I visited my local branch of Subway this morning. At first, all I wanted was a take-away coffee, but once in the queue, having skipped breakfast, I was tempted by a bacon, egg, and cheese sub. (For the uninitiated, ‘sub’ is short for ‘submarine’, as in submarine bread roll, rather than submarine, as in ‘Dive, Dive, Dive!’). Anyway, whilst up-periscoping to pay, I noticed Subway’s Christmas T-Shirt slogan, ‘O Come All Ye Hungry’, emblazoned on the back of the young lady who was serving me. This led me to question whether, since my last visit, thw world’s largest fast food franchise boasting over 44,000 restaurants across 110 countries in 2016 had become a charity – and would I be getting a free breakfast? Alas, I did not have the wherewithal at the time to ask, but I did wish the staff a merry Christmas.
Really though. Subway, are you serious? Have you thought this through? If you take the line of a Christian hymn which calls the faithful (O Come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant) to remember and celebrate Jesus, His life, and all that He stood for, can you not blame me for at least questioning your charitable intent? The reality, of course, is that when you say, Come All Ye Hungry, you mean Come all Ye Hungry, give us cash, and we will feed you. Meanwhile, I have lost count of the number of churches who are running Foodbanks, providing meals to offer food and fellowship for people on low incomes, running Night Shelters, and doing All We Can (this is the name of the branch of the Methodist Church in Britain which focuses on providing relief and development to some of the world’s poorest communities to end the suffering caused by inequality and injustice).
Granted, Subway, you are not the only commercial enterprise, by far, to twist elements of the Christmas message to increase sales. I have also been invited to participate in the Twelve Deals of Christmas. I read from your national website that you seek to make a positive contribution within the communities in which you operate. Thus, I am wondering what action accompanies this slogan as part of the local charity initiatives that you sponsor? I am heartened by your drive for low fat products with Heart Research UK, and your encouragement of sport in schools. However, if as you say, almost 60% of stores are based in British and Irish high streets, your Christmas slogan raises the question of how you might at be at work in addressing the poverty and hunger which makes it difficult for people to make healthy food choices in the first place. I am, I have to admit, only informed by the marketing material that you display on your website. If your franchisees do contribute to Foodbanks, or give free sandwiches to the needy via some kind of voucher system, then I applaud you all. If not, in saying. ‘O come all ye Hungry’, you have just walked rather publicly into a spiritual lamppost.
During the season of Advent, many of the established churches within our country focus on how John the Baptist called people to, ‘Prepare the Way for the Lord’ – for Jesus, the Christ, whose immanent birth we remember at this time of the year. John is remembered in particular for his willingness to speak out and say what needed to be said, his peculiar dress sense (wearing camel skin clothing), and his eating habits (favouring locusts and honey). Those who join John in turning their lives into something that is much more wholesome and positive ask him how they should respond. The answer is to share what you do not need, resist the temptation to swindle people, and use the authority you have with respect. Thus, if we take ‘O Come all ye Faithful’ seriously then it does indeed mean attending to the poor and hungry. Whilst I am unconvinced that a free locust and honey special for the needy would appeal, during Christmas countless numbers of people join together to help meet the needs of those who are particularly vulnerable. I am interested to hear what Subway is doing whilst others, many of whom are not religious, are part of the machinery and the people-power to create a highway to a better life, or if not a better life, some respite from the challenges that they face. Being a Methodist, I am not a betting man, but if I were, I would put money on the fact that within five miles of each of your high-steet outlets, somewhere there will be a faith community or a secular outreach project that is trying to feed hungry people.
My purpose in writing about Subway is not so much to single you out, but to remind us all that the call for Christian celebration has its roots not just in celebrating Christian values but recognising the humanitarian responsibility we have to support the poor and oppressed. I am wondering what would happen if Subway partnered with the Church and the local community to take Christmas seriously (we run our own franchises in quite a distinctive way and continue to retain a strong local presence and visibility. Whilst some older branches have been forced to close, we are opening up new ones, developing new activities, and expanding our opening hours. Could we, together, build a Subway to Heaven? Could we work together, as we have done with other local food retailers, to take a little of what is not needed by the rich, and feed it to the poor? Could we birth a little more of heaven on this earth? What we need, as do countless other churches and community groups, is the resources, both financial and material, to attend to the spiritual as well as physical health of some of the neediest people in our community.
Merry Christmas to all, to Subway, and especially to the staff of all take away coffee branches who have supported me with a cheery smile throughout the year. At the very least, what about a scheme that asks little of you and something of me. Next time I buy myself a meal, you offer me the chance to buy a second at cost price, for someone who is in need. At least then you will be honouring your slogan of, ‘O come all ye hungry.’
Rev Dr Langley Mackrell-Hey is a Methodist Minister based in Peterborough, UK.