Every year since 1981, the White House has produced an official Christmas ornament. Usually, the decoration features a president or an important anniversary. This year’s ornament will celebrate 150 years of culinary diplomacy.
What is culinary diplomacy?
The President of the United States has the responsibility to maintain relationships between America and other nations. Meals can show goodwill.
When hosting a government official like a queen or a prime minister, the president may treat the guest to a White House state dinner. That’s the highest diplomatic honor the United States offers to leaders of other nations.
President Ulysses Grant hosted the first White House state dinner. He dined with King David Kalākaua, one of the last monarchs of the Hawaiian Kingdom, in December 1874. Nearly 400 state dinners have been held since then.
The meals aren’t really about the food.
“State dinners are an important part of the American diplomatic process,” says Stewart McLaurin, president of the White House Historical Association. “It’s an opportunity for our presidents to establish friendships with heads of state through the extension of hospitality.”
That hospitality can be costly in its pomp and finery. President Obama hosted a state dinner for Mexico’s President Felipe Calderon in 2010. The event cost more than $560,000.
Sometimes state dinners include entertainment. A George W. Bush-hosted state dinner ended with a Broadway cast performance of The Lion King.
State dinners may be pricey and grand. But they have helped keep peace.
In 1959, President Dwight Eisenhower hosted a state dinner for the first Soviet leader to visit America.
Nikita Khrushchev visited during the Cold War. The United States was not on good terms with Russia. Khruschev’s visit didn’t bring an immediate end to the tensions. But it gave the leaders an opportunity to talk calmly.
“My purpose in these man-to-man talks was to learn more about his intentions, objectives, and personal characteristics,” President Eisenhower wrote in his autobiography.
More than 100 guests attended the Khruschev welcome dinner. They feasted on Crab Louis, coleslaw, and roast turkey.
President Jimmy Carter threw a significant state dinner in 1979. He hosted the president of Egypt and the prime minister of Israel after helping the two nations sign a political agreement called the Camp David Accords. More than 1,300 guests attended the party.
President Donald Trump held two state dinners in his first term: one for France and one for Australia. There’s no word yet on whether he’ll host another. But relationships between many nations are tense, so if it does happen, it’s likely to be a big one.
He brought me to the banqueting house, and His banner over me was love. — Song of Solomon 2:4
Why? God made food for our enjoyment, but He also uses it to encourage relationships. Breaking bread with others gives us a glimpse into the joy we will experience at the “marriage supper of the Lamb.” (Revelation 19:9)
