Holy Food

Does God have a recipe?

Independent foodhistorian Christina Ward’s highly anticipated Holy Food exploresthe influence of mainstream to fringe religious beliefs on modern American foodculture. Author Christina Ward unravels the numerous ways religious beliefsintersect with politics and economics and, of course, food to tell a differentstory of America. It's the story of true believers and charlatans, of idealistsand visionaries, and of the everyday people who followed them—often at theirperil. Holy Food explains how faith pioneers used societal woes andcultural trends to create new pathways of belief and reveals theinterconnectivity between sects and their leaders.

Religious beliefs havebeen the source of food "rules" since Pythagoras told his followersnot to eat beans (they contain souls), Kosher and Halal rules forbade theshrimp cocktail (shellfish are scavengers, or maybe G-d just said"no"). A long-ago Pope forbade Catholics to eat meat on Fridays (fastingto atone for committed sins). Rules about eating are present in nearly everyAmerican belief, from high-control groups that ban everything except"air" to the infamous strawberry shortcake that sated visitors to theOneida Community in the late 1800s. In America, where the freedom to worshipthe god of your choice and sometimes of your own making, embraced oldtraditions and invented new ones.

Holy Food looks at how theexplosion of religious movements since the Great Awakenings (the nationwidereligious revivals in the 1730s-40s and 1795-1835) birthed a cottage industryof food fads that gained mainstream acceptance. And at the obscure sects andcommunities of the 20th Century who dabbled in vague spirituality that usedfood to both entice and control followers. Ward skillfully navigates betweenacademic studies, interviews, cookbooks, and religious texts to make sharpobservations and new insights into American history in this highly readablejourney through the American kitchen.

Holy Food features over 75 recipes from religious and communal groups tested andupdated for modern cooks. Also includes over black and white images.