Faith and Food, why ethical farming and ranching matter to Catholics

Food is part of our life and faith, and it is important that we consider how we farm, distribute, and prepare, it. Our relationship with food is also part of our relationship with God. 

Highlights

By Marshall Connolly (Catholic Online)
2/1/2022 (3 years ago)

Published in Living Faith

Keywords: food, faith, Catholic, ethical, sustainable

LOS ANGELES, CA (California Network) - You may have noticed some content on Catholic.org that mentions food, and wonder why it's there. The fact is, food is part of our faith, and our relationship with it is part of our relationship with God. 

This relationship begins in the Garden, where God warned Eve she was not to do one thing; she was not to eat of the forbidden fruit. Her choice to eat was the source of Original Sin. 

Later, Cain and Abel are both producers of food. Cain farming, and Abel ranching, both prepare sacrifices to God. Abel offers the his best livestock, causing Cain to be jealous. Cain therefore slew Abel. 

Throughout the Old Testament, the God's people offer sacrifices of various animals. This was not because God required them for some kind of sustenance. It's that such sacrifices were often shared among those without food for themselves. This was a widespread ancient tradition. By offering their best, those blessed with abundance acknowledged their common relationship with all people, including the poor. 

The Last Supper was a meal, and at this meal, Jesus offered Himself, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, as the living flesh, the Lamb of God, which takes away the sins of the world. We are called to the Eucharistic feast, a thanksgiving where we literally consume this meal as part of our worship. The Eucharist is the source and summit of our faith. it is everything. 

Our relationship with food matters. This is why food must be ethically sourced. In fact, God's law requires this. We are not to partake of stolen food, or that which is unethically sourced. No stolen goods are to be received by a Christian. That which is sourced unethically is essentially stolen. 

In addition, animals are to be raised compassionately, with the shepherd protecting his flock, even with his life, if required. Food must be slaughtered in the right way, and prepared properly. Finally, food should be shared. We are to pray before meals and give thanks. 

We may argue these rules apply to the Old Testament, but they still apply to us in the main. This is because they are related to ethical consumption, and charity. We are not absolved of all the old rules, and we are certainly bound by Christian ethics. 

But what does this really mean? 

This means we must take care to source our meals from places that behave ethically and responsibly. It is not always possible to know the details of our food supply chains, but when we become aware of some breach of ethics, we should stop consuming such products. For example, if we learn that beef is being raised in a manner which is hyper-destructive to people or nature, we should consider an alternative source. Remember, we are stewards of creation, and as consumers, our choices are how we demonstrate our obedience to God. We are also our others' keepers, so we must ensure all people have enough to eat. 

Such choices may be difficult, inconvenient, or expensive, but it is more important for us to be loyal to Jesus Christ than our pocketbook. When Daniel was offered the rich, but unclean foods of Babylon, he begged to be served only vegetables, so as not to offend the Lord. In exchange, the Lord protected him. 

We must be likewise. 

As Christians, we must be careful about the foods we bring into our homes and put on our plates. To the greatest practical degree, they should be natural, properly farmed and raised, humanely processed, and respectfully served. It is also important to share the bounty we receive.  

We are lucky to still have choices in the foods we purchase, prepare, and eat. Let us be aware that we have to make ethical choices when feeding our families. Food is central to our faith, and we must choose informed by our Christian faith.