The Casserole Hierarchy

In the United Methodist Church, the potluck is not a meal. It is a governance document.

The hierarchy is as follows, in ascending order of authority:

At the base: store-bought rolls. The person who brings store-bought rolls has announced, in the clearest possible terms, that they are new. They do not yet understand that rolls are a tier. They will learn.

One tier above: the dish that requires a Crock-Pot. The Crock-Pot signals commitment. You thought ahead. You got up early. You are willing to carry something warm through a parking lot. The congregation respects this, though they are watching to see if you plug it in at the right outlet or the one by the fellowship hall door that trips the breaker.

Near the top: the dish that requires a recipe that has been in your family for three generations and cannot be written down because your grandmother made it by feel. This is the casserole that people arrange themselves around. People will stand next to the dish they are waiting to take a second helping of, in a casual posture designed to look as if they are just in that corner of the room.

At the apex: the woman who makes the macaroni and cheese from scratch and has been making it at this church since before most of the current congregation was born. She does not need to sign up for the potluck sheet. A slot appears with her name on it, placed there by institutional memory. If she is absent, the potluck is technically incomplete regardless of how many other dishes are present.

Below store-bought rolls, not usually discussed: the person who brings two-liter sodas. They are welcome. There is grace for them. But they know what they brought.

This hierarchy is not written down anywhere. It does not need to be. It is transmitted through thirty years of potlucks and encoded in the seating arrangement around the serving table. Newcomers learn it by observation. Longtime members enforce it through the absence of comment.

The casserole hierarchy is not about food. The casserole hierarchy is about who has been here, how long, and what they have contributed in the ordinary time between Sundays.

It is, in this way, among the most accurate records the church keeps.

Matt Headley

Founding pastor of Ecclesia Community. Ordained United Methodist. Flower farmer. Builder. I walk with a limp. That is why I can walk with you.

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