a book & a dream
It’s the beginning of a new school year. I am a recent graduate of Cornell University, sitting in the basement of the religious studies building on campus at our weekly Orthodox Christian Fellowship (OCF) meeting, our small but mighty group of six brainstorming possible speakers to bring to our university for the school year. “How about Rita Madden?” I whimsically suggest. I did not know much about her other than the fact that we share a profession (registered dietitian) and our faith (Orthodox Christianity). I also know she lives in Hawaii (lucky!) What are the chances she would leave her sunny, stunning Honolulu to visit snowy Ithaca in mid-winter to give a talk on food and faith? And that our university student group funds would pay for it? Slim. But thankfully, the idea was preserved by the rules of brainstorming - all ideas are valid!
So the next day, I type the memorable name into the google search bar, land on her website, and send her a hopeful email. To my delight, I received a rather quick and enthusiastic response. We connected, and before I knew it, we had an OCF speaker on the calendar. I did not know, however, that her visit would blossom into more than just a speaking engagement for our campus community.
Rita’s presentation, which focused on the topics in her book Food, Faith, and Fasting: A Sacred Journey to Better Health, opened my eyes to a whole new way of understanding the Church’s teachings and my role in healing as a nutrition counselor. Through the lens of our faith, every “healthy lifestyle choice” I had been preaching in the nutrition office crystallized into a richer way of living, reflecting the light of Christ from every angle.
Slowing down and savoring each bite at meal time for portion control and weight management becomes instead a way to keep God’s presence at the forefront of our eating experience.
Noting your hunger - physical and emotional - becomes not just a way to regulate snack time, but a way to allow God to satisfy the hunger.
Encouraging smaller portions of animal products on the plate in favor of those veggies is transformed from an evidenced-based nutrition recommendation for chronic disease prevention into an invitation to fast and pray, an act of caring for body and soul alike.
In Rita’s book each page is ripe with dynamic connections between the science of today and the wisdom of the Church. She does not cherry pick verses to support wellness claims, but rather captures the essence of scripture, of the teaching of the church fathers, of the apostolic tradition, and lays it as the groundwork for her teaching.
This is now the approach I aim to take as I continue my professional service as a nutrition counselor. I am grateful for the inspiration to invite Christ into my professional life. I am humbled to be able to share these insights with others. And I am hopeful that this worldview will illumine for us a physically and spiritually healthy way of living worth seeking.
Thank you, Rita, for your support and encouragement. And thank you, reader, for being here.
To learn more about Rita and her work, or to read her book, visit her website: https://ritafoodfaithfasting.wordpress.com/.
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As my one friend put it, “this may be the best use of university student group funding ever!”