Confession (Ash) Wednesday

Though I am a member of

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

as well as a pretty hard core

anti-vegetarian,

two of my

2012 New Year's Resolutions 

include 

{1} Gain an appreciation for someone else's religion 

and 

{2} Expand my nutritional knowledge of a specific dietary habit

by experiencing it first hand 


I've decided to kill two birds with one stone... 

Confession #17:

I attended Ash Wednesday 

for the first time ever this morning

and for Lent 

I will be giving up meat.


A few days ago,

I sat down in my Community Nutrition class

next to my friend Chaz.

He leaned over and whispered that he was going vegetarian.

Non-Catholic himself,

he told me he had done some research on 

Lent

and wanted to participate in and learn about its meaning

as well as better understand the overall Catholic faith.

As a Dietetics student,

I have formed many opinions on food, diets, and nutrition fads

as I've studied the science and learned about metabolism.

Forgive me for getting on a bit of a soapbox here,

but I generally am not a supporter of

vegetarianism.

A big fan of and advocate for

Intuitive Eating,

I do not find it necessary 

to restrict or forbid certain foods,

especially if there is no intolerance or allergy for that food item present.

Personally, 

I do not see the benefit 

in cutting foods out

that do no harm to me and that I enjoy eating.

 However,

I also understand where individuals are coming from

when they participate in a particular way of eating;

personal benefits achieved cannot be measured

and sometimes those are the strongest motivators

for particular dietary habits.

I decided that,

as noted in the

Journal of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics,

it would be fine for me to experience a vegetarian diet

if

"appropriately and well-planned".

With that,

I shook hands with Chaz

and we agreed to

give up meat and, as he eloquently stated, 

"come together in religious unity to celebrate a 

beautiful practice

of a

different faith".

 Before today,

I had never had the chance or privilege

to attend a Catholic church.

I went to

Mass and the Distribution of Ashes

at

Saint Mary's Basilica in Downtown Phoenix

I went with my friends Danielle, who is Catholic,

and

Davi, who like me is not Catholic.

Some things I learned that really stuck with me: 

{1}  Catholic choirs are really good 

{2}  You fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday...not Black Friday. 

{3}  There are several similarities between 
my faith and the faith of Catholics; 
members are urged to, among other important commandments and principles,

Believe in Christ and take on His name

Be humble 

Pray always

Serve others with charity and compassion
and 

"Repent and believe in the gospel" 

{{this was said to me this morning as ashes were placed on my forehead...

Furthermore, if you'd like to read a scripture found in 
Alma chapter 13 verses 28-30,
 [found within The Book of Mormon]
that ties all the above mentioned ideas, themes, and commandments together,
click HERE }}

What a beautiful and simple phrase.

 I feel it is something that at times, 

regardless of one's faith, 

is made much more complicated than necessary.

It was cool to be immersed in a different religion and still be taught

the beauty of repentance,

the importance of faith in something you feel to be true,

and

the need for both to be a priority. 

At least, that's what I took away for myself.

 

 I'm stoked to continue learning,

but for the next 40 days,

please be courteous

and keep anything that is

medium-rare

and/or

smells like bacon

    away from me.