Biblical Worldview of Wings
Who doesn’t love chicken wings! Buffalo wings have become an American staple that people can find in just about every restaurant. Wings are always my go-to dish whenever I am unsure of other food options in a restaurant. Consequently, trying wings at multiple restaurants has led me on a journey to search for the best wings in my city Phoenix, Arizona. While on my search, I began to form an opinion on the preparation of wings and their relationship with the Christian Religion.
The Kingdom of God is like a good plate of wings. I hope you don’t think I am being facetious when I state this! I truly believe that ALL of God’s creation can be used to describe what God’s Kingdom is like, especially a good plate of chicken wings.
Before 1964 wings were the least desirable part of the chicken; they were the throwaway pieces! It wasn’t until 1964 that wings became a hot commodity like they are today. The story goes like this:
Teressa Bellissimo owner of the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, New York typically used chicken neck to cook up the bar’s delicious spaghetti sauce. However, the Bar had received a delivery of chicken wings in error. To avoid wasting the wings, Teressa got creative. In her effort to create an appetizer for the bar, she deep-fried the wings, without breading, and covered them in hot sauce. She threw them on a plate, along with celery and blue cheese salad dressing. Within weeks, the dish became a hit and began to spread all over the country.
One of my favorite observations from this story is that Teressa Bellissimo singlehandedly REDEEMED the use of wings. Many people before her would junk the wing part of chicken, deeming it worthless to consume. However, she saw the goodness and potential of what a chicken wing could become: a delicious bar appetizer.
The creation account of the world according to the book of Genesis states that God created everything, and everything He created is good. This means that since God’s creation reflects Him, none of it deserves to be thrown-away. In essence God does not make junk, and He does not junk what He creates.
God is the creator of the good materials that led to Teressa creating buffalo chicken wings. Teressa can be praised for being a good steward of the wings given to her, as God invites us to be good stewards of His creation.
It is the responsibility of restaurants and chefs to be good stewards in their process of cooking wings. This means they are to be cautious of how they are preparing it, assuring that it will be pleasing to the consumer. The sauce ratio to each wing, the unhurried time put in to each delectable wing, and the presentation of it on the plate - all matters for a restaurant to be considered a good steward of chicken wings.
Even on the backend, the conscious of the chef and the restaurant must be clean concerning how the chicken was handled and given to them in order for them to be considered a good and faithful steward of what it is ultimately God’s good creation.
We as consumers must hold wing makers everywhere accountable for being good stewards of their dish. We must be bold in how we reject wings that are not handled with proper care, thus making God, the creator of all things, look bad. Wings that have too much sauce do not properly reflect the aspect of God that He is a fully balanced being. Wings that have come from chickens treated unethically in their production do not speak to the righteousness of God and His Kingdom.
At the same time we must affirm restaurants and bars in their good stewardship of wings. You must speak out in a positive way when wings are prepared to your liking. I know plenty of people who appreciate wings that are crisper and light on sauce. If that is your preference, it is your duty to affirm that type of wing and the chef who cooked it.
I truly believe a good wing has the ability to make a nonbeliever recognize that a God who loves them exists. God can be revealed through the taste of a good chicken wing: “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.”
Ultimately, I understand that everyone likes their wings prepared in a different way. Good wings can be a person’s own preference, which is another way they bring out the beauty of God’s creation. A place offering diverse wings are able to unite people with different taste and preferences. This is one of my favorite images of the Kingdom of God! His Kingdom will be a diverse space of people from different ethnicities and parts of the world. Like the Kingdom of God, good wings have the ability to unite people who are different from one another.
I invite you all to join me in my effort to find the best wings in my city by searching for the best in yours! When you find your favorite wing spot, take time to affirm the goodness in it, thanking the steward of the wings and the Giver of all good things.
