The video “Farming for the Future” – despite some of the leftist sentiment expressed – points the way to a restoration of agrarian life along Catholic lines.
Posted by: Blogmaster | May 25, 2007
A model of agrarian life
Posted in Homesteading, Jeff, Restoration
Has anyone seen The Future of Food dvd? I’ve heard several recommendations, but I have yet to view it myself.
By: Lorraine on May 25, 2007
at 2:14 pm
I’ve heard it recommended also and would really like to see it. Thanks for the reminder.
By: Jeff Culbreath on May 25, 2007
at 2:25 pm
The video description mentions the location as being in “southeast Ohio.” Can anyone be more precise?
By: David L Alexander on May 25, 2007
at 2:52 pm
Jeff,
What leftist sentiment? God forbid that the Left get to claim the anti-war banner, when the Left is about war. From the English Civil War to the French Revolution to WWI & WWII, to Iraq, war is the lifeblood of the liberal (modern and classical) mindset.
By: Danby on May 25, 2007
at 3:29 pm
Danby, the reference point for these farmers clearly isn’t Catholic. Their ideas seem mostly solid, but they express them in ways that are influenced by radical environmentalism and the leftist politics of the organic food movement. A Catholic would put things differently.
By: Jeff Culbreath on May 25, 2007
at 4:04 pm
Perhaps true, but hardly “leftist”. I think the whole left-right categorization is fairly useless once you get out of politics anyway.
Personally I liked the guy’s anger when he was talking about opting out of the military-industrial complex. I’m not sure I would agree with him totally, but he’s the kind of guy I’d like to crack a beer with.
By: Danby on May 25, 2007
at 5:10 pm
Jeff,
I enjoyed this. It’s nice to see liveable subsistence agriculture in practice.
I do agree with you about the leftist aspect – most of these guys seem like they’d be more comfortable at Berkley than at the University of Kansas with John Senior.
What strikes me as different about the environmental or anti-war elements of organic farming as opposed to the Catholic agrarian movement is that the environmentalist seems focused outward – “How can I save the world by doing this?”
The Catholic, on the other hand, is more focused on “How can I save my family? How can I save myself?” Indirectly, this plays into the larger question of how a family, saved from the ravages of the modern world, ultimately matures into a unit that works toward the betterment of the world. It just gets the horse before the cart.
What struck me most about all of these people, by the way, was their comfort with silence. I live in a quasi-rural suburb of Washington, but I work in Arlington, just across the river from DC. I am so used to the hectic commute, the public transport system, the constant busyness, the overflow of a hundred iPOD headphones playing loud music, and the newsroom style environment where I work.
The silence in this video is like cold water after a walk in the desert.
By: Steve on May 26, 2007
at 9:27 am
I recently moved to this region and will begin to farm for profit this coming summer (08). But the desire to become closer to God and become atuned to my Catholic faith is what really pulled me in this direction of farming.
Thanks for the posting, I came across your blog through a Google blog search through the key word Catholic and Agrarian.
By: Brian on July 17, 2007
at 3:36 pm