The flavor of God is umami

Just before Spring Break, we read several articles about taste in Christianity and Judaism. The article that was most frequently discussed was “‘Taste and See that the Lord is sweet’ (Ps. 33:9): The Flavor of God in the Monastic West” by Rachel Fulton. The article discussed various approaches to studying taste in religion, from analyzing recipes, exploring alternative translations to scriptures, and the psychology of flavor.

Why is God sweet? One explanation that our class came up with is that a sweet flavor is the result of glucose being present in the food, the simplest form of energy. The rush of energy and pleasure that comes from eating something sweet is to create a positive association with gaining nourishment and staying alive. How can that be a bad thing?

Fulton believes it isn’t a bad thing to be transformed by food, but that our Western notions of health and dieting make us fear getting fat. A controversial sentiment she shares towards the end of the article is that Americans campaign against obesity and sugar is “an attack upon God for fear of the sweet: for fear of being transformed, even as Rupert was transformed, as he tasted with “the mouth of his soul” that taste so ineffably sweet, and found himself comforted along with God’s other children.” (Fulton, 204) The fact that the culture shames people who excessively consume sweet food is to creates a stigma to becoming fat.

The fear of becoming fat is a modern phenomenon due to changing standards of beauty and accessibility to “healthy” food. I think one of the reasons why it’s an attack on God is that it creates a more narcissistic outlook on eating. Rather than eating to enjoy food or your company or the occasion, you’re eating to get healthier or to lose weight or be skinnier, which removes meaningful connections between food and higher powers. Ultimately, it is still difficult for me to see that dieting is an attack on God. I think the major issue is that the norm of being skinny equals being healthy creates stigma against people with different bodies and can normalize unhealthy eating habits, which can escalate to eating disorders.

However, I think food can transform us because our palate evolves, and certain things that might seem gross as children can become delicious in new contexts. For me, that food is chopped liver. A distinctly Jewish food that isn’t kosher. It can be compared to paté, or foie gras. My great-grandma, born of Polish immigrants on the Lower East Side, loved the stuff. And growing up, the idea was so bizarre to me. Why? What could be appealing about eating organs?

How doesn't this look delicious?

After she died, living 99 years, I tried it and the flavor is remarkable. It is the epitome of umami, something so delightfully fatty and savory and salty. It is on the list of Tablet’s 100 Most Jewish Foods, and its described as “the most delicious thing that looks the least appetizing.” I eat it and think of my great-grandma, how this was something she ate as a kid one hundred years ago, and how I eat it with crackers to this day.