The Protestant tradition is, by definition, one of reform. Ever since idealistic British settlers founded America, that impulse has found expression through mainline Protestant attitudes toward food. For instance, in the early days, when settlers each consumed about five gallons of rum a year and addiction threatened family stability, alcohol came to be seen as the drink of the devil, Sack explains. Evangelical reformers fueled the temperance movement - which forced churches to reconcile their use of wine in Communion services. The man who devised the first alternative to wine was a temperance advocate named Dr. Charles Welch, whose grape juice business was an immediate success.
Food is synonymous with community in Protestant congregations.
Ever since the British settlements, church members have gathered as much for community as for worship, as an antidote to isolation. The social congregation, with church suppers and post-worship coffee and donuts, is a uniquely American invention, Sack says. Because American culture encourages competition, because Americans must travel greater distances to get to church, and because they have many faiths to choose from, food provides a practical and appealing connection to Protestant congregations. In addition to bringing people in with food, Protestants have a long tradition of feeding the hungry. This belief has instilled in Protestants a sense of noblesse oblige - a sense that they are responsible to make sure that the poorer sort are taken care of.