Synthesis

In this project looking at the intersection of food and religion in Burlington, we set out to understand the social and personal difficulties that followers of various faiths might face in maintaining their chosen food ways. We were able to explore some of the realities of foodways through our research, especially focusing on the practices of UVM students and Burlington-area residents.

Mindfulness With Every Grain

Photo Credit: Maija Castro

My research findings reflect that practice around food is more important than belief.  When looking for Buddhist recipes I wanted to further connect with this idea of practice and my experience at the Vermont Zen Center. The Center’s website offers both practice and recipes. It has a number vegetarian recipes and has a Mp3 and written copy of the Buddhist Meal Chant, that both Kaza and Dharman noted on doing for their major meals.

Ezekiel Bread

“Take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt; put them in a storage jar and use them to make bread for yourself.” – Ezekiel 4:9

As I wrote in previous posts, there are not necessarily any specific recipes all Christians include in their diets. For my recipe, I decided to tackle a bread, an often symbolic food in Christianity, and a recipe that is somewhat described in the Bible: Ezekiel bread.

Cooking Kosher: Matzah ball soup

The preparation for my matzah cooking brought me to Shaw’s supermarket’s ‘international’ aisle. A small section of this aisle was dedicated to kosher cuisines and it was there that I found my ingredients for the matzah balls. Matzah is an Ashkenzai Jewish dumpling originating from Central and Eastern Europe.

The recipe that I chose to follow is from an Jewish informational website called Judaism 101 and I decided to make a dish that is highly recognizable. The ingredients and recipe for the Matzah is as followed:

• 2 cup matzah meal
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp. oil or schmaltz (melted chicken fat)
• 2 tbsp. water or chicken broth
• 2 tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
• a little black pepper
• 2 quarts thin chicken broth or consommé
• A handful of baby carrots or regular carrots cut into large chunks (optional)
• a few stalks of celery cut into large chunks (optional)

Making Mujadara

Due to the fact that there are not necessarily explicit halal recipes, I chose to make a dish that is commonly eaten during Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar.

This month-long holiday is very relevant to Muslim food practices because during this time observers fast from sunrise to sundown but eat their meals during the hours of darkness with family or the local community. Followers of Islam believe that this holiday teaches Muslims patience and modesty.

The meal served before dawn is called the suhoor and the meal served after dusk is known as the iftar. Before the iftar, Muslims break their fast by eating dates.

One such meal that may be consumed is majadarra, a rice, lentil and onion dish that is common in the Arab world, which is what I chose to make in my investigation of Islamic food practices. This dish is fairly simple to make and most of the ingredients are easy to come by.

Halal in the North End

After desperately trying to find Global Markets, the once halal certified grocery store in Burlington, which no longer exists, I pulled up in front of the Community Halal Store on North Avenue. When I asked the employee there about the Global Markets store, he told me that he had never heard of it, and when I asked him if his store was the only store that sold halal products in the area, he said that it was “one of two, I think.” Thus I began to wonder how easy it was to come across halal foods in Burlington, or maybe just as someone who does not normally seek these products, I just did not know where to look.

Image credit: http://www.7dvt.com/files/imagecache/articles-sidebar-image/food-halaalmarket-AD.jpg

Burlington Buddhist Practice

The conflicting sutra about eating meat and the variety of reasons for Buddhist vegetarian practice sparked my interest. I wanted inquire more about Burlington Buddhist dietary practices and beliefs, a how they are impacted by the local food-ways. I faced few obstacles finding Buddhists in the Burlington area. I was able to interview a Buddhist Priest named Dharman from the Vermont Zen Center.  To my luck I was also able to interview Stephanie Kaza, the author of an article I am using in my research, who also is a current professor at UVM in the Environment Program in the Rubenstein School and a practicing non-vegetarian Buddhist. But I struggled a little to find Buddhist students in the university community. In fact, I contacted seven different organizations and networks through six professors, to little avail. I did, although, come in contact, through UVM Students for True Animal Rights (STARS) club, with a sophomore named Allyson Drummond, a vegetarian studying and interested in taking the vows to become a Buddhist. In conducting these interviews I found similar as well as conflicting Buddhist dietary beliefs and practices. The follow is my consolidation of the three interviews:

Christian Food Practices at UVM

As discussed in the post introducing Christianity’s food practices, there are not many Christians who follow dietary restrictions related to their faith, while traditions are far more common. To explore what these practices are like for some students at the University of Vermont, I heard from senior Isaiah Cory, sophomore Kendra Mazza and junior Sam Chevalier, three UVM students and members of UVM’s Chi Alpha Christian Fellowship.

A UVM student’s take on keeping kosher

In order to better understand the means by which Burlington and UVM as a community addresses the specific religious needs of a kosher diet, I spoke to a UVM junior that practices Judaism and follows a kosher-style diet. In doing so, I was able to better understand the particular obstacles faced by the Jewish community here in following their food tradition. Currently, students at our University that practice kosher are given options  at one dining hall (Simpson) and 6 ‘points’ dining options (Marche, Marketplace, Redstone Market, Northside Cafe, Waterman, and Given Atrium.)

 

(Courtesy of Jonathon Polson)

My informant for this interview was Jonathon Polson. A junior at the University of Vermont majoring in Film and minoring in Holocaust studies.

A Brief Overview of Christian Food Practices

Praise the Lord, my soul. …

You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate,

that he may bring forth food from the earth

and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine

and bread to strengthen man’s heart.

Psalm 104:1, 14-15

Christianity is a religion plentiful with food references and practices. From the New Testament – rich with food imagery and metaphors – to various Christmas traditions – varying by region and culture as much as religious division – Christianity contains a breadth of foodways that can be explored.