Prayer over food

[Ironhold]

13 hours ago, HaggisShuu said:

I work for a family of local-level newspapers IRL. 

Back when Wal-Mart had hot & ready pizzas, every Friday morning I'd pick one up and it'd sit in the back of my car all day long while I snacked on it because I was so busy with my various duties & assignments I didn't have time to stop otherwise. 

I don't know what they did with those pizzas, but I could leave them in the back of my car, get home several hours later, leave it out on the counter overnight, and it would still be just as "fresh" as when I got it out of the hot box. 

[Vort]

3 hours ago, Ironhold said:

I work for a family of local-level newspapers IRL. 

Back when Wal-Mart had hot & ready pizzas, every Friday morning I'd pick one up and it'd sit in the back of my car all day long while I snacked on it because I was so busy with my various duties & assignments I didn't have time to stop otherwise. 

I don't know what they did with those pizzas, but I could leave them in the back of my car, get home several hours later, leave it out on the counter overnight, and it would still be just as "fresh" as when I got it out of the hot box. 

Funny thing about pizzas. When they come out of the oven hot and fresh, and with the crust golden brown and the cheese bubbling, they are completely aseptic or sterile. So if you put the pizza in a clean cardboard box and keep it covered to avoid dust settling on it from the air, it can keep for a very long time, days even, probably longer.

[Vort]

On 3/4/2025 at 4:17 AM, zil2 said:

It does not make sense to me to ask for any particular food to be "nourishing and strengthening" - the nourishing and strengthening capacities of various foods seems to be a set thing, and your body's ability to take in nourishment or derive strength also seems to be a set thing.  Asking God to override or amplify these things seems foolish to me.

Agreed 100%. I grew up saying that "nourish and strengthen" thing in my prayers. But a decade or two ago, I realized that the very definition of food was something that nourished you. So to ask God to make food nourishing is to ask that blue be the color of the sky. It's true by definition. So I don't see the point. Worse yet, I'm afraid that such things might constitute a vain repetition. And I really want my prayers to be sincere. I try not to say something just because that's what you're supposed to say.

[Carborendum]

6 hours ago, Vort said:

Agreed 100%. I grew up saying that "nourish and strengthen" thing in my prayers. But a decade or two ago, I realized that the very definition of food was something that nourished you. So to ask God to make food nourishing is to ask that blue be the color of the sky. It's true by definition. So I don't see the point. Worse yet, I'm afraid that such things might constitute a vain repetition. And I really want my prayers to be sincere. I try not to say something just because that's what you're supposed to say.

I had begun to understand this when I read the word of wisdom.

Quote

10 And again, verily I say unto you, all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man—

11 Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving.

12 Yea, flesh also of beasts and of the fowls of the air, I, the Lord, have ordained for the use of man with thanksgiving; nevertheless they are to be used sparingly;

13 And it is pleasing unto me that they should not be used, only in times of winter, or of cold, or famine.

14 All grain is ordained for the use of man and of beasts, to be the staff of life, not only for man but for the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven, and all wild animals that run or creep on the earth;

[CV75]

On 3/3/2025 at 9:17 PM, zil2 said:

Giving thanks for food makes sense to me.  Giving thanks for the people who made it possible for you to have food makes sense to me.  Asking for those folks to be blessed makes sense to me.  Remembering those who are less fortunate and asking for help to be generous toward them and for God to bless them makes sense to me.

It does not make sense to me to ask for any particular food to be "nourishing and strengthening" - the nourishing and strengthening capacities of various foods seems to be a set thing, and your body's ability to take in nourishment or derive strength also seems to be a set thing.  Asking God to override or amplify these things seems foolish to me. ("God, I know this soda is full of high fructose corn syrup, but please bless it anyway so it'll be nourishing and strengthening to my mind and body and won't give me a sugar crash later, or contribute to me developing type 2 diabetes."  I mean, sure, you can try that, but I'm not sure it's going to work...)

Anyone have a good argument for why or how we should "bless" food?  Anyone have other thoughts on what should go into a prayer given at meal times / "over" food?

The laws of nature may be set, but their executions are such that so many interacting laws can affect the food and body and their interaction. So, I believe prayer helps both as they are subject to both temporal /natural and spiritual/eternal laws. I would pray what is in your heart as you express gratitude for the food and (if present, the company) and ask for needed blessings that come to mind at mealtime.

[laronius]

I think many blessings on food are about 80% culturally influenced and 20% doctrinally influenced. It's a good way to teach kids the importance of "giving thanks" in all things which is how I view it's main purpose rather than actually asking for something. Though I do believe that God can and will in fact reorganize the molecules in certain situations for our benefit but those instances are few indeed, especially when living in a first world country.

But I will say that I have been known to say "bless this food that it won't hurt me too bad" when eating something not exactly healthy. I don't expect the Lord to make it healthy and I know I really shouldn't be expressing gratitude for something that I know may in fact be harmful to me but I feel compelled to acknowledge the Lord nonetheless. So I hope the Lord is okay with my half cheeky, half serious blessing on my junk food.

[NeuroTypical]

Why do people think pizza is unhealthy?  Is the overabundance of saturated fats?  Anything else?

[Carborendum]

15 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

Why do people think pizza is unhealthy?  Is the overabundance of saturated fats?  Anything else?

I didn't realize people thought that.  I can't think why it should be considered unhealthy.  Like all things... in moderation.

[zil2]

46 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

Why do people think pizza is unhealthy?  Is the overabundance of saturated fats?  Anything else?

I don't think pizza is unhealthy.  I think too much in too short a timeframe can introduce more fats  (and perhaps other things) than one's body can use in a healthy manner.  I think some pizzas might be made with (some?) unhealthy ingredients.  But I don't think pizza is inherently unhealthy.

[Traveler]

Prayers concerning what we eat has long been an interesting topic for me.  I thought to post some thought that I have dealt with.

On my mission I had a companion that wanted to bless the food when we brought it home from shopping.  He gave some reason – I will include a few.  It avoids unnecessary repetition (we are encouraged to avoid vain repetition in our prayers).   Many items saved as leftovers have already been blessed.  A box of cold cereal can end up being blessed many times.  It saves time before meals and also food can be eaten at preferred temperatures.  You also do not have to worry about blessing snacks.

A good friend of mine (a Polynesian) insisted on a prayer on everything – even a stick of gum.  He also included a blessing that nourishment and strength would come from the blessing of what was being partaken.  I would kid him about blessing donuts, but he always insisted.  I have become convinced that such faith has a positive effect.

A long time ago, when I was attending university at BYU, many students would say a prayer on their food in public at the cafeteria.  One very spiritual friend never would say a private prayer on food in public.  I like to know things so I asked why.  They responded that for them, private prayers were kept private.  They would offer a private prayer at home for their away meals.  For myself, I have found this consideration to be of value especially when traveling.

For all my experiences, I have concluded that prayers (not just on food but for many things of which we use and partake), especially of thanks, are a good thing and that Latter-day Saints ought not to criticize humble prayers – regardless of words or physical things we personally may not use or prefer for ourselves.  If there is any doubt, I think it is best to error on the side of too many prayers rather than too few.  I think we should be thankful for all things that we use.  My Polynesian friend mentioned above would bless his car for trips and other things that he would use.  I want to thank those posting in this thread to remind me to seek blessings on things I use (beyond food) with a promise to use things according to my covenants.

Even though I am embarrassed and sometimes loose things – I find prayers for assistance and help very beneficial.  I believe it wise to bless all things we use and partake of – even things like headphones, computers, tools and sport equipment.  I believe offering prayers of thanks and prayers of benediction to be used for good as an act of faith and in line with our covenant of consecration for benediction – even of our talents.  I think we ought to support most blessings – of course there are exceptions like blessing for use things like alcohol, tobacco and recreational drugs.   If someone wants to offer blessings on their clothing, tools or even a woman that wants to offer a prayer for the makeup they use – I can support such things asked in faith and humility.

 

The Traveler

[zil2]

1 hour ago, Traveler said:

On my mission I had a companion that wanted to bless the food when we brought it home from shopping.  He gave some reason – I will include a few.  It avoids unnecessary repetition (we are encouraged to avoid vain repetition in our prayers).   Many items saved as leftovers have already been blessed.  A box of cold cereal can end up being blessed many times.  It saves time before meals and also food can be eaten at preferred temperatures.  You also do not have to worry about blessing snacks.

OK, didn't we have a thread here years ago about someone opening a business selling "pre-blessed food"?   Searching...

 

1 hour ago, Traveler said:

For all my experiences, I have concluded that prayers (not just on food but for many things of which we use and partake), especially of thanks, are a good thing and that Latter-day Saints ought not to criticize humble prayers – regardless of words or physical things we personally may not use or prefer for ourselves.  If there is any doubt, I think it is best to error on the side of too many prayers rather than too few.  I think we should be thankful for all things that we use.  My Polynesian friend mentioned above would bless his car for trips and other things that he would use.  I want to thank those posting in this thread to remind me to seek blessings on things I use (beyond food) with a promise to use things according to my covenants.

  For the record, I wasn't trying to find fault in others, but rather explore what makes sense, why it makes sense, and how to improve my own practice.  Like @Vort, a decade or so ago, I realized I could not keep mindlessly repeating the same "blessing" I'd heard my entire life - I realized I could not honestly ask for it because I didn't believe it (whether to disbelieve is a fault, I'm not sure; but to ask in disbelief surely is).

1 hour ago, Traveler said:

Even though I am embarrassed and sometimes loose things – I find prayers for assistance and help very beneficial.  I believe it wise to bless all things we use and partake of – even things like headphones, computers, tools and sport equipment.  I believe offering prayers of thanks and prayers of benediction to be used for good as an act of faith and in line with our covenant of consecration for benediction – even of our talents.  I think we ought to support most blessings – of course there are exceptions like blessing for use things like alcohol, tobacco and recreational drugs.   If someone wants to offer blessings on their clothing, tools or even a woman that wants to offer a prayer for the makeup they use – I can support such things asked in faith and humility.

I always pray for my car to function properly on a long trip, and for help being attentive as I drive, and similar things.  I've also received help finding things - one time, there's no doubt God was patiently smacking me upside the head - look where I told you to look; no, serious, look harder, it's there; go look again and be thorough this time; tear that box apart - it's in there!   (Sometimes, I'm dense.  Full disclosure: The Lord didn't really say it like that.  What He told me, repeatedly, was, "look in its box".)

Thank you for additional perspective, @Traveler.  I'm going to move your post right to #0 in my list!

[JohnsonJones]

In the United States we are blessed in the past (and hopefully today as well) with an FDA and other government agencies that regulate our food.  You do not realize how much of a blessing that actually is.

I have traveled quite a bit out of the US.  There are places where you can literally die from eating the local cuisine if you are not cautious or careful.   You can get extremely ill.  There are places where you will get extremely sick or die from drinking the water.

Prayers over food and drink are extremely important.  It isn't just a prayer that will protect you, but also that the spirit will help guide you in what you can or cannot eat or drink, what you should or should not eat or drink.

I can recall once when I was younger (decades ago, in my late 30s I think) when I was visiting over in Northern Africa and Southern Europe.  At the time I was with some peers and the peer pressure at a meal to not say a prayer over it was heeded.  I got food poisoning.  It was the worst food poisoning I've ever had.  It was to the point that I had to be hospitalized. 

An experience like that is a good wake up call on why to ask the Lord for protection, why to ask the Lord to bless your food and help you make wise choices in regards to your food, and also to be extremely thankful for when the Lord blesses you with food that is good and nourishing. 

We are also blessed when we do what we can to ensure we make good choices.  Then, after we have done all we can, we can turn to the Lord to take up the slack.  There are times when one probably has food that may not be the best, but if they've tried to ensure they eat good food, then the Lord may (as he wills it) ensure that we are getting the nutrients and vitamins we need to remain healthy.  

I've seen members who only ate junk food who had excellent health.  A part of that may be that the Lord truly is blessing their food to provide what they need, or what their body needs according to their faith in him.  

I do not have all the answers, but I think asking the Lord to bless the food is a good idea, at least in my personal life. 

Edited March 5 by JohnsonJones

[HaggisShuu]

3 hours ago, NeuroTypical said:

Why do people think pizza is unhealthy?  Is the overabundance of saturated fats?  Anything else?

As a man with an exceptionally rotund stomach. It's the over abundance. While Grandma Francescas home made from scratch pizza is likely a tasty, and not at all bad for you meal. Papa Johns XL extra cheese with stuffed crust, is, and fat people (like myself) will normally go with Papa Johns. 

Edited March 5 by HaggisShuu

[HaggisShuu]

7 minutes ago, JohnsonJones said:

In the United States we are blessed in the past (and hopefully today as well) with an FDA and other government agencies that regulate our food.  You do not realize how much of a blessing that actually is.

I have traveled quite a bit out of the US.  There are places where you can literally die from eating the local cuisine if you are not cautious or careful.   You can get extremely ill.  There are places where you will get extremely sick or die from drinking the water.

Prayers over food and drink are extremely important.  It isn't just a prayer that will protect you, but also that the spirit will help guide you in what you can or cannot eat or drink, what you should or should not eat or drink.

I can recall once when I was younger (decades ago, in my late 30s I think) when I was visiting over in Northern Africa and Southern Europe.  At the time I was with some peers and the peer pressure at a meal to not say a prayer over it was heeded.  I got food poisoning.  It was the worst food poisoning I've ever had.  It was to the point that I had to be hospitalized. 

An experience like that is a good wake up call on why to ask the Lord for protection, why to ask the Lord to bless your food and help you make wise choices in regards to your food, and also to be extremely thankful for when the Lord blesses you with food that is good and nourishing. 

We are also blessed when we do what we can to ensure we make good choices.  Then, after we have done all we can, we can turn to the Lord to take up the slack.  There are times when one probably has food that may not be the best, but if they've tried to ensure they eat good food, then the Lord may (as he will it) ensure that we are getting the nutrients and vitamins we need to remain healthy.  

I've seen members who only ate junk food who had excellent health.  A part of that may be that the Lord truly is blessing their food to provide what they need, or what their body needs according to their faith in him.  

I do not have all the answers, but I think asking the Lord to bless the food is a good idea, at least in my personal life. 

I think this is a respectable view, but I think there is a difference between the examples you provide and a westerner asking their triple cheese and bacon burger to do their bodies good. One is a serious and earnest plea for temporal security. The other is just plain silly. 

[NeuroTypical]

36 minutes ago, HaggisShuu said:

Papa Johns XL extra cheese with stuffed crust, is, and fat people (like myself) will normally go with Papa Johns. 

Americans get around this by having a Diet Coke with our MegaMeat stuffed cheeze pizza with dessert pizza for dessert. 

I mean, our bellies are even bigger than yours, but the diet soda helps us feel like we're doing more to handle it.

[LDSGator]

6 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

I mean, our bellies are even bigger than yours

That has more to do with laziness than diet. I love pizza, nachos, Cheez It’s, Doritos and soda. But, because I move so much I don’t have a gut. 

[classylady]

There have been times in my life, because of lack of finances, often ate food that was long, long, beyond their expiration date. I wholeheartedly asked Heavenly Father to bless that food that it would nourish and strengthen us. I appreciated all the home canned foods that we had, but many were canned years ago from my mother or other family members and given to us. It was a blessing that we had them, and I do believe that Heavenly Father can help food to be healthy for us. Now, with believing that He can help food be nourishing, I do not ask Him to nourish and strengthen our bodies when praying over a table full of sweets. I’ll simply ask for the refreshments to be blessed.

[Ironhold]

5 hours ago, NeuroTypical said:

Why do people think pizza is unhealthy?  Is the overabundance of saturated fats?  Anything else?

I've seen pizzas with so much grease on them you could lube a truck. 

That's basically what it comes down to, the ingredients used to make each pizza and how they're made. 

Unless you do it yourself or go to an actual authentic Italian place, you're going to get product that's been processed to oblivion and back, and that process is going to introduce things which aren't the best for your body.

[NeuroTypical]

44 minutes ago, Ironhold said:

Unless you do it yourself 

Here was the last passive-aggressive pizza I made with my family.   I call it "detente".

 

[Carborendum]

6 minutes ago, NeuroTypical said:

Here was the last passive-aggressive pizza I made with my family.   I call it "detente".

But did... dey eet?

[mordorbund]

5 hours ago, zil2 said:

OK, didn't we have a thread here years ago about someone opening a business selling "pre-blessed food"?   Searching...

 

I forgot about that thread. I feel bad for the posters that didn’t get the humor, but at the same time I appreciate what they posted.

[LDSGator]

44 minutes ago, mordorbund said:

I forgot about that thread. I feel bad for the posters that didn’t get the humor, but at the same time I appreciate what they posted.

Old school thread. LP and I still talk about once a week. She’s doing fantastic. 🙂 

[Just_A_Guy]

On 3/4/2025 at 5:42 AM, Carborendum said:

It comes from many sources.  But Americans get it mainly from the Anglican Prayer Book.

Over time, we have come to make variations on a local level. But this and similar traditions are the source of it.  

I agree that there is no real scriptural basis for it.  It is merely tradition.  But I try to make sure my household always remember that the purpose of "grace" is to give thanks more than it is to "bless" the food.

Remember that blessing the food  is not a "blessing" as we normally think of it.  It is really a way of thanking.  Imagine when a person does something nice for you.  An old-fashioned response would be "may the Lord bless you for it."  Often, it would be shortened to: "bless you" = "thank you."

But today, we don't understand this linguistic quirk and simply repeat things based on tradition.

Look up the etymology of the word "bless" and you'll get a more full picture of how blessing could become part of giving thanks.

Well, at least now we know where the “blessing the hands that prepared it” line comes from.

The OP, and a couple of responses, got me thinking about what “bless” really means.  Google seems to associate it with “consecrate”.  I suppose that for Latter-day Saints who consider ourselves to be consecrated beings living consecrated lives, a formal consecration of food that is about to become part of our consecrated bodies provides a lot of opportunity for reflection and renewal.

It’s not about “purifying” the food, per se; it’s about taking a moment to consider the Source of the food and ponder the food’s role in our ongoing quest to—with the Lord’s help—purify ourselves.

Edited March 6 by Just_A_Guy

[Traveler]

23 hours ago, JohnsonJones said:

In the United States we are blessed in the past (and hopefully today as well) with an FDA and other government agencies that regulate our food.  You do not realize how much of a blessing that actually is.

I have traveled quite a bit out of the US.  There are places where you can literally die from eating the local cuisine if you are not cautious or careful.   You can get extremely ill.  There are places where you will get extremely sick or die from drinking the water.

Greetings, friend.  Generally, I agree with your inputs.  I do have something I would like to add to this comment in your post.  But first a little bit of background.  Not so long ago I was the lead engineer over a upgrade and automation of a beef slaughter house facility of one of the nation's largest supplier of beef products for wholesale distribution.  My involvement required that I become somewhat expert in the entire process of beef production.

One element of beef production that drew my attention was the involvement of the FDA inspectors at the facility.  I am sorry to say that the vast majority of their time was used up sitting in a nice office at leisure.  It looked to me (and enforced by those employed at the facility) that the FDA inspectors were experts at their task, but I was quite surprised to learn what exactly their task was.  The FDA inspectors would walk through the slaughtered carcasses and grade the meat according to FDA standards for prime, choice, select, standard, commercial, utility, cutter or canner.  In short, these grades have to do with the fat content of the meat.  Seldom (never from what I saw) would a carcass have one FDA standard.

As part of the facilities standards – there were many critical tests outside of the FDA’s purview.   These tests checked for bacteria, viruses, chemicals, hormones and other contaminants in the meat.  I inquired about these additional tests and learned that the tests were run to avoid recalls and complaints that could be triggered by many sources.  Not only are recalls and complaints expensive but severally impact their distribution reliability and credibility.  The additional testing is strictly economically driven (something that I am concerned that posters like @Phoenix_person do not understand as to how such additional quality standards so severely impacts) the quality of products in a highly capital-based economy.

 

The Traveler

[zil2]

1 hour ago, Traveler said:

The FDA inspectors would walk through the slaughtered carcasses and grade the meat according to FDA standards for prime, choice, select, standard, commercial, utility, cutter or canner.  In short, these grades have to do with the fat content of the meat.  Seldom (never from what I saw) would a carcass have one FDA standard.

Are you sure this wasn't USDA?

FDA would review the facility's standard operating procedures, records, equipment logs, cleanliness, etc. for compliance with law, compliance with the company's own standards¹, and verification that procedures were followed.  Pretty sure they don't rate the meat to the standards you list - that's USDA.

¹Want to stay out of trouble with government regulatory agencies?  Don't have SOPs that require more than the law does, or if you do, make sure you follow your own SOPs - that's right, they can fine you for failure to follow your own SOP, even if your SOP requires something more stringent than the law requires.