Soul Food Priest
This is the podcast where culinary and Christianity collide. Each week Fr. Ben Bradshaw will serve up homilies, whip up Teaching Tapas, answer your burning questions, and pass along recipes.
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Episodes
Thursday Jan 12, 2023
Thursday Jan 12, 2023
The etiquette that we use at our dinner tables can remind us of the ways that we ought to interact with others in every other setting of our lives.
Monday Jan 09, 2023
Monday Jan 09, 2023
Every January, Fr. Ben gives a State of the Parish Address to his parishioners to look at the previous year and inform them of his vision for the new year. This is also a time where he encourages all to be active disciples of the Lord and share his gratitude for each of them. This message is also for you. Become great disciples in the world by getting involved at your local parish.
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Even though it's January, it's still the Christmas season in the Catholic Church (this is where the 12 Days of Christmas comes from). In this episode, Fr. Ben discusses the beauty and importance of seasonal drinks and the Blessed Mother. On New Year's Day, the Catholic Church celebrates a feast day for the Blessed Mother, so here's a discussion addressing some questions you might have about her.
Monday Jan 02, 2023
Monday Jan 02, 2023
Pope Emeritus Benedict and St. Joseph are great examples of true manhood. Fr. Ben shares three lessons from the life of St. Joseph that can help all men grow in true masculinity.
Friday Dec 30, 2022
Friday Dec 30, 2022
Merry Christmas! Do you feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders? We hope that as you enjoy this season, and approach the new year, these words of hope and peace bless you.
Friday Dec 30, 2022
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Thursday Dec 22, 2022
Salt is one of the most important ingredients to any dish and Jesus tells us we are the salt of the earth. Fr. Ben elaborates on this and what this means for your life.
Monday Dec 19, 2022
Monday Dec 19, 2022
Fr. Ben encourages us to take courage and speak the truth at all times. The reality of Christ coming at Christmas is that God came to us as Truth, to teach Truth, and have us live in this Truth. We must be courageous.
Thursday Dec 15, 2022
Thursday Dec 15, 2022
What are your must have holiday foods? What are the must haves in your daily walk with the Lord? Fr. Ben, Silvia, and Khira have this discussion as we all are steeped in the hustle & bustle of the holidays and still trying to grow closer to Christ.
Monday Dec 12, 2022
Monday Dec 12, 2022
There are many situations that try our patience every day and how we respond can make all the difference. In this homily, Fr. Ben provides great insight on how to best respond in a way that leads to holiness.
Every other week Fr. Ben will be answering your burning questions regarding food and faith. He is joined by two of his friends and staff members, Silvia Vega and Khira Rotty, who will be the moderators for the upcoming Q & A episodes.
If you have a question for Fr. Ben regarding food or faith email us at soulfoodpriestmemphis@gmail.org or the Soul Food Priest FB page at https://www.facebook.com/soulfoodpriest/.
Fr. Ben Bradshaw S.T.L.
Originally baptized Lutheran, Fr. Ben became Catholic at a young age and attended Catholic schools in Memphis growing up.
He always loved to cook and always considered being a professional chef or a Catholic priest, and so he became both.
At age 17, he began working for a French chef in Memphis and worked in kitchens until age 20. He then entered Johnson & Wales University culinary arts program in Charleston, SC. There he earned an Associate’s degree in Culinary Arts.
Fr. Ben then decided to travel to Russia where he lived and worked as a missionary with a religious community. It was there, in a small village, where he began to consider a calling to be a missionary priest. (Since then he has spent time visiting and working in Guatemala, Mexico, Africa, and Eastern and Western Europe.)
He returned home to Memphis and worked as a pastry chef for 5 years. This led him study in Paris, France at the L’Ecôle Lenôtre school of Pastry Arts, where he studied chocolate and pulled sugar artistry. He continued to consider more frequently the call to be a missionary priest.
After returning to the United States he attended The New England Culinary Institute in Vermont, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Food and Beverage Management. After graduating from NECI, Fr. Ben began considering an option he had not yet considered: Diocesan Priesthood. After much prayerful discernment, he entered the seminary at the age of 27 and was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Memphis in June of 2006.
Fr. Ben earned a Masters of Arts and a Masters of Divinity in Sacred Theology. He wrote his Master's thesis on Pope Saint John Paul II's understanding of femininity and womanhood as it relates to writings of St. Edith Stein. He also holds a Licentiate degree in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family in Washington, D.C. The focus on his dissertation was on the response of the Catholic Church to the issue of Same-Sex attraction. Since 2005, his continuing education studies have been at the Theology of the Body Institute in Philadelphia, P.A.
Fr. Ben is currently the pastor of St. Michael's parish in Memphis, TN.