Berry, Jackson & Kirschenmann interviewed

Q&A: Changing Farming's Uncertain Future - washingtonpost.com.

"Eating is an agricultural act," essayist Wendell Berry famously wrote. It's also a political one. Which is why last week Berry, geneticist Wes Jackson and sustainable-agriculture advocate Fred Kirschenmann made a pilgrimage to Washington to make a case for a new kind of food policy. READ MORE ...

Blog Watch: Contra Berry

- Terrierman's Daily Dose - Wendell Berry's Pipe Dreams.

I am not trying to break Wendell Berry's rice bowl here. He is a very good writer. I just wonder whether Berry gets his groceries delivered from town as Thoreau did? I do not know, but I would not be too surprised. After all, it's much easier to talk about living a simple life than it is to actually get off the grid and live a fully self-sustaining existence without benefit of trans-continental (and even international) commerce. READ MORE ...

Coming in November

University Press of Kentucky.

WENDELL BERRY AND RELIGION Heaven's Earthly Life Edited by Joel J. Shuman and L. Roger Owens Price: $40.00 Format: cloth ISBN: 978-0-8131-2555-8 Subjects: Religion, Nature Pages: 272 Year Published: November 2009

In Wendell Berry and Religion, editors Joel J. Shuman and L. Roger Owens probe the moral and spiritual implications of Berry's work. Chief among them are the notions that the earth is God's provisional gift to mankind and that studying how we engage material creation reflects important truths. This collection reveals deep, thoughtful, and provocative conversations within Berry's writings, illuminating the theological inspirations inherent in his work. READ MORE ...

WB and rural religion

If Cooking Slowly and Growing Organically are In, Why Is Rural Ministry Out? | Front Porch Republic.

Any self-respecting Christian should come down a few rungs on his ladder of self-esteem after reading Wendell Berry on the all-too-common view of organized churches toward farms, farmers, and rural communities. In his essay, “God and Country,” Berry complains rightly that American denominations treat rural congregations invariably as “a training ground for young ministers, and as a means of subsidizing their education.” READ MORE ...

Blog Watch: WB gets last word (in this post)

Quaker Pagan Reflections: Peter on When Words Fail Us.

Where do we turn when words fail us? I’ll close with two quotes from people who’ve tried to answer that. And I’m going to try to remember to take my own advice.
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Wendell Berry:

THE SILENCE

Though the air is full of singing

my head is loud

with the labor of words.

READ MORE ...

WB Garden

See how our gardens grow | The News Tribune - Northwest | Seattle-Tacoma News, Weather, Sports, Jobs, Homes and Cars | South Puget Sound's Destination.

The Wendell Berry Community Garden, named after a Kentucky naturalist, author and farmer, is a neighborhood attraction, ringed by a solar-powered electric fence and home to such diverse crops as eggplant; 10 varieties of tomatoes; watermelon; quinoa, a high-protein South American grain; lentils; kale; and corn. READ MORE ...

Blog Watch: WB nonsense?

Stephen Bodio's Querencia: A Discourse in Schooners and Candles.

Bodio quoting Patrick Burns:

“Why do we need to go to 19th Century production? To support Wendell Berry's unsupportable romantic philosophy?”

 “I love reading Wendell Berry, and I love his values, but as far as agricultural policy or economics, it is largely nonsense. Berry lives in Ketucky [sic] and works 125 acres with horses, and horses alone (no engines at all). Great. In my area, land is a million dollars an acre, and I don't have 125 million dollars. Even in rural Virginia, land is $3,000 to $10,000 an acre, so Berry's little farm would cost me somewhere between $375,000 and $1,240,000 for the land alone (no house). Berry is about 75 years old now. Question: who is going to hitch his horses when he is 80? READ MORE ...

Blog Watch: WB appreciated

barkingreed: Wendell Berry.

I'm in love with an old farmer dude. Well, with his literary voice, actually. I recently read "Sex, Economy, Freedom & Community" by Wendell Berry, and I don't mind saying that by the time I was done I was in love. READ MORE ...

Blog Watch: Land & Money

The Newest (and Scariest) Speculation: Farmland « Flying Tomato Farms.

Occasionally you can get an older farmer willing to help out a beginning one by offering a reasonable deal (contract for deed or the like)–but with wealthy investors waiting to plunk down large sums of cash–how is a young farmer going to compete–especially when retiring farmers want some comfort after their long years of toil?
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In the end, there are a couple things that might save us from the nightmare this farmland grab could easily become.  The first is that farming is a risky business–and investors are used to “managed” risk.  But, how do you adequately manage risk in an environment and climate that is increasingly unstable and unpredictable?

And yes, you can insure–but what good does insurance do you if what you really need is food?  Let me cite my favorite of all Wendell Berry quotes here: “What could be more superstitious than the idea that money brings forth food?” READ MORE ...

Forewords, Introductions, Prefaces, and Afterwords

In light of a recent post, I have created a new page containing a list of front and back matter written by Mr. Berry. If you know of any other works that belong on this list, please contact me at btwb@brtom.org.