Salad, Lard, and Everything Between: Food and Freedom in the Anthroposophical Movement

Foodways are an excellent site for tracking the interaction between Anthroposophy, the spiritual science founded by Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), and other emerging spiritual traditions. Participants in practical initiatives inspired by Anthroposophy—including Waldorf schools, biodynamic farms, and Ca...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nova religio
Main Author: McKanan, Dan 1967- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: University of Californiarnia Press [2019]
In: Nova religio
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Anthroposophy / Camphill Movement / New Age / Food / Eating habit
RelBib Classification:AG Religious life; material religion
AZ New religious movements
Further subjects:B Anthroposophy
B biodynamics
B Nutrition
B Rudolf
B Foodways
B Steiner
B Vegetarianism
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
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Summary:Foodways are an excellent site for tracking the interaction between Anthroposophy, the spiritual science founded by Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925), and other emerging spiritual traditions. Participants in practical initiatives inspired by Anthroposophy—including Waldorf schools, biodynamic farms, and Camphill intentional communities—follow various eating practices. Some choose vegetarian diets featuring whole grains and abundant vegetables, like their counterparts in the Gaian wing of the New Age movement. Others prefer the "Nourishing Traditions" approach of Sally Fallon, which rejects processed foods and celebrates traditional cuisines that use large amounts of animal fat. This diversity of foodways, paradoxically, confirms Wouter Hanegraaff's characterization of Anthroposophy as too "clearly demarcated" to be considered a full part of the New Age movement. What demarcates the Anthroposophical approach to food is not any specific dietary choice but the persistent reminder that individual freedom is the most important requirement in a spiritual approach to food.
ISSN:1541-8480
Contains:Enthalten in: Nova religio
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1525/nr.2019.23.1.14