Cookbook sermons revisited

Today, it’s trendy to denounce consumerism and individualism. But do we know what they are? Consume This! looks for a new way to be Anabaptist in the 21st century by highlighting habits taken for granted. How are thought, faith, and action connected?

—Eds.

As baking aromas filled my home, I looked at my More-with-Less cookbook (open to page 99) and was reminded of a unique and delicious ministry. It resides in three resources sitting on the shelf above my oven: cookbooks published through Mennonite Central Committee. I now know about food substitutions, am aware of the correct pronunciation of “kusherie,” and can produce ginger snaps and sweet potato burritos of abnormally high quality.

But these three publications hold an even greater importance. When each book’s content, general theme, and biblical messages are considered within wider global contexts, it becomes clear that each of these collections of recipes were, and continue to be, a sermon for their times.

For example, the More-with-Less cookbook (1976) was published during what author and journalist Tom Wolfe deemed the “Me Decade.” In the face of an individualistic society, More-with-Less sent out an alternative call: to think about personal consumption patterns and “the relationship between North American over-consumption and world need.” Here, we are asked a poignant question: “Does your belief in God affect your way of living?” This book’s perspective encourages us to look at how our personal lifestyles affect others around the world, reminding us of the biblical question that asks what we will profit if we gain the whole world but lose our souls in the process (Matthew 16:26).

Extending the Table (1991) takes a different angle, begging us to look at the world while acknowledging the many gifts our global sisters and brothers have to offer. Published right after the collapse of the Soviet Union during the Gulf War and post-cold-war distrust and insecurity, this collection of recipes celebrates cross-cultural awareness and the idea of building common ground through a common need.

Here, we are taught how to enjoy the edible gifts of people around the world. The foreword tells of a man and his wife who were in conversation with a Toba Indian church leader. When asked how he would begin to share the gospel with other indigenous people, he paused and then responded, “I would go and eat their food.” This powerful response reminds us that food is often a catalyst for community and communication, and the gift of meal-sharing shouldn’t be taken for granted. The expert in the law who asks “Who is my neighbour?” (Luke 10:29) has plenty of fodder in this cookbook.

Finally, Simply in Season (2005) was produced at the height of a human-created environmental crisis that has brought global warming to the forefront of our attention. This work counters society’s continued consumptive patterns and lifestyles, seeking to provide “positive choices as we seek the healing and rebirth of all that is part of God’s creation.” Throughout its pages, readers and eaters are encouraged to respond to God’s world through changes in lifestyle that include the reduction of food mileage, local eating, and supporting (and even knowing!) your local farmer. Stewardship and creation care are the very obvious, but very important, biblical messages we receive.

Clearly, all three cookbooks were written in the same spirit, but each does have its own unique message. They remind us that eating is a daily event; it is (or can be) a ritual and act of worship. Heads bowed and grace said, muttered, or sang at the beginning of a meal can be extended by thinking about what is eaten and who is affected by personal purchasing practices.

To emphasize this idea, Simply in Season outlines a story of a family who cut their meat budget by $20 per week. They spent $10 on extra vegetables and the remaining $10 on sponsoring children through an international relief agency. One writer reminds us that “to crave a return to your previous habits is normal, but always know that someone somewhere can have life and hope because of your choices.”

Clearly these cookbooks, and the women who compiled them, are preachers – prophets of their time and context, whose words continue to be relevant for us today.

Karin Kliewer is in her first year of graduate studies in the city planning department at the University of Manitoba.