Jonathan McCurley: FoodLife - Life and Food at the Asian Rural Institute in Japan, Part II

Today's post is by Rev. Jonathan McCurley. Rev. McCurley is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church serving through Global Ministries as a missionary in the community life of the Asian Rural Institute in Nasushiobara, Japan. This post is part of an occasional series on food and mission.

At the Asian Rural Institute, the whole school community daily participates in the practices of foodlife work. From the sowing of the crops and feeding of the livestock to the food processing and meal preperation, the community comes together to give of their lives to create food that will sustain life. Not agriculture, or farm work, but this is foodlife work. It reminds us that food is the life God has given us and that our work is part of the process to bring life to the whole world.

Foodlife gives community members of ARI a spiritual experience of connecting and reconnecting to each other, even amidst the conflicts and misunderstandings of everyday life. The ARI Training Handbook states, “Foodlife is a vital activity for human beings to maintain their lives and it connects God, the earth, and human beings – working as a medium for reconciliation and peace building.”[1]

Behind this word foodlife is an understanding of the world and of God.

Foodlife is a term that ARI says was coined by Rev. Dr Toshihiro Takami, or Tom as he was affectionately known by many. Dr. Takami is often known as the founder of the Asian Rural Institute (ARI) and in fact was our first director. For many of the original supporters of ARI, he was also often the face of ARI.

Dr Takami coined the word foodlife in that he took two words that while connected deeply, have become increasingly separated in modern society and joined them into one.

When talking about the reason for coining a new word, Dr Takami talks about agriculture and what it has become. He says:

“Agriculture in a broad sense of the term may be the only human enterprise which would help sustain our planet’s food chain. Almost all other industries are destructive of natural environment. Industrial products as we know them today, especially petroleum based ones, do not help nature’s recycling process. Modern agriculture using science and technology makes agriculture destructive of nature like most other industries. Agriculture destructive of nature is destructive of life. Food produced by destructive agriculture is destructive of human lives. Modern technology which is detached from the art of science is making agriculture destructive.

“Food producing is fast becoming part of big industry on a global scale, and consumers and farmers are being alienated from each other and from the act of food production. Food in this case is no longer a linkage between human beings and nature or creation, nor between consumers and farmers. Food is becoming an agent of alienation.”[2]

That was said almost three decades ago, and in reality, if we think about life today, if you go into a grocery store in almost any modern city in the world, especially in the Global North, you will find a plethora of food. Much of it either has no visual connection to the life it came from, or it has been perfected to the point that it looks more plastic than edible. This 21^st century reality is not just about disconnection in the sense that the ARI philosophy speaks of, but it is also a major cause of environmental degradation, the lack of food security in many places, and even regional violent conflict.

For ARI, the reality of the world all comes down to our understanding of food and life. What is the relationship between the two and how are we as humans supposed to relate with them? Genesis tells us God’s ideal. We see humans naming animals, getting their food from the land, being told to subdue, control, or as we say at ARI, be stewards of the world. In God’s ideal world, we see humans interacting with creation in order to see life flourish.

According to Dr Takami, what we call agriculture did not seem so much interested in seeing life flourish anymore. As countries of the world have sought to use technology and business in order to respond to the wants of the consumers of the world, the focus is no longer on life. Instead, he was worried that the work to create food was becoming more and more disconnected from life. He says in the same article:

“When this kind of scheme of meeting the food needs of the world population establishes hegemony, the already energy-intensive agriculture (which would destroy the food chain), will become increasingly energy intensive not only in the method of production but also in transportation, distribution, preservation, processing and consumption. All matters concerning FOOD would become an integral part of giant monopolistic industries controlled by the powerful few. When such takes place, no human person makes profit but only inhuman world wide trading systems make profit. We would do great injustice to the present and future generations and to the whole creation if we allow this to happen.”[3]

Dr Takami ends by saying what an injustice it would be to the future and to all of creation if we allowed this to happen. This then becomes the question before us.

Through its fifty years of practice, ARI has sought to offer an alternative view of how food, life, God, and creation should be connected and how each and every one of us can relate. I believe that in that connection, there is the deep meaning of foodlife. Dr Takami’s question is really a call for you and me, all of us, to participate in the practice and process of foodlife. So, what do you think? How can we best join in the work of creating food that sustains life for tomorrow? We as part of creation have a responsibility to God, ourselves and the rest of creation to respond to this question.

---

[1] Asian Rural Institute, “The Heartbeat of Takami: A book of Toshihiro Takami’s words”, (Japan, Asian Rural Institute, 2018), 58.

[2] Sharing Food is Sharing Life: In Search of a Genuine Life was a speech given on June 29, 1998 at the United Nations Dialogue on the Impact of Globalization in New York, New York. In this speech, Rev. Takami shared the above words. A copy can be requested from the Asian Rural Institute by contacting info@ari-edu.org

[3] Sharing Food is Sharing Life: In Search of a Genuine Life.

Jonathan McCurley: FoodLife - Life and Food at the Asian Rural Institute in Japan, Part I

Today's post is by Rev. Jonathan McCurley. Rev. McCurley is an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church serving through Global Ministries as a missionary in the community life of the Asian Rural Institute in Nasushiobara, Japan. This post is part of an occasional series on food and mission.

“Kids, it`s time to eat! Get dried off and come in here!”

Those were words I fondly remember my nana saying when my siblings and I would stay with her and my grandfather in the summer as children. Coming in from the backyard pool, a table spread with her wonderful cooking would be prepared there on the back porch.

I also remember that behind the pool, there was always a small garden that my nana kept up and would even ask for help in weeding or harvesting. I remember picking the tomatoes or cucumbers together with my nana and felt such pride at the harvest.

Little did I know as a child that my nana was teaching me about much more than delicious tomatoes or the importance of eating together. As an adult I have come to know that actually, in her own way, she was teaching my siblings and I about the importance of food to our lives.

Food is something that brings people together and creates a time for us to share with one another. We do not only share the fruit of the harvest though, sharing food also often becomes the means for us to share about our life with one another.

Fast forward twenty some years to Japan and a young couple getting married and moving to Nasushiobara, a small city found right outside of the outskirts of metropolitan Tokyo. Here I found myself at the Asian Rural Institute.

The Asian Rural Institute (ARI) is legally a technical school located in Eastern Japan, about 100 miles outside of Tokyo in Tochigi prefecture, but in reality, it is much more than that. It is a vision, it is a process, it is a work of repentance and reconciliation, and it is a community. Founded in response to requests from Christians in Asia, ARI brings people from around the world together to live and work together, seeking to build a world where all may live together.[1]

At the center of the life of ARI is God, the giver of life, and the creation that He so graciously gives. People at ARI learn that living together is not human centered, but at the core living together is about relationships. It is about our relationship with God, our relationship with other humans and our relationship with all created things.

At ARI, this is called the three loves and is the focus of all that happens.[2] Much of the process of ARI is learning how to share love. In a practical sense, it is how to create food that will give life and how to live within and with the creation that God has put all around us.

To understand the process of creating food that sustains life, ARI has a unique understanding, that is a term coined as “foodlife.” The process of foodlife then is not called agriculture or farming, but foodlife work.

“Foodlife is a special word used at ARI to express the reality that food and life cannot be separated; both depend upon each other. God has given us the gift of creation so that we can sustain our lives by making food. Human beings cannot survive without food, so we work to sustain life through a healthy relationship with nature. At ARI people make an effort to create foodlife in which the soil becomes richer as food is produced and human relationships become more beautiful.

“In fact, it is a joyful experience for community members when they can produce food through their labor in the morning and evening. They also gather to receive the food, giving thanks to God and to the people who labor to produce and prepare the food. Foodlife believes that when we enjoy a meal together of the food we produced and prepared, then we can experience the blessings of God and the heart of the community.”[3]

What does this look like? At ARI, the food we eat is the food we grow on the farm. Over 90% of the food we eat together, we grow together, meaning that we value a high rate of food self-sufficiency. To do this, over 60 varieties of crops and vegetables are planted, and the community keeps livestock - primarily pigs, chickens and goats.

Our foodlife is about cooking, processing and preparing meals as much as it is about growing crops or raising livestock. In fact, members of the ARI community spend one hour of foodlife work every morning and evening, dividing themselves into several groups.

Daily morning and evening foodlife work is managed by all members of ARI including participants, staff, volunteers and even visitors on a rotational basis. Waking up at 6:30 every morning, foodlife work happens before breakfast, facilitated by the leadership of the Participants of the Rural Leaders Training Program. Some go to the farm to cultivate land, some harvest vegetables, some feed livestock, while some cook breakfast.

All of this work is hard, but it is spiritually rewarding because it is all for the sake of the entire community to live healthily and peacefully.

The basic philosophy of foodlife at ARI is the full utilization of space and resources that we have. It also involves the integration of all parts of foodlife. For example, we utilize pig manure as an energy source and fertilizer, dry leaves for nursery beds and leaf compost, kitchen garbage for animal feed and compost.

We regard the forest as an important part of foodlife as well. While the forest protects land from landslides, soil erosion, typhoons and earthquakes, it provides us with fuel, dry leaves, natural pesticides, microorganisms, wild vegetables, and timber as well as increasing the biodiversity in nature. This is essential to create a balanced eco-system. This is the philosophy behind foodlife.

Actively participating in foodlife, the whole cycle of food production and consumption, helps to understand the philosophy, practical skills, and knowledge of what many would call organic farming, as well as the importance of food and food self-sufficiency, and the dignity of labor.

But more, it gives the community of ARI a sense of wholeness. The cycle of preparing soil, sowing seeds, saving seeds, caring for, harvesting, eating, sharing, and recycling clearly shows us where we are from, how life is sustained and where it will end. This gives a sense of security and a meaningful existence on this earth.

As I think back to my childhood, I realize that helping in the garden and eating together the food we harvested was not just a job to do or a habit that was important. Actually, I can now see how my nana was teaching me and my siblings about foodlife and what it means to be part of God’s creation and in relationship with others. I am thankful now more than ever for those experiences and the meaning found in them.

---

[1] More information about the founding of ARI can be found on page 2 and 3 of 40 Years of Walking with Grassroots Leaders https://ari-edu.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/40-Years-of-Walking-with-Rural-Leaders.pdf

[2] The three love movement is said to have originated with Kristen Kold (1816-1870) of Denmark and spread throughout Japan through the Ainokai (love farming group). An explanation in English of one version of the three loves and be found here: https://www.san-ai-kai.jp/philosophy/english.html

[3] This is the explanation offered in section B, Curriculum, of the Training Handbook of the Asian Rural Institute, which is used to orient members of the community as they arrive and begin their stay. A copy can be requested from the Asian Rural Institute by contacting info@ari-edu.org

Plan Now: International Association of Methodist Schools, Colleges, and Universities 2014 Conference on Peace

As anyone who reads this blog regularly will know, education is an important way in which United Methodists (and other Methodists) collaborate around the globe.  One important venue for collaboration around issues of higher education for United Methodists and other Methodists is the International Association of Methodist Schools, Colleges, and Universities (IAMSCU).  IAMSCU was established during a meeting of the World Methodist Council in Singapore in 1991 and had its first conference five years later in Brazil.  Since then, IAMSCU has hosted international conferences approximately every three years. These conferences seek to bring the 775 Methodist institutions of education in the world together "to develop a dynamic, worldwide network of member institutions, resulting in effective inter-institutional cooperation and collaboration to prepare a new generation of Christian leaders."

This year is the next scheduled IAMSCU conference, which will be held in  Hiroshima, Japan, will take place this May 24-28.  The theme of the conference is Peace, Reconciliation, and Human Rights.  You can read more about the conference through the conference announcement.

While the period for people to submit proposals in response to the call for papers has closed, it is not too late to register for the conference.  Interested parties can still register up through April 24.  Undoubtedly, only a minority of readers of this blog will even be able to think about attending this conference due to financial and time restraints.  That is an unfortunate fact, but should remind us of something important: even in an age of increased digital and other global connections, bodies still matter, and bodies are subject to the limitations of time, space, and resources.  Nevertheless, for those who are able to attend this conference, it should be a rich time of fellowship, learning, and blessing.