Cravings: A Catholic Wrestles with Food, Self-Image, and God

by Mary DeTurris Poust

Overview

In this first book on the topic written from a Catholic perspective, award-winning journalist Mary DeTurris Poust offers personal, hard-won wisdom on the complex relationship between food and spirituality and invites readers to examine their own attitudes about eating and explore their deeper hunger for God.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781594713057
Publisher:	Ave Maria Press
Publication date:	12/17/2012
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.50(d)

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Prologue 1

Chapter 1 A Deeper Hunger: Filling the spiritual void with food 5

Chapter 2 Dieting Delusion: Food is not the enemy 19

Chapter 3 Mirror, Mirror: Discovering our true selves 37

Chapter 4 Freedom by the Forkful: Breaking the chains of a high-fat, fast-food culture 57

Chapter 5 Feast or Famine: Changing attitudes toward how and why we eat 73

Chapter 6 Balancing Act: Cues from the monastics 89

Chapter 7 Soul Food: Turning meals into meditation 103

Chapter 8 Just Desserts: You can have your cake and spiritual life, too 123

Appendix: Practices for the Journey Forward 139

Notes 145

Bibliography 147

Editorial Reviews

Many people maintain a love/hate relationship with food: they enjoy eating the wide array of scrumptious options available to them, but dread the calories and the effect of their consumption on the waistline. Rather than turn to diet pills and self-help guides, however, award-winning Catholic journalist and author Poust (The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Catholic Catechism) suggests inviting God to the dinner table. The author investigates what people may be hungry for besides food, such as a spiritual connection or a sense of self-worth. Filling these voids requires considering a different menu—one that includes prayer, mindfulness, and, especially for Catholics, the Eucharist. These, Poust insists, will help counter the steady stream of unrealistic body images presented by the culture that chip away at self-esteem. Reflection questions at the end of each chapter are particularly helpful for developing a foundation of personal awareness that is vital for approaching food in a new way. Poust serves up a feast for the eyes, the heart, and the soul. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly