I’ve known two fundamental truths about myself since I was little: I am adopted, and I am Latina. A birth heritage of Mexican descent always has felt like an important piece of who I am. I was adopted at birth…
What I learned about ‘the poor’ by working in a soup kitchen
In 2011, while I was studying as a doctoral student at the University of Toronto, I applied to be the coordinator of a soup kitchen one night a week a few blocks from Queen’s Park. It was called the Gathering…
Baylor preparing to launch master’s degree in theology, ecology and food justice
It should come as no surprise that Jennifer Howell, director of a program blending environmental and theological studies at Baylor University’s Truett Seminary, perceives deep spiritual dimensions in the tilling of soil. “You recognize you are vulnerable to something bigger…
Contemplative pandemic cooking: Feeding souls and neighbors
In rural New England, winter comes not only with a downpouring of snow but with a heavy dose of loneliness and isolation. While the wondrous “white stuff” is a nuance that my spouse and I still get excited about, that’s…
America, we’ve got to address the source of the pressure, not just the steam it puts off
While I’m not a psychotherapist or anywhere close to an expert in family systems theory, I’m finding some clarity in applying what little I do know to our current societal predicaments. It goes something like this: Pressure begins to build…
Alternative food ministry generous with the eats, but stingy on the stigma
“The coolest thing is that benevolence begets benevolence. They come for food and they get to vote on how to be charitable to others.”
Funeral food
There are some rules everyone needs to understand about death and funerals. For starters, funerals call for a certain kind of food. There had better be chocolate cake involved, or the family is going to be left to scramble on…
When food oppresses
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth…