Do you pray for Restaurant meals?

One thing I have maintained from my Christian days is a small prayer (we call it Dua now) before eating. We usually request our son to do it to remind him that without God we wouldn't have anything.
 
I used to, but then I discovered it was offensive. I worked once at a buffet, and sometimes people would act very religious and then stiff the waiters. One group left a tract instead of a tip. If you do pray publicly, you should play the part of the servant of all. You must not allow the waiters to do anything extra, thank them, praise them and tip them. You see what I mean? By praying publicly you have identified yourself as a servant, so really they should not be serving you. Really you should be serving them, but you can't serve the waiters at a restaurant.

That being said, I don't pray much for food anymore even to myself. Really I don't pray much at all, but the above is still what I think about praying in public for food when there are waiters present. I don't know...maybe pray for the food while you're still in the car?
 
Yes and no...

Our thoughts are prayers, and we are always praying
Our thoughts are prayers, listen to what you're saying
Seek a higher consciousness, a state of peacefulness
And know that G!d is always there,
and every thought becomes a prayer...
 
Before a meal, I like to say (in Japanese) "I will continue to make effort to become a Buddha."

According to my belief system, we will all eventually become Buddhas, and the purpose of life is for all of us to do all we can to accelerate our progress along that path.
 
I don't pray in any precise fashion at a restaurant, but I do take a moment to reflect on how fortunate I am to be able to afford eatting out and to think about the people working in the kitchen and as servers. This is particularly important to me if it is a holiday or other event (Mother's Day/Father's Day) and I'm there eating with family, while they're working and not spending time with their families.
 
waggindraggin said:
I used to, but then I discovered it was offensive. I worked once at a buffet, and sometimes people would act very religious and then stiff the waiters. One group left a tract instead of a tip. If you do pray publicly, you should play the part of the servant of all. You must not allow the waiters to do anything extra, thank them, praise them and tip them. You see what I mean? By praying publicly you have identified yourself as a servant, so really they should not be serving you. Really you should be serving them, but you can't serve the waiters at a restaurant.

That being said, I don't pray much for food anymore even to myself. Really I don't pray much at all, but the above is still what I think about praying in public for food when there are waiters present. I don't know...maybe pray for the food while you're still in the car?
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To be a servant does not exclude you from being served also. They are earning their money by doing a service. A righteous venture in any Abrahamic Faith. IMO you are mistaking Identifying yourself as a servant of God with Identifying yourself as a servant to man.

On the other hand, I've always found that the most outwardly Christian groups tend to stiff or under-tip the worst.
 
I pray in reverence and thankfulness to Grandfather the creator of all things. Without him we wouldn't be here, nor would we be sustained by the harvest.
 
may all the nutrition be absorbed and flow to where it is most needed and nourish that which needs to be nourished, and may all the pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, heavy metals, and other such poisons pass right through...
 
BigJoeNobody said:
To be a servant does not exclude you from being served also. They are earning their money by doing a service. A righteous venture in any Abrahamic Faith. IMO you are mistaking Identifying yourself as a servant of God with Identifying yourself as a servant to man.

On the other hand, I've always found that the most outwardly Christian groups tend to stiff or under-tip the worst.
Click to expand...
Yes, a servant can be served.

edited 27-7-2015
 
Last edited:
waggindraggin said:
Yes, a servant can be served, but I point out that you are not in agreement with Christian doctrine about identifying as a 'Servant to man'. Also ostentatious prayers are unrewarded, so they are pointless.

If I may go a little off track by interpreting the doctrine: In Christianity the servant of all is the greatest of all, and Christians are to serve other people. They are to serve other people, because the logos is in those people or because people are made in the image of God or because God is revealed through people. (Those are some of the ways logos is explained theologically). In a way when you serve people you are serving God, at least according to Christian doctrine as I have understood it. So being served by a waiter is fine, but when you bless the food in public you become the servant of all. Now those waiters whatever their religion may be still represent the logos, so its inappropriate to let them go unserved. You should not have blessed the food without serving everyone. What happens usually in restaurants is wait staff are considered invisible; and symbolically this is like ignoring the logos or ignoring God. The prayer of blessing becomes an ostentatious event, like a show to make people see Christians praying. Its better to bless the food in private and give the blessing a chance to be effective. Then there is no question about whether you are praying to God or whether its so that other people can see you pray. There is also not the problem of convincing the waiter to be one of your guests at their own table. You should bless the food as quietly as possible without wait staff present, or you should insist that they sit and eat with you.
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I pray quietly at my table after my meal is delivered. I don't pray so others can see me pray. Personally I could care less if they see me or don't. I pray because I am thankful to and for God and the bounty he has allowed to be set before me. I also don't personally care who my prayer offends. I have as much right to pray as they do not to pray. As for the wait staff, I have never stiffed one though just as many non Christians have stiffed wait staff as Christians, Numbers speaking I will bet it is more the case of non Christians.
 
I realise this is in the Christian sub-section, but since non-Christian was mentioned, and we do eat at restaurants too, believe it or not, I thought it okay to add my two bits.

We recite a Vedic food-blessing chant mentally at restaurants. (aloud at home). Personally, I'm a generous tipper, and I think tipping is far more cultural than religious. It varies according to cultural, as does the propensity of restaurants themselves.
 
This is disgusting, embarrassing...
aattp-tip-1-300x277.png
aattp-tip-2-300x275.png
aattp-3-300x225.png
unless it is accompanied with a real ten dollar bill....and that ten bucks is 20% or more of the tip...
 
wil said:
This is disgusting, embarrassing...
aattp-tip-1-300x277.png
aattp-tip-2-300x275.png
aattp-3-300x225.png
unless it is accompanied with a real ten dollar bill....and that ten bucks is 20% or more of the tip...
Click to expand...
wil said:
This is disgusting, embarrassing...
aattp-tip-1-300x277.png
aattp-tip-2-300x275.png
aattp-3-300x225.png
unless it is accompanied with a real ten dollar bill....and that ten bucks is 20% or more of the tip...
Click to expand...

And some people wonder why they get their food spat in.....Sheesh...
 
the quote attributed to Ghandi.... I like your Christ, I wish your Christians were more like your Christ... comes to mind....

folks wonder why....
 
wil said:
the quote attributed to Ghandi.... I like your Christ, I wish your Christians were more like your Christ... comes to mind....

folks wonder why....
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, unless the enemies that our government has made, Unless their religions true meaning were reciprocated, we would be sitting ducks waiting to be picked off.
 
waggindraggin said:
Yes, a servant can be served, but I point out that you are not in agreement with Christian doctrine about identifying as a 'Servant to man'. Also ostentatious prayers are unrewarded, so they are pointless.

If I may go a little off track by interpreting the doctrine: In Christianity the servant of all is the greatest of all, and Christians are to serve other people. They are to serve other people, because the logos is in those people or because people are made in the image of God or because God is revealed through people. (Those are some of the ways logos is explained theologically). In a way when you serve people you are serving God, at least according to Christian doctrine as I have understood it. So being served by a waiter is fine, but when you bless the food in public you become the servant of all. Now those waiters whatever their religion may be still represent the logos, so its inappropriate to let them go unserved. You should not have blessed the food without serving everyone. What happens usually in restaurants is wait staff are considered invisible; and symbolically this is like ignoring the logos or ignoring God. The prayer of blessing becomes an ostentatious event, like a show to make people see Christians praying. Its better to bless the food in private and give the blessing a chance to be effective. Then there is no question about whether you are praying to God or whether its so that other people can see you pray. There is also not the problem of convincing the waiter to be one of your guests at their own table. You should bless the food as quietly as possible without wait staff present, or you should insist that they sit and eat with you.
Click to expand...
Just to put things into a different perspective (one that I and other Christians I grew up with) The blessing is not a service prayer, but rather making food "kosher" (to use a word non-foreign to Christians), Thanking God for the food, and Thanking him for the health you should receive from it (which is kinda wierd considering how much overeating and further waste most of us accomplish). I have never heard anyone bless a dinner in an idea that it is a service to all, nor a service to any. It has always been about thanking God for providing food.

I do agree that prayer should be pure of intention, not praying just so others see you.

wil said:
This is disgusting, embarrassing...
aattp-tip-1-300x277.png
aattp-tip-2-300x275.png
aattp-3-300x225.png
unless it is accompanied with a real ten dollar bill....and that ten bucks is 20% or more of the tip...
Click to expand...
Unfortunately I have actually received this "tip" multiple times when I was working in a restaurant. One I received and upon seeing $10 I was already upset seeing as how the check was nearly $1000 party in which a Church group was celebrating ending a successful night of "spreading the good word" evangelizing door to door.
Richard Pickett said:
As for the wait staff, I have never stiffed one though just as many non Christians have stiffed wait staff as Christians, Numbers speaking I will bet it is more the case of non Christians.
Click to expand...
Not in my experience. Of course numbers speaking the number of at least claimed Christians far outweighed those of any other religion combined. In 3 years serving I had never been stiffed by anyone but outwardly showing Christians. Again, small pool of experiment, but personal experience goes a long way.

BTW, if anyone thinks the above note is a good idea a quote from the Bible about being a Christian is the greatest, while stiffing them completely, is not a good thing at all and drives many away from the church, not to it. Noone has received a pamphlet or note as a tip and changed their life to a more befitting Christian one.

Senthil said:
I realise this is in the Christian sub-section, but since non-Christian was mentioned, and we do eat at restaurants too, believe it or not, I thought it okay to add my two bits.

We recite a Vedic food-blessing chant mentally at restaurants. (aloud at home). Personally, I'm a generous tipper, and I think tipping is far more cultural than religious. It varies according to cultural, as does the propensity of restaurants themselves.
Click to expand...
I agree 100%.
A Cup Of Tea said:
Christians vs. non Christians, who will win? Stay tuned!
Click to expand...
is there a fight I'm missing? or are you just foretelling of one?
 
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