Food, Eating & Ethics
| Being mindful about what we eat, about our food choices, contributes to the wellbeing of ourselves, our relationships, and this whole world. Let breakfast be a place to pause and give thanks. And pay attention. — Rev Gail *** “When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,” said Piglet at last, “What’s the first thing you say to yourself?” “What’s for breakfast?” said Pooh. “What do you say, Piglet?” “I say, I wonder what’s going to happen exciting today?” said Piglet. Pooh nodded thoughtfully. “It’s the same thing,” he said. — A. A. Milne *** In modern life, people tend to think their bodies belong to them, that they can do anything they want to themselves. But your body is not only yours. Your body belongs to your ancestors, your parents, and future generations. It also belongs to society and to all the other living beings. The trees, the clouds, the soil, and every living thing brought about the presence of your body. We can eat with care, knowing we are caretakers of our bodies, rather than their owners. ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, How to Eat This Is Just To Say — William Carlos Williams I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox and which you were probably saving for breakfast Forgive me they were delicious so sweet and so cold |
| FOOD, EATING & ETHICS Food Ethics — Rock Ethics Institute, Penn State Food and ethics intersect in everyday practices as well as in abstract inquiry. Buying a tomato in winter, refusing to consume animal products, participating in a community garden, or petitioning governments regarding agriculture subsidies serve as instances when food and ethics converge. Just Eating — UCC.org on ‘just eating’ Eating can be a mundane activity done with little thought or reflection; or it can be an opportunity to thoughtfully live out our faith and practice justice. … five key aspects of our relationship with food.Food sharing as sacramentalThe health of our bodiesThe access others have to foodThe health of the earth, which our food choices influenceThe ways we use food to extend hospitality and enrich relationshipsSome resources to explore further:Nutrition Ethics ToolboxTime Magazine article on 33 Ways to Eat Environmentally-FriendlyHuffington Post article about Thich Nhat Hanh’s practices and philosophies for eating midfully and justlyUnited Church of Christ/UCC (regional guide) curriculum on ‘Just Eating’ (PDF leader’s guide with reading about eating faithfully)Unitarian Universalists (UU) on ethical eating: resourcesWorld Food Day statement by Pope Francis (2018)Additional resources of interest (list at bottom of UCC page on Hunger and Food Security) About Breakfast What nicer thing can you do for somebody than make them breakfast? — Anthony Bourdain Hope makes a good breakfast. Eat plenty of it.— Ian Fleming One should not attend even the end of the world without a good breakfast. — Robert Heinlein Sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast. — Lewis Carroll My fantasy breakfast is just a really good egg scramble. Maybe I’ll add a little feta, so, uh, obviously not totally dairy-free. Definitely some vegetables, maybe some really nice tortillas; something to make it like a Mexican-style breakfast. I just really love breakfast. — Alex Honnold We as human beings have the amazing capacity to be reborn at breakfast everyday and say, “This is a new day.” — Jack Kornfield Non-violence is a permanent attitude we bring to the breakfast table and bring to bed at night. — Coretta Scott King If you have children, you cannot feed them forever with flags for breakfast and cartridges for lunch. You need something more substantial. Unless you educate your children and spend less money on conflicts, unless you develop your science, technology and industry, you don’t have a future. — Shimon Peres “A few years ago, I asked some children, “What is the purpose of eating breakfast? One boy replied, “To get energy for the day.” Another said, “The purpose of eating breakfast is to eat breakfast.” I think the second child is more correct.” … Every minute can be a holy, sacred minute. Where do you seek the spiritual? You seek the spiritual in every ordinary thing that you do every day. Sweeping the floor, watering the vegetables, and washing the dishes become holy and sacred if mindfulness is there. With mindfulness and concentration, everything becomes spiritual. ― Thích Nhất Hạnh, How to Eat I like breakfast-time better than any other moment in the day. No dust has settled on one’s mind then, and it presents a clear mirror to the rays of things. — George Eliot I get up every morning and read the obituary column. If my name’s not there, I eat breakfast. — George Burns Loving Oneself and One’s Body I hate to say it, but only profound self-love will work, union with that scared breath-holding self, and not a diet that forbids apples or avocado. Horribly, but as usual, only kindness and grace — spiritual WD-40 — can save us. … It’s really okay, though, to have (or pray for) an awakening around your body. It’s okay to stop hitting the snooze button, and to pay attention to what makes you feel great about yourself, one meal at a time. … The self-respect and peace of mind you long for is not out there. It’s within. I hate that. I resent that more than I can say. But it’s true. … Maybe some of us can try to eat a bit less, and walk a bit more, and make sure to wear pants that do not hurt our thighs or our feelings. Drinking more water is the solution to all problems. Doing a three-minute meditation every day will change your life. Naps are nice. … I’ll leave you with this: I’ve helped some of the … women at my church get healthy, by suggesting they prepare each meal as if they had asked our beloved [guest] to lunch or dinner. They wouldn’t say, “Here … let’s eat standing up in the kitchen. This tube of barbecue Pringles is all for you. I have my own,” and then stand there gobbling from their own tubular container. No, they’d get out pretty dishes, and arrange wonderful foods on the plates, and set one plate before [guest] at the table, a plate filled with love, pride and connection. That’s what we have longed for, our whole lives, and get to create. — Anne Lamott |