Food Security and Faith

From Genesis – the LORD God formed man from the dust (or soil) of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food…The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, ‘You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.’

We were made from the soil, put in the garden to live and eat and work, and when we die, we return to that same soil.

We Disciples are called “People of the Table.” The Lord’s Table is located in the center of our sanctuaries. It is the climax of our worship services. It is how we define ourselves. It connects us to each other – to all Christians from all times. It connects us to the earth through grain and fruit. It connects us to Jesus who died on the cross and to Christ who triumphed over death. Everything we do – every decision we make should be influenced by our faith in Christ Jesus. But since we are people of the Table – Food – what we eat, how we eat, where we eat, and feeding others should be central to how we live out our faith.

And unfortunately, decisions around food are NOT simple. Our food system is NOT simple – it is very complicated and sinful. If I were to purchase a hamburger from a fast food restaurant, I can be sure that cow spent all or most of its life on concrete eating Genetically Modified Corn in cramped conditions away from wind, sun, rain and grass. The concentration of thousands and thousands of animals emits a lot of methane gas – adding to global climate change. Their waste has to be dealt with, and after slaughter, so do their remains. The bun would most likely have high fructose corn syrup, which besides being bad for me is also made from GMO corn with pesticides, some of which end up in the creeks and streams, in the water for those who live around the farms and in the air. The wheat for the bun would be GMO as well. The tomato might have been raised and harvested by enslaved people living in conditions unfit for our pets. The parts that make up my hamburger would have traveled, on average, 1500 miles, adding to air pollution and contributing to global warming.

Holy Eating = eating that supports: healthy soil, water, and air, which supports biodiversity on our planet; humane and ethical treatment of animals; and fair wages and good working conditions for people – AND that is nutritious and delicious.

God has filled the hungry with good things – the Magnificat gives us a vision of equality and justice where the hungry are full – not with empty calories, but with good things. We are to feed those who are hungry with good food.

Since 2006, the label “hungry” is “Food Insecure,” to describe any household where, sometime during the previous year, people didn’t have enough food to eat. Instead of looking at physical attributes of malnourishment with stunted growth and low weight, the questions have become: Have you missed meals in the past year, worried about running out of food, or gone to bed hungry?

The World Food Summit of 1996 defined Food Security as existing “when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food (hear “good food”) to maintain a healthy and active life.”

Food Security includes: physical and economic access to food – which means that there is a grocery store, and you can either walk to it or have reliable transportation to get there, and then you have the money to purchase it. Food Security also means that food meets people’s dietary needs as well as their food preferences AND they have the knowledge to design a healthy diet and ability to prepare nutritious food.

Rev. Carol Devine shared these resources as part of the 2015-16 NBA XPLOR orientation for XPLOR Residents and Spiritual Companions. For NBA XPLOR, the collaborative partnership with Green Chalice ministries and Rev. Devine is foundational to the NBA’s commitment of “creating communities of compassion and care.”