I feel as though I have been really busy lately. I don’t know that this has truly been the case, but I feel tired and lazy. I don’t like it. I’ve been so lazy that I’ve got 3 tabs on my Firefox browser that have been in place since Monday that I haven’t taken the time to read. I’ll get to it, hopefully, but I thought that maybe I could post the links here then you could read them and let me know what they are all about. It’s a win-win, really. I win because I’m posting a blog post, and you win because you get to read some good stuff.
I just realized that the three posts that I’ve been holding onto are a pretty good representation of three of my biggest interests: natural and sustainable foods, gardening and food production, and thinking about the role of a pastor other than through the lens of a CEO. So here you go.
The Food Renegade blog is a great blog that talks about food that is good for you, good for the growers, and tastes great. She is a renegade against industrialized foods that have shown up on the scene and have brought with them increases in heart related disease. This post is called “Real Food Hits the New York Times”.
The New York Times has an article about gardening in a “slow” way. Gardening in a way that works with the natural seasons and climates rather than forcing things into place. Check it out, “Slow, Cheap, Easy, and Green”.
And lastly, a post by Scot McKnight at the Out of Ur blog. Scot is using a book entitled, “The Pastor As Minor Poet: Texts and Subtexts in the Ministerial Life” to talk about the role of the pastor. I really like Scot. I’ve had the chance to meet him on a few occasions and have really enjoyed our conversations. Plus, he’s a Cubs fan. Read “The Poetry of Pastoring.”
Read them and get back to me ASAP. Thanks.
p.s. I find it a bit ironic that WordPress’s spell-check doesn’t recognize the word “blog” as a correct word.
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March 28, 2009 at 5:57 pm
Maria
Not sure I have too much to offer in the way of coherent thoughts. I like the Food Renegade blog, though — she looks like someone worth reading. I had a bit of a rant about the whole Alice Waters/60 minutes thing earlier this week. I suppose it is a good thing that “real food” is getting so much attention, I just hope it isn’t the latest fad that will fade in a moment. For me, looking at the issues related to food is a way into challenging the whole consumer culture and lifestyle — and I’m only taking baby steps, mind you. If “real food” becomes simply trendy (and expensive/elitist), then the opportunity to make a change on a deeper level will have been missed. But some people will be healthier, which isn’t a bad thing…
I get a bit nervous around poetry in general, so I wonder about the pastor/poet. Reading Scot’s review, what struck me is that pastors should be about offering spiritual direction and insight (call it poetry if you must), not managing programs and budgets. I’ve been around enough pastors who are eager to offer their credentials as a legitimate “professional” — and I haven’t seen much “gravitas” about them. On the other hand, there are those folks who have let life and God take them into some deep water, and they have wisdom and poetry to spare, no matter what their occupation or “calling.”
March 29, 2009 at 2:12 pm
scochenour
Hi Maria, I hope the end of March finds you and your family well. Thanks for your thought, even if you consider them to be incoherent. I think I’m in agreement with you about a concern for “real food” being seen as the next trend. From what I have seen with the Food Renegade blog is that there’s a bunch of info about food, yet it doesn’t come of as being pretentious. I understand the label of elitist when I read through the menu of Chez Panisse. To me, and I’m sure to those who are less food savvy, it would be helpful if people like Waters would be willing to separate the type of food evangelism into the category that is promoting fresh vegetables in every yard and on every stove, and the efforts put into “fancy” foods fit for a $150+ bill.
In regards to the thoughts on the poet-pastor, I’ve become a big fan of Eugene Peterson over the past few years and one of the things that I have learned from him is the importance and value of language. I too, have been around too many CEO pastors who have a model of ministry that they model off of Starbucks, Walmart, Apple, or whatever the latest and greatest is. My soul is tired of that. That way of thinking doesn’t fit with my understanding of the Kingdom of God anymore. Listening to the voice of a poetical prophet is more of what seems to fit my more recent understanding. If I find some spare change lying around I might buy the book. If I do, I’ll let you know how it goes.