODCC" />

The [[Coptic Orthodox Church|Coptic tradition]] preserves similar descriptions of communal meals, especially in writings attributed to [[Hippolytus of Rome]], though he does not use the term ''agape''. In contrast, [[Tertullian]] does use the term. By the time [[Cyprian]] (d. 258 AD) wrote, the Church had separated the Eucharist from the agape, reserving the Eucharist for the morning and the agape for evening fellowship.<ref name="ODCC" /> The [[Synod of Gangra]] (340 AD) mentioned love feasts in condemning a heretic who forbade his followers from attending them.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf214.viii.v.iv.xi.html |title=NPNF2-14. The Seven Ecumenical Councils |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |work=CCEL.org}}</ref>

Although the [[Quinisext Council]] of 692 AD still referred to the agape feast, most churches soon abandoned the practice—except for churches in [[Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church|Ethiopia]] and [[Saint Thomas Christians|India]].<ref name="ODCC" /><ref name="DaSanBartolomeo1800"/> In 1800, [[Carmelites|Carmelite]] friar [[Paulinus of St. Bartholomew|Paolino da San Bartolomeo]] observed that the ancient [[Saint Thomas Christians]] in India continued to celebrate the agape meal using their traditional dish, [[appam]].<ref name="DaSanBartolomeo1800">{{cite book |author=Paolino da San Bartolomeo |title=A voyage to the East Indies: containing an account of the manners, customs &c. of the natives |access-date=29 June 2017 |date=1800 |publisher=Vernor and Hood |page=198 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ImxCAAAAcAAJ&q=%22Thomas+still+celebrate%22&pg=PA198}}</ref><ref name="Yeates1818">{{cite book |last=Yeates |first=Thomas |title=Indian Church History |date=1818 |publisher=Richard Edwards |page=160 |quote=The Christians of St. Thomas, says Fra. Paolino still celebrated their Agapae, or love-feasts, as was usual in former times.}}</ref> In the 18th century, [[Radical Pietism|Radical Pietist]] groups such as the [[Schwarzenau Brethren]] and the [[Moravian Church]] also embraced the love feast. The [[Methodist Church]] continues this tradition today.<ref name="Crowther1815">{{cite book |last=Crowther |first=Jonathan |title=A Portraiture of Methodism: Or, The History of the Wesleyan Methodists |date=1815 |publisher=T. Blanshard |pages=282–283 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=ShhBAAAAcAAJ&q=crowther+love-feasts&pg=PA283}}</ref>

In more recent times, [[Anglicanism|Anglicans]] and groups involved in the American [[house church]] movement have either revived or adopted similar practices.<ref>{{Citation |url= http://www.sanctification.com/supper.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100106205222/http://www.sanctification.com/supper.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 January 2010 |title=Supper |publisher=Sanctification }}</ref> The love feast has also served as an [[ecumenism|ecumenical]] tool, fostering unity between Methodists, Anglicans, and others.<ref name="Tovey2016"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Grimm |first1=John |title=Treatise on Global Methodist Clergy and Holy Communion |url=https://earnestwesleyan.com/p/treatise-on-global-methodist-clergy |publisher=The Earnest Wesleyan |access-date=18 February 2025 |language=en |date=17 February 2025 |quote=An ecumenical approach for Catholics and Anglicans, along with Methodists, can be found Paul Caleb Roland's article "Wesley's Method Part I: Frequent Reception of Communion and the Love Feast."}}</ref>

== History ==
=== Early Christianity ===
Paul the Apostle's [[First Epistle to the Corinthians]] provides the earliest reference to a meal of the type called ''agape'', although the term appears only implicitly in 1 Corinthians 13. Many [[New Testament]] scholars believe that the Christians in Corinth met in the evening to share a common meal that included a sacramental act involving bread and wine.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TkLnCcAwGdIC&pg=PA75 |first=Michael |last=Welker |title=What Happens in Holy Communion? |pages=75–76 |isbn=9780802846020 |date=2000 |publisher=Wm. B. Eerdmans}}</ref> In 1 Corinthians 11:20–34, Paul associates the rite with participation in a more general communal meal.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://biblehub.com/greek/26.htm |title=Bible Hub |contribution=26. agapé |type=website |publisher=Online Parallel Bible Project}}</ref> This meal involved participants bringing their food and eating together in a common room. However, the gathering sometimes deteriorated into mere eating and drinking or displays of wealth, especially in Corinth, which drew Paul's sharp criticism:

<blockquote>"I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it. No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God's approval. When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you eat, for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk. Don't you have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing?"<ref>{{bibleverse|1|Corinthians|11:17–34|NIV}}</ref></blockquote>
The Greek term ''agápē'' (ἀγάπη) also describes meals in Jude 1:12 and some manuscripts of 2 Peter 2:13.<ref>{{bibleverse|Jude|1:12}}</ref><ref>{{bibleverse|2|Peter|2:13}}</ref>

Shortly after 100 AD, [[Ignatius of Antioch]] mentioned the agape feast.<ref>{{Citation |author=Ignatius of Antioch |url=http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/ignatius-smyrnaeans-hoole.html |title=Smyrnaeans |at=8:2 |editor-first=Peter |editor-last=Kirby |via=EarlyChristianWritings.com}}</ref> Around 112 AD, [[Pliny the Younger]] wrote to Emperor [[Trajan]], reporting that Christians met before dawn, prayed to Christ as a divinity, took solemn oaths to avoid wrongdoing, and then gathered to share a harmless common meal, likely the agape feast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/2811/2811-h/2811-h.htm#2H_4_0209|title=Letters of Pliny, by Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus|website=gutenberg.org}}</ref><ref>"They met on a stated day before it was light, and addressed a form of prayer to Christ, as to a divinity, binding themselves by a solemn oath, not for any wicked design, but never to commit any fraud, theft, or adultery, never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up; after which it was their custom to separate, and then reassemble, to eat in common a harmless meal."</ref> Corinthian selfishness and gluttony caused the rescheduling of this meal.<ref>{{Citation |last=Davies |first=J. G. |title=The Early Christian Church |page=61 |publisher=Holt Rinehart Winston |date=1965 |isbn=0801029066}}</ref>

[[Tertullian]] also wrote about these meals,<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf03.iv.iii.xxxix.html |author=Tertullian |title=Apology |at=39 |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |website=CCEL.org |editor-last=Schaff |editor-first=Philip}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |author=Tertullian |url=https://www.tertullian.org/anf/anf03/anf03-10.htm#P1019_415012 |title=De Corona |at=III |website=Tertullian.org |editor-first=Roger |editor-last=Pearce |publisher=Tertullian Project}}</ref> though his descriptions remain somewhat unclear.<ref name="ODCC" />

[[Clement of Alexandria]] (c. 150–216 AD) distinguished between luxurious agape meals and the spiritual ''agape'' expressed through participation in the food that comes from Christ.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/02092.htm |title=Paedagogus |at=II, 1 |publisher=New Advent}}</ref> Critics sometimes accused these banquets of gross indecency.<ref>{{Citation |quote={{lang|la|Sed maioris est agape, quia per hanc adulescentes tui cum sororibus dormiunt. Appendices scilicet gulae lascivia et luxuriae}} |author=Tertullian |title=De Iejunio |at=XVII, 3 |url=https://www.tertullian.org/latin/de_ieiunio.htm}}</ref> Philip Schaff, referring to Clement's ''Stromata'' (III, 2), explained that the Christian ''agape'' likely disappeared early due to abuse by groups like the [[Carpocratians]]. Genuine ''agapæ'' were apostolic in origin (2 Peter 2:13; Jude 12), but hypocrites sometimes abused them even during apostolic times (1 Corinthians 11:21). In the [[Gallican Rite]], remnants survive in the ''pain béni''; in the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], in the {{lang|grc|ἀντίδωρον}} (''[[antidoron]]'') or ''eulogiæ'', also known as ''[[prosphora]]'', distributed to non-communicants after the [[Divine Liturgy]].<ref>{{Citation |editor-last=Schaff |editor-first=Philip |url=https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf02.vi.iv.iii.i.html |title=Elucidations |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library |website=CCEL.org}}</ref>

[[Augustine of Hippo]] condemned drunkenness at meals in North Africa that accompanied funerals or commemorations, distinguishing such meals from the Eucharist. He wrote, "Let us take the body of Christ in communion with those with whom we are forbidden to eat even the bread which sustains our bodies."<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1102022.htm |title=Letter 22 |publisher=New Advent}}</ref> He noted that Milan had already forbidden such customs before his arrival.

The [[Council of Laodicea]] (364) issued Canons 27 and 28 to restrict abuses like taking home provisions and holding meals in churches.<ref>{{Citation |url=https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3806.htm |title=The Synod of Laodicea |publisher=New Advent}}</ref> The [[Third Council of Carthage]] (393) and the [[Second Council of Orléans]] (541) reaffirmed prohibitions on feasting in churches. The [[Quinisext Council]] (Trullan Council) of 692 forbade offering honey and milk on altars (Canon 57) and excommunicated those holding love feasts in churches (Canon 74).<ref>{{Citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EeoAAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA46 |title=The Gospel Advocate |volume=3 |date=1823}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QBdnAAAAMAAJ |title=The Antiquaries Journal |publisher=Oxford University Press |date=1975}}</ref>

The ancient [[Saint Thomas Christians]] of [[India]] continued celebrating agape feasts, featuring their traditional dish [[appam]].<ref name="DaSanBartolomeo1800"/><ref name="Yeates1818"/>

=== Medieval Georgia ===
The medieval [[Georgian Orthodox Church]] used the term ''agapi'' for commemorative meals or distributions of food to clergy, the poor, or travelers during funeral anniversaries. Legacies and foundations ensured these meals' continued celebration.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Toumanoff|first=Cyril|title=The Fifteenth-Century Bagratids and the Institution of Collegial Sovereignty in Georgia|journal=Traditio|date=1949–1951|volume=7|page=175}}</ref>

=== Reformation ===
After the [[Protestant Reformation]], some Christian groups sought to revive practices from the [[Apostolic Age|New Testament Church]]. The [[Schwarzenau Brethren]] (1708) included a love feast—comprising feet washing, a shared meal, and the Eucharist—among their "outward yet sacred" ordinances. The [[Moravian Church]], led by [[Count Zinzendorf]], adopted a form involving a simple meal, testimonies or devotional addresses, and missionary letters.<ref>{{Citation |title=Moravian Lovefeasts |url=https://www.moravian.org/the-moravian-church/lovefeasts/ |publisher=Moravian Church |access-date=2025-08-08}}</ref>

[[John Wesley]], founder of [[Methodism]], admired the Moravians during his travels to America. After his [[Religious conversion|conversion]] in 1738, he introduced the love feast to Methodism. Because ordained ministers were scarce, Methodists used the love feast as an alternative to [[Holy Communion]]. [[Primitive Methodists]] especially celebrated love feasts before their decline in the nineteenth century.<ref>{{Citation |title=The Lovefeast in Methodism |url=https://www.umc.org/en/content/the-lovefeast-in-methodism |publisher=United Methodist Church |access-date=2025-08-08}}</ref>

== Practice by denomination ==

=== Oriental Orthodox ===
Several Oriental Orthodox churches continue the tradition of the agape meal, including the [[Saint Thomas Christians]] of [[India]].<ref name="Crowther1815"/> Many attendees travel long distances to participate, and priests preside over these love feasts.<ref name="Frykenberg2008">{{cite book |last=Frykenberg |first=Robert Eric |title=Christianity in India: From Beginnings to the Present |url=https://archive.org/details/christianityinin0000fryk/page/132 |date=2008 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780198263777 |page=132}}</ref> Communities often celebrate love feasts to mark the ordination of a new priest, with attendees bringing gifts.<ref name="Frykenberg2008"/> The [[Ethiopian Orthodox Church]] celebrates the agape feast every Saturday, and many [[Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria|Coptic Orthodox]] churches also maintain this practice.<ref name="OgotAfrica1992">{{cite book |last=Ogot |first=Bethwell A. |title=Africa from the Sixteenth to the Eighteenth Century |url=https://archive.org/details/generalhistoryaf00ogot/page/729 |date=1992 |publisher=UNESCO |isbn=9789231017117 |page=729}}</ref>

=== Brethren ===
[[File:A love feast among the Dunkers LCCN2006688565.tif|thumb|right|Traditional Love Feast among the [[Schwarzenau Brethren]], 1883.]]
The [[Schwarzenau Brethren]] groups, including the largest body, the [[Church of the Brethren]], regularly hold love feasts featuring [[feetwashing]], a communal supper, and communion, accompanied by hymns and scriptural meditations.<ref>{{cite book |last=Durnbaugh |first=Donald F. |title=The Brethren Encyclopedia, Vol. 1 |publisher=Brethren Encyclopedia, Inc. |year=1983 |isbn=9780917959011|pages=456–460}}</ref>

Descendants of the Schwarzenau Brethren, such as the [[Brethren Church]], [[Old German Baptist Brethren]], and [[Dunkard Brethren]], continue practicing love feasts rooted in [[New Testament]] accounts of the [[Last Supper]]. The [[Grace Brethren]] also observe the love feast. Typically, the Brethren combine the agape meal (often including lamb or beef and soup) with feetwashing before the meal and communion afterward. They generally use the term "love feast" to describe all three ordinances collectively. German [[Radical Pietism]] influenced the Brethren's early 18th-century establishment of the love feast, predating Moravian adoption.<ref>{{cite book |last=Melton |first=J. Gordon |title=The Encyclopedia of American Religions |date=1987 |publisher=Gale Research Company |isbn=9780810321335|page=275}}</ref>

=== Moravian ===
[[File:Moravian Lovefeast.jpg|thumb|350px|Moravian dieners serve bread during the ''love feast'' at Bethania Moravian Church, North Carolina.]]
The [[Moravian Church]] models its love feast on the early church's agape meals described in the [[Acts of the Apostles]], emphasizing unity and love. In European, Canadian, and American congregations, servers called ''dieners'' distribute sweetened buns and coffee (or sweetened milky tea in parts of Europe) to worshippers seated in the pews. Congregational food and drink vary depending on availability; early colonial love feasts sometimes featured plain bread and water.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hamilton |first=J. Taylor |title=The Moravian Church: Its History and Mission |publisher=Moravian Church |year=1994 |isbn=1333524617|pages=110–115}}</ref>

Moravian love feasts focus heavily on hymn singing and music, often performed by an organ or choir. Hymns celebrate love and harmony, and attendees may quietly share testimonies or spiritual reflections. Christmas Eve love feasts frequently include elaborate musical performances, sometimes featuring trombone choirs or church bands as a call to worship.<ref name="auto">{{cite book |last=Hamilton |first=J. Taylor |title=The Moravian Church: Its History and Mission |publisher=Moravian Church |year=1994 |isbn=1333524617|pages=113–114}}</ref>

Congregations hold love feasts on special occasions such as church founding anniversaries. Regularly observed dates include [[New Year's Eve]] (with a [[Watchnight service]]), [[Good Friday]], 13 August (commemorating the 1727 Moravian renewal), and Christmas Eve, when attendees receive lighted candles along with the bun and coffee.<ref name="auto"/>

=== Methodist ===
[[Methodists]] hold love feasts quarterly and on major feast day evenings, as well as during [[camp meetings]].<ref name="Tovey2016"/> They regard love feasts as a "[[means of grace]]" and a "converting ordinance," which [[John Wesley]] affirmed as apostolic in origin.<ref name="Tovey2016">{{cite book |last=Tovey |first=Phillip |title=The Theory and Practice of Extended Communion |date=2016 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781317014201 |pages=40–49}}</ref> A July 1776 account describes participants experiencing new birth and sanctification during the love feast:<ref name="Tovey2016" />{{rp|93–94}}
{{blockquote|We held our general love-feast. It began between eight and nine on Wednesday morning and continued till noon. Many testified that they had 'redemption in the blood of Jesus, even the forgiveness of sins.' And many were enabled to declare that it had 'cleansed them from all sin.' So clear, so full, so strong was their testimony that while some were speaking their experience, hundreds were in tears, and others vehemently crying to God for pardon or holiness. About eight o'clock, our [[Watchnight service|watch-night]] began. Mr. J. preached an excellent sermon; the rest of the preachers exhorted and prayed with divine energy. Surely, for the work wrought on these two days, many will praise God to all eternity.}}

Methodist love feasts typically include:<ref name="Tovey2016" />
* Hymn
* Prayer
* Sung Grace
* Distribution of bread by stewards
* Collection for the poor
* Circulation of the loving-cup
* Address by the presiding minister
* Testimonies and hymns
* Closing exhortation by the minister
* Hymn
* Benediction

Certain Methodist groups such as the [[Missionary Methodist Church]] and New Congregational Methodist Church also practice [[footwashing]].<ref name="Melton1987">{{cite book |last1=Melton |first1=J. Gordon |title=The Encyclopedia of American Religions |date=1987 |publisher=Gale Research Company |isbn=978-0-8103-2133-5 |page=275}}</ref><ref name="MMC2004">{{cite book |title=Discipline of the Missionary Methodist Church |date=2004 |publisher=Missionary Methodist Church |page=7}}</ref>

In the [[Wesleyan Methodist Church (Great Britain)|Wesleyan Methodist Church]], love feasts consist of bread and water from the loving-cup.<ref name="Crowther1815" /><ref name="CracknellWhite2005">{{cite book |last1=Cracknell |first1=Kenneth |last2=White |first2=Susan J. |title=An Introduction to World Methodism |date=2005 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=9780521818490 |page=188}}</ref> These love feasts aim to "promote piety, mutual affection and zeal".<ref name="Crowther1815"/> Unlike Methodist Eucharist, love feasts are traditionally fenced, restricted to members, though non-members may attend once.<ref name="Tovey2016"/>

Several Methodist hymns, including Charles Wesley's 1740 "The Love-Feast," were composed for this ritual:<ref name="Tovey2016"/>
{{blockquote|<poem>Come and let us sweetly join  
Christ to praise in hymns divine;  
Give we all, with one accord.  
Glory to our common Lord.  
Hands and hearts and voices raise;  
Sing as in the ancient days;  
Antedate the joys above,  
Celebrate the feast of love.</poem>}}

Liturgical books of the [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]], [[African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church]], [[Christian Methodist Episcopal Church]], and [[United Methodist Church]] all include love feast services.<ref name="Bradshaw2013">{{cite book |last=Bradshaw |first=Paul F. |title=New SCM Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship |date=2013 |publisher=Hymns Ancient and Modern Ltd |isbn=9780334049326 |page=292}}</ref>

[[Primitive Methodist Church]] congregations often hold large potluck-style love feasts.<ref>{{cite book |last=Stubbs |first=Keith |title=The Primitive Methodist Church |publisher=Epworth Press |year=1970 |isbn= |pages=90–95}}</ref>

The [[Evangelical Wesleyan Church]] Discipline mandates a quarterly love feast on each circuit, typically involving bread-breaking, praise, and testimony.<ref name="EWC2015">{{cite book |title=The Discipline of the Evangelical Wesleyan Church |date=2015 |publisher=Evangelical Wesleyan Church |pages=76}}</ref> The [[Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection]] Discipline tasks pastors with holding love feasts.<ref name="AWMC2014">{{cite book |title=The Discipline of the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection (Original Allegheny Conference) |date=2014 |publisher=Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection |location=Salem, Ohio |pages=90}}</ref>

=== Eastern Orthodox ===
Many [[Eastern Orthodox Christian]] parishes hold agape meals (in Turkish, ''sevgi ziyafeti''), commonly called '''coffee hour''' (Spanish: ''café comunitario''), on Sundays and feast days following the [[Divine Liturgy]], especially after the [[Paschal Vigil]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Ware |first=Timothy |title=The Orthodox Church: An Introduction to Eastern Christianity |publisher=Penguin Books |year=1997 |isbn=014198063X |pages=156–158}}</ref>

=== Roman Catholic ===
The Catholic [[Neocatechumenal Way]] regularly incorporates an agape meal in the form of a light feast following the Eucharist on certain occasions.<ref name="AlbalaEden2011">{{cite book |last1=Albala |first1=Ken |last2=Eden |first2=Trudy |title=Food and Faith in Christian Culture |date=2011 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=9780231520799 |page=147}}</ref> Outside this, Catholic love feasts vary widely with local customs. Parishes often celebrate major festivals like a [[patron saint]]'s day or the [[Feast of Corpus Christi]] with parish-wide food and drink. Common post-Mass traditions include informal gatherings with coffee and doughnuts, or communal meals and snack after the early-morning [[Rorate Mass]] preceding Christmas. The festive Sunday family lunch or dinner often serves as a ''de facto'' love feast.<ref>{{cite web |title=Sunday Fellowship Traditions in Catholic Parishes |url=https://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/liturgical-year-and-calendar |access-date=2025-08-08}}</ref>

=== Adventist ===
The [[Creation Seventh Day Adventists]] observe an agape feast as part of their New Moon celebrations, holding formal all-natural meals after the communion supper.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Smith |first=John |title=Rituals and Observances in the Creation Seventh Day Adventist Church |journal=Journal of Adventist Studies |year=2019 |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=45–59}}</ref>

==Notes==
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==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite web |title=Lovefeast |url= http://www.moravian.org/faq/lovefeast.phtml |access-date=15 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120518022852/http://www.moravian.org/faq/lovefeast.phtml |archive-date=18 May 2012 |publisher=The Moravian Church in North America |work=Moravian.org}}
* Bowman, Carl F. ''Brethren Society: The Cultural Transformation of a Peculiar People.'' Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
* Stutzman, Paul Fike. ''Recovering the Love Feast: Broadening Our Eucharistic Celebrations''. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 2011.
* {{cite web |title=Love Feasts as the Center of the Church Life: by Charles Debelak |url= http://www.blendedbody.com/_cl/_audio/_2ndgen/DebelakDetroit2000/05-LoveFeastsAsTheCenterOfTheChurchLife.htm |access-date=4 January 2013}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*{{Citation |url=https://www.brethren.org/discipleshipmin/wp-content/uploads/sites/19/2020/10/ordinance-love-feast.pdf| title= Love Feast|publisher=Church of the Brethren}}
*{{Citation |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0S1mWMUQ42Y  |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/0S1mWMUQ42Y| archive-date=2021-12-11 |url-status=live|title=A Moravian Love Feast |date=20 February 2015 |publisher=Will & Deni Films}}{{cbignore}}
*Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/iGd-tta66FQ Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20210715205132/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGd-tta66FQ Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{Citation |url= https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGd-tta66FQ |title=Schwarzenau Brethren Love Feast |date=8 February 2012 |publisher=Stan Engle}}{{cbignore}}
*{{Citation |url= https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01200b.htm |title=Catholic Encyclopedia |publisher=New Advent}}
*{{Citation |url= http://latter-rain.com/ltrain/agape.html |publisher= Latter Rain Ministry |title= Agape |access-date= 18 February 2003 |archive-date= 14 May 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110514203441/http://latter-rain.com/ltrain/agape.html |url-status= dead }}
*{{Citation |url= http://www.seekerschurch.org/sermons/20000227.htm |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20000526100118/http://seekerschurch.org/sermons/20000227.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 May 2000 |publisher=Seekers Church |title=Sermon |date=2000-02-27 }}
*{{Citation |url= http://www.voteforjesus.co.uk/ |archive-url= https://archive.today/20130114034513/http://www.voteforjesus.co.uk/ |url-status= usurped |archive-date= 14 January 2013 |title=Love Feast |type=Links |publisher=Vote for Jesus |place=UK}}

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