WELCOME HEART: Living a Legacy Life
Religion & Spirituality:Christianity
Kendall Vanderslice joins us today to talk bread, food, community, and loneliness—all some of my favorite topics. Founder of the non-profit, EdibleTheology.com, Kendall shares her wisdom regarding cultural polarization, and how eating together is a vulnerable and soul-filling activity. I love her call to include "rhythms of times at the table" in an effort to stave off our default into isolation. And, that when we do, we feel more known, respected and healed.
Author of We Will Feast, By Bread Alone, as well as the digital course, Bake With the Bible, Kendall also promotes a program we can use in our churches to build community and love, even in the middle of an election year! (Maybe especially in the middle of an election year!) And she is offering a copy of her recently released book/memoir: By Bread Alone: A Baker's Reflections on Hunger, Longing and the Goodness of God.
Some gems from our conversation:
Her favorite thing to bake (I asked!) is "Sourdough on Training Wheels." Sounds like my kind of sourdough.
In her own words
Hello! I’m Kendall Vanderslice – yes, before you ask, that is my true name.
It’s just by chance (or the humor of God) that I ended up in a field so fitting. I’m a baker and writer, whose best thinking occurs as I work dough between my hands; I scribble down thoughts on pieces of parchment dusted in flour, until I can parse them out later before my keyboard. When I embarked on a career as a pastry chef, I found that my love of bread transformed the ways I read scripture. Fascinated by God’s use of food throughout the arc of the Gospel, I merged my work in the kitchen with academic study of food and theology.
I founded the educational nonprofit Edible Theology as an outlet for further research and public engagement in this sphere. You can get a taste for our work by listening to our weekly podcast Kitchen Meditations.
I’m a graduate of Wheaton College in Illinois (BA Anthropology), where I began engaging questions of food and faith. Interested in commensality—or, the social dynamics of eating together—I studied food at Boston University (MLA Gastronomy). My thesis on church meals sparked a range of theological questions, leading me to Duke University where I wrote a thesis on the theology of bread (MTS). In 2018 I was named a James Beard Foundation national scholar for my work on food and religion.
My first book, We Will Feast: Rethinking Dinner, Worship, and the Community of God, released May 2019. My second book, By Bread Alone: A Baker’s Reflections on Hunger, Longing, and the Goodness of God, releases February 2023.
Ep 162 A Legacy of Hope in Grief with Lisa Appelo
Ep 161 A Legacy of Authentic Community for our Good and God’s Glory with Halee Wood
Ep 160 A Legacy of Making Music with Steve Moore
Ep 159 A Legacy of Hosting Family at the Holidays (And Surviving. With Joy.)
Ep 158 A Legacy of Living Our Best Life at Any Age with Laura Padgett
Ep 157 A Legacy of Radical Hospitality: Monday Night Dinners with the Cleaths
Ep 156 A Legacy of Living Awake with Anjuli Paschall
Ep 155 A Legacy and Lifetime of Discipleship with Cal Samuels
Ep 154 A Legacy of Curiosity—A Journey of Faith with Lore Ferguson Wilbert
Ep 153 A Legacy of Recalling God’s Goodness in Anxiety and Isolation with Becky Keife
Ep 152 A Legacy of Habits of Faith with Jen Pollock Michel
Ep 151 A Legacy of Going Into the Hard Places For Wholeness and Healing with Jolene Underwood
Ep 150 A Legacy of Prayer: 31 Days of Uncomplicated Prayers to Love God and Love Your Neighbor
Ep 149 A Legacy of Doing the Work You Love with Brian Dixon
Ep 148 A Legacy to Change the World By a Simple Invitation, Part 1
Ep 147 A Legacy of a Responsible Social Media Relationship with Chris Martin
Ep 146 A Legacy of Spiritual Growth: 3 Things to Keep Us On the Right Track
Ep 145 A Legacy of Perfectionism vs God’s Love with Amy Carroll
Ep 144 A Legacy of Loneliness vs Solitude: One is Negative, One is Necessary
Ep 143 A Legacy of Choices and Do-Overs with Tonya Kubo
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